The penultimate Super Saturday awaited the Red Bull KTM Tech3 squad at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, with plenty of exciting MotoGP™ action going on. Pol Espargaro got himself a nice 10th place on the grid to later on transform it into a top 10 in the Tissot Sprint, while Enea Bastianini claimed the 13th place of Portimao's sprint from 16th on the grid.
Grand Prix of Portugal
QUALIFYING
After a tricky first day at the rollercoaster, Enea Bastianini therefore faced Q1 on Saturday morning, alongside the likes of Fabio Quartararo, the surprise guest of the session. Enea kicked off Q1 behind the Frenchman, which allowed the Tech3 rider to clock in a first lap in 1’40.494 to sit in 3rd, with Quartararo the early pace setter. Enea further improved to a 1’39.738 as he sat in a provisional 2nd place at the pit box return. For run 2, red sectors were all over the place, but eventually, the Yamahas of Fabio Quartarao and Jack Miller came on top. Enea’s late improvement to a 1’39.635 saw him qualify 16th on the grid. A few minutes later, it was Pol Espargaro’s turn to hit the track for Q2 to try to place his RC16 as well as possible. Polyccio began with a 1’39.194 to sit in a provisional 6th, while it was Quartararo, coming from Q1, who was first to top the timesheets in 1’38.518. After a pit box stop, Espargaro rejoined the action for his run, in a provisional P8. Time was ticking, and he sat in 12th a few seconds to the end, but a late effort in 1’38.499 granted him the 10th place on the grid, as he was set to lead row 4 in both Tissot Sprint and main event.
TISSOT SPRINT
When lights of Portimao’s sprint were out at 15:00 for 12 laps, it was poleman Marco Bezzecchi who took the holeshot arriving at T1, while Pol Espargaro had gained two positions to 8th in the first few corners. The Spaniard led charges of his group, while Johann Zarco sat 1.5 seconds away already. Behind, a charging Brad Binder was not going to wait for too long, and he was quick to move past Espargaro on lap 2. Still, the number 44 was showing a solid early pace, with a 1’39.044 on lap 3, and a 1'39.002 on lap 4, a rhythm that allowed him to keep Fermin Aldeguer distant behind. A bit further at the back, Enea Bastianini had made an ok start as he gained two positions to 13th exiting lap 1, and then began a small battle for 13th against Jack Miller, one that the Australian won in the first place. Meanwhile, the show at the front was insane, with Pedro Acosta, Alex Marquez and Marco Bezzecchi battling it hard for the gold. Halfway through, Pol remained in 9th, 0.6 seconds away from Binder, and with Aldeguer 0.7 seconds behind, but the rookie increased the pace to quickly close the gap on the Tech3 rider. Lap 8 was the one where Espargaro lost his place in the point-scoring positions, but he managed to hold P10 until the checkered flag. Solid result for Espargaro once again, with an encouraging performance heading to the main distance. Meanwhile, we had Bastianini battling it out for 13th with Miller again, and the Italian finally overcame the Aussie entering lap 6. Luca Marini was next ahead, 1.2 seconds, but the gap grew in the final laps. P13 was it for Bastianini, who will be eager for more on the long distance on Sunday, with the final showdown of the Portuguese GP scheduled at 13:00 local time (UTC), for 25 laps.
POL ESPARGARO: "We are happy with our day! We were satisfied with our grid position, and then in the sprint, we had a good rhythm! I was in the group battling it for 6th until the end, but I made a couple mistakes and I almost had Ai Ogura catching me up, but I got P10 in the end, which is great because the level was insane! Good feelings heading to tomorrow's race, I hope that we can have a great race."
ENEA BASTIANINI: "The sprint was complicated, I was expecting a bit more to be honest. I tried to give more after 4/5 laps, but the front tire had dropped too much, which is strange, because normally we are good with the hard component. I am still missing a lot of confidence on corner entry, and grip on the edge, which is a big problem for us because I am losing time in many parts of the track. So we need to keep working, and try to find ways to improve these issues, which are happening every weekend."
NICOLAS GOYON, Team Manager: "Pol Espargaro continued to amaze us, because it was for sure not an easy task to qualify in the top 10. Then he achieved another top 10 in the sprint, which we are really happy with, because he has been riding a bike with some potential future evolutions. On Enea Bastianini's side, we expected a bit more, but the issues have remained the same as usual unfortunately, and we still have not really found a solution to help him feel more comfortable in the fast corners. He took a strong start during the sprint, but he finished in 13th, which is obviously far from our target. Let's focus on everything that has been done today, and try arriving tomorrow in better shape."
QUALIFYING RESULTS
1. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA), Aprilia Racing, 1'37.556
2. Pedro Acosta (SPA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, +0.150
3. Fabio Quartararo (FRA), Yamaha MotoGP Team, +0.304
10. Pol Espargaro (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +0.893
16. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +0.974 (Q1)
TISSOT SPRINT RESULTS
1. Alex Marquez (SPA), BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP, 19'50.075
2. Pedro Acosta (SPA), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, +0.120
3. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA), Aprilia Racing, +0.637
10. Pol Espargaro (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +10.121
13. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +13.469
TRACK RECORDS
All time record: 2023 - M. Marquez (SPA) - 1'37.226 - 170.0 km/h
Best Race Lap: 2024 - E. Bastianini (ITA) - 1'38.685 - 167.5 km/h
Best Pole: 2023 - M. Marquez (SPA) - 1'37.226 - 170.0 km/h
Top Speed: 2024 - M. Oliveira (POR) - 352.9 km/h
