Five MotoGP riders that shocked us during Qualifying in Assen

Another standout rookie performance, KTM returning to the top ten and surprise absentees from Q2 at the Dutch MotoGP - here are five riders that shocked us during qualifying in Assen.
Luca Marini, Ducati MotoGP Assen
Luca Marini, Ducati MotoGP Assen

Known as the Cathedral of Speed, qualifying for the ꧅DutchGP saw Francesco Bagnaia do what Bagnaia does - set another new MotoGP lap record - while Fabio Quartararo appears to be in ominous form once again. 

Quartararo’s main title contender Aleix Espargaro had a good, but unspectacular qualifying as yellow flags cost him the chance to fighᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚt for a front row position.

There were also late crashไes for Ducati riders Jorge Martin and Jack Miller as the pair went beyond the limit in an attempt to challenge for pole. 

Remote video URL

But who are the five riders that either🌳 ha✃d a qualifying to remember or one to forget?

Marco Bezzecchi - 4th 

After a great start to the season led to him being the rookie to beat, Bezzecchi has been overshadowed in recent rounds by Fabio Di Giannantonio, especi𒁃ally when it comes to qualifying.

However, with the Gresini Ducati rider failing to adva💯nce through to Q2 and Bezzecchi already in the mix following his top ten result in FP3, the Italian guaranteed himself the chance of being the leading rookie, regardless of the result h🦩e achieved.

Bezzecchi, who has crashed twice already this weekend, put that to the back o💞f his mind wh🥀en it counted and produced a very impressive performance as he beat the likes of Espargaro, Miller and Zarco. 

Bezze🐎cchi’s penultimate lap looked like being good enough for🐠 a front row start, before the Mooney VR46 rider lost time in sector four, resulting in him finishing +0.088s behind Martin.

Miguel Oliveira - 8th

While eigh𝓰th is the sort of position KTM regularly competes for during races, qualifying inside the top ten has been nowhere near as frequent.

Miguel
Miguel

But after a brilliant Q1 performance, both Brad Binder and Oliveira were able to clinch top ten resul♛ts - Oliveira was able to get the better of Binder by close to a t🧜enth.

Oliveira has also shown strong race pace so far this weekend🍷 which could translate to fighting for a top five on Su🧸nday.

Three riders disappoint during Assen MotoGP Q1, but who are they?

Luca Marini - 13th

With his rookie team-mate lining-up in fourth, failing to advance through Q1 is an obvious disappointment for Marini♚ who has also looked strong at times this weekend. 

The Italian has been very impressive over the last three races, fiꦡnishing no lower than sixth in any of them. 

Marini was the biggest challenger to both Oliveira and Binder in Q1, howev⛦er, the former Moto2 runner-up lacked pac🌜e in sector three which was ultimately his undoing.

Given his 💞form of late, to say five Ducati riders qualified inside the top seven positions and Marini🅷 not be one of those names is a surprise.   

Joan Mir - 14th

After it appeared as though Mir anꦐd Suzuki made significant steps forward༒ in free practice, qualifying was another case of deja vu for the Spaniard.

Joan Mir, Dutch MotoGP, 25 June
Joan Mir, Dutch MotoGP, 25 June

His bestꦕ lap time was over four tenths away from Binder, while it was also five tenths slower than what Alex Rins man💫aged in Q2. 

Mir, who is considered to be on the verge of joining Repsol Honda, should be able to use his strong race pace and challenge for a top ten, however, it’s going to be another damage limitation day for th🍸e Suzuki rider. 

Franco Morbidelli - 20th

Frequently making an appearance🏅 on this list, Morbidelli’s awful 2022 season continued during qualifying at Assen.

After being hit with a long-lap penalty for tomorrow’s race due to slow riding on the ra♚cing line (FP2), the Italian was absolutely nowhere when it came to challenging for a Q2 spot. 

If the Yamaha rider was short on confidence coming into the weekend, then seeing his Q1 lap be over 1.4 seconds slower than𒈔 what Quartararo managed won’t help.

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