Ducati MotoGP rider Enea Bastianini secured the top spot on the grid for the Portuguese Grand Prix in a thrilling qualifying session at Portimao. Bastianini, who has struggled with race pace at this circuit, surprised everyone with his exceptional performance over a single lap, earning him his second career pole position. This achievement is particularly significant for Bastianini, as last year he suffered a season-ending injury in a crash with Luca Marini at this very track. Maverick Vinales of Aprilia came agonizingly close to snatching pole position from Bastianini, falling short by just 0.082 seconds. Despite battling gastroenteritis throughout the weekend, Vinales was the only Aprilia rider to make it into Q2. Jorge Martin of Pramac Ducati completed the front row, with Pecco Bagnaia, his rival for the 2024 title, starting alongside him. Jack Miller, formerly of Ducati and now riding for KTM, and Marco Bezzecchi of VR46 Ducati will join them on the second row. Pedro Acosta, a rookie, impressed by advancing from Q1 and securing the seventh spot on the grid, just 0.009 seconds ahead of Marc Marquez. Unfortunately, Marquez’s chances for pole position were dashed by a crash in Turn 15 during his first run. It was a disappointing result for Marquez, who had shown great potential throughout the weekend. Fabio Quartararo led the Japanese manufacturers in ninth place, followed closely by Brad Binder of KTM and Alex Rins of Yamaha. Alex Marquez rounded out the top 12 in Q2, although he was unable to set a competitive lap time. Aleix Espargaro of Aprilia was the fastest among the riders eliminated in Q1, but he was still over two tenths of a second away from advancing. He will start on the fifth row alongside Fabio Di Giannantonio of VR46 Ducati and Miguel Oliveira of RNF Aprilia, the home hero. Honda had a dismal performance at this track, which was expected to suit their bikes better than the previous circuit. Johann Zarco of LCR was the top Honda rider, narrowly beating Joan Mir of the factory team. However, both riders were over nine tenths of a second away from advancing to Q2. The only Honda rider with a somewhat competitive position was Augusto Fernandez of Tech3 Gas Gas, who qualified in 19th place.
Carlos Sainz Jr, wearing a blue race suit, has expressed the importance of receiving strong support from a team in his decision-making process for his Formula 1 future...
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