Repsol Honda Team riders finish first and second, respectively, on the first day of practice for the Indianapolis Grand Prix.
The first and second placed riders in the MotoGP standings, Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa, topped the free practice standings on their return from the summer break. Marquez again showed his great form right from the start of the weekend, adjusting to MotoGP riding at a track where he had won for last two years in Moto2. His teammate, Dani Pedrosa, made improvement as the day progressed, eventually finishing the afternoon session just 80 thousandths of a second down on his teammate and erasing doubts about his fitness.
The tenth round of the MotoGP World Championship kicked off today in America, at what is considered one of the meccas of motorsports: The Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The main protagonist of the day was the rider leading the World Championship, despite this being his first outing at Indy on a MotoGP machine.
Marc Marquez was the fastest rider of the day with a time of 1’39.502, followed by his Repsol Honda teammate, Dani Pedrosa. Sixth in the first session, the man second in the overall standings improved his pace in the second runout and showed that his previously injured left collarbone is in good shape after the summer’s rest. Finally he placed 80 thousandths of a second behind his teammate, concluding the day in second.
Dani Pedrosa >> Audio
FP1 – 1:41.590, 19 laps, 80 km
FP2 – 1:39.582, 19 laps, 80 km.
“Today we went on track in both sessions, unlike at Laguna Seca. During the first session I felt a little strange when riding and I was a stiff on the bike, but in the second session I went faster because I loosened up a lot. Let’s see if tomorrow we can improve the feel on the bike and take some more off our lap time.”
Marc Marquez >> Audio
FP1 – 1:40.781, 19 laps, 80 km.
FP2 – 1:39.502, 21 laps, 89 km.
“Today went pretty well. After the break it was important to regain confidence on the bike. The truth is that I felt comfortable almost immediately. I tried to stay calm during the first few laps, as they are the most delicate and I’m happy with how the day went. The track improved a lot in terms of grip from session to session, so tomorrow we will likely see the times come down again. I think we’re going in the right direction, so tomorrow we will continue as we have been doing so far.”
