Espargaró and Márquez compete in first two Free Practice sessions for the British Grand Prix, finishing fourth and fifth, respectively. Márquez suffers a spectacular crash at the end of FP1, escaping unscathed.
MotoGP action returned to Silverstone after a two-year absence, with dry conditions on the opening day.
Pol Espargaró managed to take a step forward with his riding onboard the Honda RC213V. The Repsol Honda Team rider started the day with the fourth best time of FP1, repeating this position in FP2 with a 2:00.035, 7 tenths off the top spot.
The time gives him a strong chance of going straight into Q2 on Saturday.
Marc Márquez began Friday leading the first Free Practice. With just a few minutes to go before the end of the session, the Repsol Honda Team rider suffered a spectacular crash at a speed of more than 250 km/h, from which he was thankfully unhurt.
In FP2, Márquez set a best time of 2:00.051 thousandths, which allowed him to finish fifth and also virtually ensure a spot in Q2.
MARC MÁRQUEZ – 5th 2’00.051
“Today I was feeling really good from the start, I went out and I was riding like I wanted to. Unfortunately, at the end of FP1 we had a big crash and I got some dirt inside my eye which caused some crying during FP2 and it was difficult to concentrate well and perform at my best. Even in this situation we were able to perform well but after FP2 the eye felt worse, my vision has always been ok, but I went to the hospital to get it properly cleaned. Now I will take some rest, keep the eye closed and be ready for tomorrow. The aim is to keep this level until Sunday.”
POL ESPARGARÓ – 4th 2’00.035
“It was a good day, but not our best day so far. Everything was going quite well today, this is true. With the medium tyres we couldn’t push too much because it has still been quite cold but we found a good direction with the soft in these conditions. There are no complaints today and right now I am feeling good with the bike, the track, the temperature, and everything is coming smoothly to us. It’s all working well but today doesn’t matter in FP3 and it does not matter on Sunday, so we need to keep working to improve. It’s not the time to get excited, it’s the time to work.”
