The Ducati rider, Marc Márquez, has demonstrated his determination at the Australian Grand Prix by achieving pole position, despite having suffered a crash in the early laps. Meteorological difficulties have been key in this qualifying session, which has surprised the Aprilia team.
The reigning world champion set the best time of the session with a record of 1m34.203s in the final moments of Qualifying 2, surpassing his brother, Alex Márquez, by a difference of 1.493s.
LCR Honda managed to get Johann Zarco from Q1 to the front row, while the championship leader, Jorge Martín, could only finish fourth with the best lap of his Aprilia RS-GP.
The track conditions complicated the drivers’ work, with terrain already wet from the previous night’s rain. Additionally, a new downpour at the beginning of the session worsened the situation for all competitors.
Marc Márquez was the first to suffer the effects of this adverse weather, crashing at turn 4 after only three minutes, without having completed a lap. Nevertheless, he returned to the paddock with his damaged bike to take his second vehicle and continue participating in the session.
On his first quick lap, the Spanish rider immediately climbed to first place, surpassing Zarco by just 0.087s. At this moment, his title rivals, Marco Bezzecchi and Martín, occupied sixth and tenth positions, respectively, unable to match the rhythm from Friday.
In the final bursts, Zarco once again stood out with a spectacular time of 1m35.706s, but could do nothing against Márquez, who found a time of 1.5s on his final lap and secured his fourth pole of the season.
Alex Márquez delivered an outstanding performance by closing in second place, thus achieving a 1-2 qualifying for Ducati. Zarco held onto third place, closely followed by his Honda.
Jorge Martín improved in the final laps to finish fourth, becoming the best Aprilia rider and leaving Jack Miller, who was racing as a local, in fifth place. Raul Fernández closed the top 6 for Trackhouse, while Pedro Acosta qualified seventh for KTM.
Marco Bezzecchi had a difficult day, finishing in ninth place after a low performance, just ahead of LCR Honda rider Diogo Moreira. The top twelve riders were completed by Enea Bastianini and Ai Ogura.
The day was also marked by withdrawals, with Honda announcing Luca Marini’s retirement due to illness, leaving the team without available riders, after Joan Mir had already missed the Australian GP due to health issues.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
