Motegi MotoGP Saturday stats pack
Words and images courtesy MGP
Acosta took his maiden pole position in MotoGP, setting a new all-time lap record at Motegi. This is the first KTM/GASGAS pole since Miguel Oliveira at the 2020 Portuguese GP (on his way to winning the race). Aged 20 years 133 days old, Acosta is the third-youngest premier class polesitter after Fabio Quartararo and Marc Marquez. He crashed out in the Sprint while leading, but, aged 20 years 134 days old on Sunday, he will aim to become the second-youngest premier class winner after Marc Marquez (20 years and 63 days old in Austin in 2013). As there was no rookie entry before Q1, Acosta is now mathematically Rookie of the Year.
A FIRST AT MOTEGI?
Aprilia and KTM have not yet won at Motegi. So far, their best results here are P5 and P2, respectively.
Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team)
Qualifying position: 2 – Tissot Sprint: Win
Bagnaia has qualified second, as in 2023 at Motegi, for his 10th top three in qualifying so far this season. He took his sixth Sprint win of 2024, and he will now be aiming to take his fourth double (Sprint and GP wins) of the season. If he wins the GP race, 2024 will be his best MotoGP season regarding wins and he’ll be the first rider to take eight (or more) wins in a single MotoGP season since Marc Marquez in 2019 (12), and would join Marquez, Casey Stoner, Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo as the only riders to have won eight or more Grand Prix races in a single MotoGP season. He is second in the Championship, but now just 15 points behind Martin.
– 13/13? –If Ducati win, it will be their 13th MotoGP GP win in a row, setting a new personal record. They would be the first factory to win 13 in a row since Honda did it from the 2001 Pacific GP to the 2002 German GP.
Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing)
Qualifying position: 3 – Tissot Sprint: 9
Viñales has qualified third, which is his sixth top three in qualifying so far this season and the best Aprilia qualifying result at Motegi. It’s his first front row since Assen. He scored one point in the Sprint, finishing P9. A win would be his 11th MotoGP GP win and second with Aprilia, along with COTA this season.
-3/3-
With Acosta, Bagnaia and Viñales, this is only the second time there are three riders from three different manufacturers in the top three in qualifying so far this year along with Austin.
Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team)
Qualifying position: 4 – Tissot Sprint: 2
Bastianini qualified fourth, taking his eighth top six in qualifying this season. He took his fourth Sprint podium of the year, finishing P2, and he will now aim to take his eighth MotoGP win overall and third of the season.
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing)
Qualifying position: 5 – Tissot Sprint: DNF
Binder qualified fifth for his second-best qualifying so far this season after Lusail, Jerez, Catalunya, and Emilia- Romagna when he was fourth. He retired from the Sprint with a technical issue and will aim to finish on the podium for the second time so far this year along with Qatar (P2), or to win for the first time since Austria 2021.
Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing)
Qualifying position: 6 – Tissot Sprint: 5
Via Q1, Morbidelli qualified sixth for his fifth top six in qualifying this season. He finished P5 in the Sprint and will be aiming to take his first GP podium since he was P3 in Jerez in 2021. He came close last weekend.
Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team)
Qualifying position: 7 – Tissot Sprint: 6
Di Giannantonio has qualified seventh for his best qualifying since he was sixth in Assen earlier this year. He finished P6 in the Sprint. A win would be his second in the premier class and a podium, his third.
Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team)
Qualifying position: 8 – Tissot Sprint: 10
Bezzecchi has qualified eighth, missing out on the top six in qualifying for the first time since he was 13th in Aragon. He finished P10 in the Sprint and will be aiming to take his first win since India last year and to stand on the podium for the second time in 2024, along with Jerez where he was third
Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP)
Qualifying position: 9 – Tissot Sprint: 3
Marquez qualified P9 after his best lap was cancelled for track limits. He finished P3 in the Sprint for his eighth Sprint podium of 2024. He’ll be aiming to win for the third time this year along with Aragon and San Marino.
Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP)
Qualifying position: 10 – Tissot Sprint: 7
Alex Marquez has qualified 10th, which is the eighth time he missed out on the top nine in qualifying. He finished P7 in the Sprint, and he will now aim to add to his premier class podium collection (two with Honda and three with Ducati so far) or to take his maiden MotoGP win.
Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing)
Qualifying position: 11 – Tissot Sprint: 4
Winner here last year, Martin has qualified 11th after crashing in Q2. It’s his worst qualifying result since Austria last year when he qualified 12th. He finished P4 in the Sprint and on Sunday he will aim to take his ninth MotoGP win overall, and fourth of the season. He is still leading the Championship but now with a lesser 15-point advantage over Bagnaia.
Who can win what: Japanese GP
Moto3TM World Championship: David Alonso
Alonso can win the Moto3 title at Motegi. His rivals are Daniel Holgado, Ivan Ortola and Collin Veijer. Alonso needs to score three points more than Holgado and not concede more than five to Ortola and seven to Veijer.
With nine wins so far, Alonso has chance to join Marc Marquez, Joan Mir and Fausto Gresini as riders to have taken 10 wins in a single lightweight class season. The record is the 11 taken by Valentino Rossi in 1997.
Alonso can become the first motorcycle racing Grand Prix champion, in any class, from Colombia.