Honda and Yamaha continue evaluation of new aerodynamics – No time chase in the morning – Colourful top field, KTM not yet showing top times
The first MotoGP practice session for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring in Austria focused on evaluating new developments and working on set-up. Johann Zarco (Pramac-Ducati) set the first fastest time of the weekend at 1’29.838, four tenths of a second ahead of Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha).
Honda will rely on the new aerodynamic package at Spielberg. At Silverstone, LCR satellite rider Takaaki Nakagami collected first data with it on one bike. Now both of the Japanese rider’s RC213Vs will be equipped with it in Austria.
And the factory team also homologated this update (one is allowed per season). Marc Marquez and Joan Mir had mounted the new fairing on one of their two bikes, gathered first experiences and made comparisons with the old version.
At Yamaha, the comparisons with the previous and the new fairing also continued. Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli also each had an M1 fitted with the new fairing.
After the first minutes, Alex Marquez had to park his Gresini-Ducati. Smoke was coming from the front wheel in the Rindt corner. It was a small problem with the Öhlins front fork. Nothing happened. The Spaniard rode his second GP22 after a few minutes.
Since the morning practice is meaningless for qualifying, the focus was on testing and working with the set-up. After 20 minutes, Quartararo led the timing. Augusto Fernandez (Tech3-Gasgas) had a harmless crash at the entrance of the new chicane.
Keep an eye on the Hondas this weekend!
They’re continuing with their big new aero that they hope will provide something interesting to work with going forward! AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/CAmamBA9NC
– MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) August 18, 2023
For the hard braking points at Spielberg, the teams use Brembo’s largest brake discs, namely at the front wheel with a diameter of 355 millimetres. Special calipers that can dissipate heat are also used at the Red Bull Ring.
There were a few rides into the gravel in turn 4, including the Aprilias of Aleix Espargaro and Miguel Oliveira as well as Marc Marquez. Nothing happened. All were able to continue their ride without crashing.
All riders were on the medium rear tyre and the majority were on the soft front tyre. Some riders switched to the medium front tyre for the second half of the session. Only the Pramac duo and Enea Bastianini (Ducati) tried the hard option.
Late crash for Marc Marquez
Four and a half minutes before the end of the practice Marc Marquez crashed in turn 4. He had gone too fast into the corner, ran out of track at the apex and had to go straight into the gravel. There the Spaniard tipped over. Nothing happened and he was able to return to the pits.
In the end, there was no time chase. But some riders set their personal best time on their last lap. Among them was Zarco, who beat Quartararo’s early time by four tenths of a second.
A harmless tip-off for @marcmarquez93 at Turn 4!
One of the trickiest braking points on the calendar ⚠️AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/l7hL3rHkI1
– MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) August 18, 2023
Behind the two Frenchmen, Maverick Vinales (Aprilia) followed in third. Alex Marquez and Marco Bezzecchi (VR46-Ducati) completed the top five, with Fabio di Giannantonio putting an exclamation mark on his time with sixth fastest. He is still racing for his future with Gresini-Ducati.
The best Honda rider was Nakagami in seventh. The Japanese rider was exactly half a second behind. World Champion Francesco Bagnaia, as is often the case in the first practice session, held back and was eighth
As always, it’s a big weekend for KTM here!
There and plenty of eyes on the orange (and red) bikes AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/gOlIUzZp7R
– MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) August 18, 2023
The top 10 was completed by Aleix Espargaro and Jorge Martin (Pramac-Ducati). The Honda factory team finished twelfth with Mir and 18th with Marc Marquez, the latter the first rider to finish just over a second behind the leaders.
There was not much to see from KTM in the timesheets either. Brad Binder was nine tenths of a second behind in 14th place and Jack Miller was second to last. Test rider Dani Pedrosa watched from the side of the track, but was pleased with the handling of the RC16.
The afternoon practice session starts at 15:00. This one-hour session will determine who qualifies directly for tomorrow’s Q2 qualifying session.
