The action of a busy Red Bull Grand Prix of San Marino and the Rimini Riviera kicked off on Friday at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, with local hero Enea Bastianini playing on home turf just a few days after taking his first podium of the year. It was a very competitive Friday, with 14 riders finishing less than one second from each other, but both Maverick Viñales and Enea Bastianini unfortunately came short of the top 10, as they will both face Q1 on Saturday.
Grand Prix of San Marino and The Rimini Riviera
The weekend was expected to be challenging for our Maverick Viñales still on his way back to full fitness, with the Rimini layout being one of the hardest physically, most specifically the 3rd sector. The number 12 took things progressively on the first day, starting with FP1 which he ended with the 17th time (1'32.306, +0.964). Track conditions became more challenging in the afternoon’s practice, with a track at 37°, and many Italians wanting to take the lead on the opening day. Although eventually, it turned out to be Marc Marquez coming on top at end of play, so no local glory for today. After the first half of Practice dedicated to bike setting and race pace preps, the Spaniard then sat in a provisional 12th place with a best in 1’32.168. He further improved to a 1’31.540 in a one flying lap-run, and then as the proper time attack shootout began, he clocked in a 1’31.268, which had him in P13. One last effort saw him finish the one-hour session with a best lap in 1’31.249 and the 14th place. That little something was missing today, and Viñales will have to go through Q1 on Saturday morning.
Expectations were high for local hero Enea Bastianini, podium-finisher of the 2024 San Marino GP and winner of the 2024 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna. ‘Bestia’ first had to figure out his home track with his RC16, and today was all about the learning. After the first 19 laps of FP1, Enea was in the top 15, 0.817 seconds from early pacesetter Franco Morbidelli. In the afternoon’s Practice, things didn't go as fast as he would have hoped, with Bastianini missing out on the top 10 cut by 0.66 seconds with a – far from the expectations – P17 place. The Italian remained closed to the Q2 spots, but missed a little something all session through. Ahead of the final 20 minutes, Bastia was in 11th with a 1’31.572 as Marc Marquez led charges, and he had dropped to 16th before his final run. The number 23 could not improve his lap time, and his earlier lap remained his best, meaning he finished 17th of the session. Bastianini will have to go through the pre-qualifying stage on Saturday morning, shortly after Free Practice 2 kicking off the last Super Saturday in Europe for a while, at 10:10 LT. Then, it will be time for the Tissot Sprint at 15:00, for 13 laps.
MAVERICK VIÑALES: "Riding on a track like Misano which is very tough physically is helping me a lot in my recovery process, and we are already feeling much stronger than in Montmelo a few days ago. There are a lot of changes of direction here, so it is challenging me, but I am very satisfied with how my body is recovering overall. The bike is very good, with strong potential, I am trying to push to the limits, but I am quite close, so I am very optimistic!"
ENEA BASTIANINI: "The day was complicated! The bike was too nervous this morning, and it was the same feeling more or less this afternoon, especially in sector 3. At the start of Practice, I could do a few good consecutive laps with the medium rear tire, but when we tried the soft at the rear, it felt worse to be honest. Surprisingly, I also struggled at the brakes with the soft. We are far from the first 2-3 riders, so we urgently need to figure out a way to solve these small issues for Saturday, and hopefully we will see improvements."
PRACTICE SESSION RESULTS
1. Marc Marquez (SPA), Ducati Lenovo Team, 1'30.480
2. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA), Aprilia Racing, +0.147
3. Franco Morbidelli (ITA), VR 46 Racing Team, +0.193
14. Maverick Viñales (SPA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +0.769
17. Enea Bastianini (ITA), Red Bull KTM Tech3, +1.092
TRACK RECORDS
All Time Record: 2024 - F. Bagnaia (ITA) - 1'30.031 - 168.9 km/h
Best Race Lap: 2024 - F. Bagnaia (ITA) - 1'30.877 - 167.4 km/h
Best Pole: 2024 - F. Bagnaia (ITA) - 1'30.031 - 168.9 km/h
Top Speed: 2023 - M. Bezzecchi (ITA) - 305.9 km/h
