2018 MotoGP Results Saturday from Le Mans

2018 MotoGP Results Saturday from Le Mans — Johan Zarco became the first French rider to take pole at his home GP since Christian Sarron in 1988, with a fully abandoned lap where the usually super-smooth Yamaha rider twice lost the rear in just a few yards.

            His time of 1’31.185 was a new outright track record, and put the independent-team Tech3 rider a full tenth clear of second-fastest Marc Marquez’s response on the Repsol Honda, and all but six tenths faster than the better of the two factory Yamahas, with Maverick Vinales eighth-fastest, and Rossi ninth.

            Practice was run in a second day of blue skies and bright sunshine, but with relatively cool air temperature causing a number of crashes during the day, including a spectacularly hard high-side that ended LCR Honda rider Cal Crutchlow’s bid to get through to Q2, and sent him to hospital for checks.

            Zarco credited “the amazing support” of the crowd for finding the extra tenths; while Marquez admitted he was just too fast. But with the top seven inside half a second, he added: “There are three or four riders with a very similar pace, so I think it will be tough to be on the podium.”

            Danilo Petrucci was an impressive third fastest, the Pramac Ducati rider having to find his way through from Q1.

            Ecstar Suzuki rider Andrea Iannone narrowly leads row two from the factgory Ducatis of Andrea Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo. Alma Ducati rider Jack Miller was seventh, to lead row three from the Movistar Yamaha pair Vinales and Rossi.

            Behind them, Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda, also through from Q1) had Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Ducati) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia) alongside.

            Espargaro had crashed at the very fast Turn One at the start of the 15-minute session, but came back with a time barely 1.3 seconds off pole.

            Best of the rest: doubtful starter Crutchlow, from Hafizh Syahrin (Tech3 Yamaha) and Alex Rins (Ecstar Suzuki); with Franco Morbidelli (EG-VDS Honda) heading row seven from the KTMs of Smith and Espargaro. 

2018 MotoGP Results Saturday from Le Mans

HJC HELMETS GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE

MotoGP Qualifying Nr. 2 Classification 2018

Le Mans, Saturday, May 19, 2018