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Fabio Quartararo, the 2021 MotoGP world champion from France, set a new fastest-ever lap at the Spanish Grand Prix during Saturday’s qualifying session in Jerez.
This performance secured him pole position for both the sprint and the main MotoGP races.
This marks Quartararo’s 17th career pole position but his first since the Indonesian Grand Prix in 2022. The Yamaha rider’s lap time of 1 minute 35.610 seconds was just 0.033 seconds quicker than Marc Marquez’s best Q2 lap.
Earlier in the session, championship leader Marc Marquez had broken the previous lap record, set by his brother Alex on Friday, by three-tenths of a second.
Joining Quartararo and Marc Marquez on the front row for Sunday’s race will be Francesco Bagnaia. Despite having only one bike available due to a practice crash, the reigning two-time world champion showed strong pace after recent difficulties.
Alex Marquez, who had held the lap record briefly, will start from the second row in fourth place, alongside Franco Morbidelli and Maverick Vinales.
Quartararo expressed his happiness, particularly highlighting the team’s progress in improving their performance.
Despite being narrowly beaten to pole, Marc Marquez, who currently leads the championship standings ahead of his brother and Bagnaia, was satisfied with his qualifying position and focused on getting a good start in Sunday’s main race.
He acknowledged Quartararo’s “incredible lap,” which set a new circuit record, and reiterated his aim of starting from the front row, which he achieved.
