MotoGP Spain results, Grand Prix - Race-long fight and penalty controversy

This weekend MotoGP visits what in many ways is its spiritual home. Grand Prix racing has been in Jerez since 1987 and, although the 2023 season started in Portimao one month ago, the home of the Spanish Grand Prix remains the first stop of the 'European season'. Check back to this page throughout this weekend for MotoGP Spain results. 

Overview

Grand Prix - Bagnaia bounces back to defeat Binder in Jerez thriller

Sprint - Binder reigns again in all-out KTM duel

Qualifying - Aleix Espargaro scores first pole of 2023 in mixed conditions

P2 - Espargaro tops Aprilia 1-2, Bagnaia among top names out of top 10

P1 - Pedrosa stuns with fastest time on MotoGP return

Grand Prix

A cloudy sky somewhat dictated tyre choice for the 2023 MotoGP Spanish Grand Prix. The slightly lower track temperatures compared to points earlier in the weekend meant medium compound tyres front and rear was the choice across the grid. That worked out best for Francesco Bagnaia who took victory, and the championship lead along with it.

It was another great start for the KTM riders, who went 1-2 with Jack Miller and Brad Miller, respectively, although that order changed at turn six, with the #33 taking point. In third place was Jorge Martin, while Fracnesco Bagnaia was fourth, ahead of Aleix Espargaro. 

However, the red flag came out at the end of the first lap for a crash at turn two involving Marco Bezzecchi, Miguel Oliveira, and Fabio Quartararo, although it was only Oliveira and Quartararo who went down.

There was no blame to be laid at the door of Oliveira. He exited turn one on the outside, alongside Bezzecchi and Quartararo, who braked at the same point as Oliveira, but ended up getting sandwiched between the Portuguese and Bezzecchi. Because Oliveira was outside of Bezzecchi, he turned into turn two earlier than the Italian, which meant their lines were merging, and caught in the middle of that merge was Quartararo. It was a racing incident.

Fabio Quartararo was of particular concern initially, as he was seen lying in the gravel trap not moving, but he was later shown walking away from the scene.

It then became clear that Oliveira was the rider in a more serious condition, and had to be taken away in an ambulance, although it was reported on the MotoGP world feed broadcast that all riders involved in the incident were conscious. The most recent update at the time of writing (14:53, 30 April 2023) on the condition of Oliveira is that he has suffered a dislocated shoulder.

The timing of the red flag, on lap one, meant that, as in the Sprint, there would be a full restart. That meant that all riders would restart from their original grid positions, except for Oliveira, of course, but including Quartararo, who got a long lap penalty for his involvement in the red-flag-causing incident. 

Yet again, for the fourth time in Jerez this weekend, it was KTM holeshot, but this time Brad Binder led immediately from Jack Miller. Behind them initially was Jorge Martin, but a good start from Francesco Bagnaia saw him pass Aleix Espargaro at turn five, and then ride around the outside of Jorge Martin in turn six to take over third place.

At the end of lap two, Miller hit the front, while Bagnaia was coming under pressure from Martin, who was much stronger in the many long corners that characterise the Jerez layout, especially turns seven and eight.

In the Sprint, Binder said it took him six laps to bring his rear tyre up to temperature. In the Grand Prix, it was apparently four laps. He re-passed Miller where the Australian had passed him only a couple of laps before.

Miller was passed again at turn six on lap five. He didn’t run especially wide mid-corner, but Bagnaia squeezed his way through and into second place. Miller was back to fourth place a lap later, courtesy of Jorge Martin. Miller gave it right back to Martin by the end of lap six, much to the frustration of Martin, who was pushed almost off the track.

While Miller and Martin were fighting, Bagnaia had caught Binder, and it set up an interesting scenario, which was immediately dismantled because Bagnaia was told to drop one position, behind Miller, with no reason given. The assumption is that Bagnaia was penalised for his move on Miller, which - if you’ll excuse some opinion in this report - is entirely baffling.

The penalty was a disaster for Bagnaia, because it put one extra bike in front of him, which increased his front tyre temperature, 10 laps in, Bagnaia’s front tyre was beyond the point that he could push to overtake.

The positive of this is that it allowed Binder to stop riding defensively and start pushing to catch his KTM teammate, Binder, and he took 0.3 seconds on lap 11.

However, it was Miller who seemed to be struggling with the front tyre by lap 15. He ran wide in turn 12, which allowed Bagnaia through, back into second place.

For a while, Bagnaia, had little for Binder’s pace, and instead was having to concern himself more with Miller behind.

In the final five laps, though, Bagnaia turned up the pace, and by the end of lap 20 Bagnaia was on the #33 KTM’s rear wheel, and made his move to the front at turn 13 on lap 21.

Binder made sure that Bagnaia had to continue to push, the gap hardly exceeded 0.2 seconds, but he was just unable to beat the Italian on the brakes in the closing stages. 

Bagnaia’s advantage was 0.221 seconds at the flag, confirming his ability to bounce back not only from the disappointment of Argentina and Texas, but also from what was a difficult Friday for the reigning champion. His victory is also his second in succession in Jerez, making this the first time Bagnaia has taken successive victories at a circuit in MotoGP.

Jack Miller ensured the Grand Prix podium featured the same characters as the Sprint podium by finishing third, while Jorge Martin and Aleix Espargaro completed the top five.

In sixth place was Luca Marini, ahead of Dani Pedrosa, Alex Marquez, Takaaki Nakagami (top Japanese bike and top Honda), and Fabio Quartararo who completed the top 10.

Full MotoGP Spain results from the Grand Prix in Jerez are below.

2023 MotoGP Spanish Grand Prix | Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto | Grand Prix Results

Sprint

The MotoGP Sprint at the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto saw Aleix Espargaro start from pole position for the first time in 2023, having topped qualifying earlier on Saturday. The Sprint was won by Brad Binder after an intense race.

From second and fourth on the grid, respectively, Jack Miller and Brad Binder made it a KTM 1-2 at the first corner, and Francesco Bagnaia elevated himself to third place at turn six, past Aleix Espargaro, before the red flag was thrown for an incident at turn two.

Multiple riders were involved, and it began with Fabio Quartararo lunging up the inside of a number of riders (absolutely cleanly, to be clear) and causing Alex Marquez to slightly check-up. Quartararo’s factory Yamaha teammate, Franco Morbidelli, sensed the Frenchman coming down his inside, and checked up, himself, which Maverick Vinales did not expect, which is why the Aprilia rider ended up on the white line on the outside of turn two. 

When Morbidelli checked up on the entry to turn two, he saw Marquez do the same just in front of him, and saw a gap to go for. Unfortunately for the pair, Morbidelli got into the gap at the precise moment Marquez closed it, so they made contact and crashed. Behind was Marco Bezzecchi, who could do nothing to avoid Morbidelli’s stricken Yamaha as it slid down the track, and he hit it and crashed. Further back still were Augusto Fernandez and Marc Marquez’ replacement for this weekend, Iker Lecuona, who came together in a separate incident. 

There was nothing especially gnarly about the crash, despite a small fire on Marco Bezzecchi’s Ducati (the second one after a blow-up in second practice), and all riders involved were okay, but the incident again highlighted the desperation involved in the early laps of these Sprints, said desperation only heightened by the difficulty of overtaking in Jerez.

After the red flag, there was a complete restart, meaning all 23 riders were set for an 11-lap race.

It was another great start for the KTM riders, but this time it was Binder leading from Miller, while Espargaro dropped to fifth behind Jorge Martin and Bagnaia.

Battling between Martin and Miller played into the hands of Bagnaia. Miller got the better of Martin, and that allowed Bagnaia past the #89 into the final corner on lap two, and the #1 was up into third place.

Miller took the lead at the same corner, turn 13, on the following lap, but the leading group was seven-strong, back to KTM wildcard Dani Pedrosa.

That was reduced as the race went on, as Espargaro crashed out and Miguel Oliveira dropped off the back of the top four.

At the front, the battle between the KTMs was brutal, Binder in particular was proving especially adept at carrying inconceivable amounts of rear tyre slip into the slow corners. 
The #33 took the lead on lap 10 at turn six, and immediately tried to make his escape.

Indeed, Binder was out of reach of Miller on the final lap, and the Australian succumbed to his former teammate, Bagnaia, in turn six.

Miller’s battle then was with Jorge Martin for third place, and it was the Australian who came out on top. In a way, this, along with Binder’s second Sprint win in four, secured KTM’s first double-podium finish since Miguel Oliveira beat Miller and Pol Espargaro in the 2020 Styrian Grand Prix, but on the other hand it was a Sprint, so it doesn’t count.

For second-placed Bagnaia, a silver medal was a strong result considering his difficulties on Friday and Saturday morning. He could not match Binder, and he was visibly struggling in the long, fast corners, but he salvaged a solid result and nine important points for his title defence, moving to within three points of the championship lead.

Jorge Martin was somewhat unfortunate to miss out on a podium, but, in the end, he missed the speed in the areas that it mattered. The KTMs were leaping out of the corners, and Bagnaia was stronger than Martin on the brakes - there was little the #89 could do.

Miguel Oliveira was the top-placed Aprilia in fifth, ahead of the continually impressive Dani Pedrosa, who was the fastest rider on track at several points in the race. 

Maverick Vinales was seventh. The #12 had practised starts on several occasions throughout free practice, but in the end he could not make it work in the race, and that cost him a better result. He finished ahead of Johann Zarco and Marco Bezzecchi, whose championship lead is reduced to three, but his ninth place prevented it from falling to two. Bezzecchi’s VR46 Ducati teammate, Luca Marini, completed the top 10.

The top-placed Japanese bike was ridden by Fabio Quartararo, who brought his Yamaha home in 12th place.

Full MotoGP Spain results from the Jerez Sprint are below.

2023 MotoGP Spain Results | Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto | Qualifying Results

Qualifying

Qualifying began under darkening skies for the MotoGP riders in Jerez. It made a contrast to the intense sun of Friday, and brought the kind of additional tension that many riders would have considered unnecessary. In the end, the rain stayed away for MotoGP qualifying, which was topped by Aleix Espargaro who will start both of this weekend’s races from pole position.

Before Q1 began, it was already confirmed that Enea Bastianini would not be taking any further part in the Spanish GP, having pulled out of the weekend during Free Practice on Saturday morning.

For the likes of Marco Bezzecchi, Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio Quartararo, getting through Q1 was probably a tense enough experience. As well as each other, they had to feel concern about the presence of Brad Binder, Alex Rins and others in Q1. In Jerez, qualifying is especially important because of the difficulty in overtaking, and being outside of the front two rows would essentially end your weekend before either race had started.

For Bezzecchi and Quartararo, Q1 started well, and they were both in the top two places after their first respective runs. For Bagnaia, on the other hand, there seemed to be no improvement compared to Friday, and after his first run he was fifth.

The second run was much better for Bagnaia. He dug in and hit the top, while Quartararo and Bezzecchi went backwards. The 2021 World Champion qualified 16th, and the current points leader slipped to third place, behind Bagnaia and Brad Binder. 

Just before Q2 began, the heavy clouds that began to loom over Jerez before Q1 began started to open. The rain was very light, and the track was not becoming wet. Therefore, it was a race out of pit lane to get a lap in as soon as possible in case the rain began to intensify.

Certainly, the grip was low. Jack Miller’s opening lap time was a 1:43.007, around 6.5 seconds slower than the best times of the weekend. Miller, though, was much faster than everyone else, his early advantage almost 0.8 seconds over Bagnaia.

Alex Marquez soon changed that, though, bumping Miller from pole position with his first lap, and getting into the 1:42s.

Marquez continued to improve, and with his second lap he was into the mid-1:41s. He needed it, too, because the rain had stopped, and the other riders had found some more confidence and speed.

Soon, they were back into the 1:39s, and the times were continuing to scroll. Instead of staying out to be able to adapt to the changing conditions, it was now necessary to get in the pits for a fresh tyre.

By the end of the session, mid-1:37s were the target, but Aleix Espargaro exceeded even that with a 1:37.216 to take his first pole position of the season. Considering how Aprilia were somewhat robbed of good results in Argentina by inclement weather, the Noale team will likely see some redemption in Espargaro’s lap.

The Spaniard will line-up alongside Jack Miller and Jorge Martin on the front row for this weekend’s two races, making it a complete mix of all three European manufacturers in the top three positions on the grid. 

On row two, we find confirmation of KTM’s speed this weekend. Brad Binder qualified fourth, and retired wildcard test rider Dani Pedrosa was sixth, making it three RC16s in the top six places on the grid in Spain.

Between Binder and Pedrosa on row two is Francesco Bagnaia in fifth place. The Italian seems at this stage to have salvaged something from a weekend which looked to be proving unusually difficult for the reigning World Champion until his second run in Q1.

Behind row two, Miguel Oliveira heads row three as the second-fastest Aprilia, while Johann Zarco qualified eighth, ahead of Luca Marini in ninth. 

On row four, Maverick Vinales completes the top 10, while Takaaki Nakagami was 11th and the top-placed Honda and Japanese bike, while Alex Marquez was the big loser of the drying track, ending Q2 in 12th.

Full MotoGP Spain results from qualifying in Jerez are below.

2023 MotoGP Spain results | Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto | Qualifying Result

P2

The sun continued to beat down on the Jerez track surface over the lunch break and until MotoGP hit the track for P2. That meant that improvements were difficult to come by in MotoGP, but when they did come it was that of Aleix Espargaro which proved the most important. He topped day one in Jerez, and did so at the front of an Aprilia 1-2, leading his teammate Maverick Vinales.

In the second practice sessions for Moto2 and Moto3 which preceded MotoGP P2, only a few riders were able to improve their lap times compared to the morning, indicating the grip was going away as the temperature rose. For the likes of Fabio Quartararo, who finished FP1 in 18th, this was a concern, since FP2 was the only remaining session to get direct access to Q2. 

Indeed, there were few improvers in terms of lap times in the first 20 minutes of the session. Just after that threshold was reached, there was a brief red flag for a puncture to the air fence in the final corner caused by Iker Lecuona’s #27 Honda.

Even after the red flag, there were no overall improvements. The only event in the 20 minutes or so after the red flag for the turn 13 air fence was a smokey engine failure for Marco Bezzecchi. Thankfully, that required no red flag, but it reduced Bezzecchi’s motorcycle count to one for the rest of the day (and most likely his engine allocation for the season by one).

The first overall improvements finally came in the final 15 minutes, first with Maverick Vinales who jumped from 10th to third.

Miguel Oliveira also improved, as did Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco, but the time-topping change came from the factory Aprilia of Aleix Espargaro. The #41 headed an Aprilia 1-2 in the end, with Maverick Vinales in second place. 

Dani Pedrosa, who topped P1, could not improve on his morning time, but finished day one of his first GP in over a year in third place and as top KTM. 

Jorge Martin, on the other hand, was the fastest Ducati in fourth place, and one of only three ‘Bologna bullets’ that made it directly into Q2. 

Rounding out the top five overall was Jack Miller, ahead of the second Pramac Ducati of Johann Zarco; while Miguel Oliveira made it three Aprilias in the top 10 with the seventh-fastest time, ahead of Alex Marquez (eighth), Takaaki Nakagami (ninth) and Luca Marini (10th) who took the final direct Q2 position.

An interview by the MotoGP world feed with Ducati’s Davide Tardozzi during P2 revealed that Francesco Bagnaia is struggling for confidence with the front end of his #1 Desmosedici. Braking and corner entry is generally a strength of Bagnaia, and yet here he seems so far unable to exploit that strength. The reality of that is that he ended P2 in 13th place.

While that is objectively a bad result for Bagnaia, his rivals also struggled on Friday in Jerez. World Championship leader Marco Bezzecchi finished P2 in 12th, and 2021 World Champion Fabio Quartararo was only 16th on the top Yamaha, just under 0.2 seconds ahead of his teammate, Franco Morbidelli. 

With two title favourites, the current points leader, Brad Binder, and the most recent MotoGP race winner, Alex Rins, all destined for Q1 appearances tomorrow, it is set to be one of the most tense of the season. At a circuit where the difficulty in overtaking, the high temperatures, and the low grip make front tyre pressure especially critical, that tension is surely only increased.

Full MotoGP Spain results from Friday’s combined practice sessions in Jerez are below.

2023 MotoGP Spain Results | Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto | Combined FP Results

P1

First practice in Jerez began the weekend with typically sunny conditions. MotoGP visits the south of Spain during a period of record-breaking temperatures for the region for this time of year. With such high temperatures expected in the afternoons this weekend, P1 became vital for setting fast lap times for direct Q2 qualification. Fastest out of the blocks in Spain this weekend was _____

There is still no Marc Marquez in MotoGP this weekend. He is replaced in his home race by his Spanish compatriot, Iker Lecuona, who makes his Honda debut in MotoGP after riding their WorldSBK bike since the beginning of 2022. 

On the other hand, Enea Bastianini is back for this weekend, and will be looking to score his first points of the season after breaking his shoulder blade in the Portuguese Sprint race at the end of March. There are no huge expectations for Bastianini, though, who won his first Moto2 Grand Prix at Jerez on his way to the 2020 world title, who said his championship won’t start until his home Grand Prix at Mugello in mid-June, Crash.net reports.

Depsite having MotoGP experience, Iker Lecuona has been away from GPs since the end of 2021, and has never ridden the Honda MotoGP bike. Therefore, it was unsurprising to see Marc Marquez’ replacement begin his weekend at the bottom of the times. Enea Bastianini, on the other hand, began his comeback in 22nd in the early running of first practice. 

For Dani Pedrosa, who is wildcarding for KTM this weekend for the first time since the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix, the weekend started with him immediately inside the top 10, while his KTM stablemate, Jack Miller, spent some time at the top of the board.

Pedrosa’s speed improved in the final half of the session, and he went to the top, to the delight of 99% of MotoGP fans, presumably.  

Pedrosa was eventually displaced when the time attacks began in the final seven-or-so minutes. First, it was Takaaki Nakagami who went to the top, and then Johann Zarco, before Aleix Espargao put the #41 Aprilia on top. 

The times continued to scroll against the wishes of Espargaro, who dropped to fifth by the end of the session. Above him were Luca Marini in fourth, Takaaki Nakagami (top Honda) in third, Jorge Martin (top Ducati) in second, and a remarkable Dani Pedrosa in first.

Confirming KTM’s promising start to the weekend in Jerez, Brad Binder was in sixth place behind Espargaro, and two places further back in eighth was Jack Miller. Between the two full-time factory KTM riders was Alex Marquez in seventh place, while Francesco Bagnaia (ninth) and Maverick Vinales (10th) completed the top 10.

Full MotoGP Spain results from P1 in Jerez are below.
 

2023 MotoGP Spain results | Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto | Practice 1

Yamaha Niken GT Review (2023) | Testing the latest Niken in Sardinia