Indonesian MotoGP FP2: Aleix Espargaro sets lap time record at Mandalika, Bagnaia drops to Q1

It was Factory Aprilia’s dominance at the Mandalika during the FP2 on Friday as Aleix Espargaro set the fastest lap time of 1m30.474s, ahead of teammate Maverick Vinales and Mooney VR46 Racing’s Marco Bezzecchi, who arrived in Lombok only this morning. The Italian returned after being declared fit to take part in the race after going through a surgery for the right collarbone he fractured last week.
Reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia had a tough day as he managed only to be the 16th fastest rider during the second practice, thereby missing the direct qualification to Q2. Although Bagnaia did try and make an attempt to be amongst the top 10 riders, his mistake on the penultimate corner changed everything and thus, he will be taking part in both the qualification sessions tomorrow.

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During the hour-long second practice, Fabio Di Giannantonio of Gresini took the lead early on. However, he was soon overtaken by Espargaro who maintained his lead until the last 15 minutes, when he set a time of 1m31.088s. Shortly after, he slipped off his RS-GP at Turn 10, while Vinales took the lead with 1m30.853s, only to be surpassed by Bezzecchi with a stunning 1m30.644s on his year-old Desmosedici.
Despite the incident, Espargaro managed to secure the top spot again with 1m30.474s, leading Vinales by 0.154s, who managed to reclaim his lead over Bezzecchi.
Binder, having recovered from early adversities, finished fourth, followed by Jorge Martin on his Pramac Ducati. Marquez, Oliveira, and Di Giannantonio secured the subsequent positions. Jack Miller of Factory KTM and Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo rounded off the top 10.
The Indonesian MotoGP is the 15th round of the 2023 season, and it is shaping up to be an exciting weekend with nearly every rider back in contention for the victory. Martin, who is hot on Bagnaia’s heels in the championship, will be looking to overtake the Italian during this round.

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