Enea Bastianini bounced back to the top of the timesheets with record-breaking pace during Friday free practice for the French MotoGP, despite being one of many to suffer a tumble on an error-strewn day at Le Mans.
The only rider to win more than one race so far this season, the Gresini Ducati rider put the disappointment of his DNF last time out at Jerez behind him to put in a series of quick laps towards the end of the FP2 session.
After having two quick laps cancelled due to track limits, Bastianini hooked it up at his third attempt to stop the clock with a 1m 31.148s, putting him under the lap record and more than two tenths up on second place man Aleix Espargaro.
Even so, Bastianini was one of multiple riders to come down in FP2 alone as the French circuit - notorious for prompting incident with its mid-corner camber shifts - lived up to its infamous reputation, the Italian slipping off at Turn 3 just seconds after setting his time.
He wasn’t alone though with Joan Mir and Jack Miller coming down early on, before Marco Bezzecchi, Luca Marini, Franco Morbidelli and Alex Marquez all tipped off in the final minutes. This came after Bastianini and Morbidelli suffered earlier falls in FP1, along with Miguel Oliveira, Raul Fernandez and Brad Binder.
Behind Espargaro in second on the Aprilia, Alex Rins got his head down amid heavy media scrutiny of his Suzuki team in third place, ahead of Johann Zarco, who survived a dramatic moment mid-way through the session with a high-speed run-on at Turn 2 that briefly had his Pramac Ducati airborne with both wheels off the ground.
Jerez sparring partners Pecco Bagnaia and championship leader Fabio Quartararo were fifth and sixth fastest, with Binder bouncing back from a difficult start to the day to go seventh on the KTM. Joan Mir held onto eighth despite crashing heavily at Turn 7, ahead of FP1 pace setter Pol Espargaro and Jorge Martin in the final provisional Q2 spot in tenth.
Riders with work to do heading into FP3, meanwhile, include Jack Miller in 11th and Marc Marquez in 15th.
2022 French MotoGP | Le Mans | FP1 + FP2 Results [Combined]
| 2022 French MotoGP | Le Mans | FP1 + FP2 Results [Combined] | Round 7 / 21 | |||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat. | MotoGP Team | MotoGP Bike | Timing |
| 1 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Gresini Racing | Ducati GP21 | 1m 31.148 |
| 2 | Aleix Espargaro | ESP | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia RS-GP | 1m 31.350 |
| 3 | Alex Rins | ESP | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki GSX-RR | 1m 31.445 |
| 4 | Johann Zarco | FRA | Pramac Racing | Ducati GP22 | 1m 31.508 |
| 5 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati GP22 | 1m 31.635 |
| 6 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Energy Yamaha | Yamaha YZF-M1 | 1m 31.640 |
| 7 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM Racing | KTM RC16 | 1m 31.657 |
| 8 | Joan Mir | ESP | Team Suzuki Ecstar | Suzuki GSX-RR | 1m 31.666 |
| 9 | Pol Espargaro | ESP | Repsol Honda Team | Honda RC213V | 1m 31.771 |
| 10 | Jorge Martin | ESP | Pramac Racing | Ducati GP22 | 1m 31.912 |
| 11 | Jack Miller | AUS | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati GP22 | 1m 31.914 |
| 12 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Monster Energy Yamaha | Yamaha YZF-M1 | 1m 32.025 |
| 13 | Maverick Vinales | ESP | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia RS-GP | 1m 32.051 |
| 14 | Luca Marini | ITA | VR46 Racing | Ducati GP21 | 1m 32.128 |
| 15 | Marc Marquez | ESP | Repsol Honda Team | Honda RC213V | 1m 32.153 |
| 16 | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda | Honda RC213V | 1m 32.165 |
| 17 | Fabio di Giannantonio | ITA | Gresini Racing | Ducati GP21 | 1m 32.275 |
| 18 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | VR46 Racing | Ducati GP21 | 1m 32.314 |
| 19 | Alex Marquez | ESP | LCR Honda | Honda RC213V | 1m 32.505 |
| 20 | Andrea Dovizioso | ITA | WithU RNF Racing Yamaha | Yamaha YZF-M1 | 1m 32.536 |
| 21 | Miguel Oliveira | POR | Red Bull KTM Racing | KTM RC16 | 1m 32.695 |
| 22 | Remy Gardner | AUS | Tech3 KTM Racing | KTM RC16 | 1m 32.737 |
| 23 | Raul Fernandez | ESP | Tech3 KTM Racing | KTM RC16 | 1m 33.557 |
| 24 | Darryn Binder | RSA | WithU RNF Racing Yamaha | Yamaha YZF-M1 | 1m 33.561 |
