Acosta scores first pole, Martin 11th after crash

Rookie sensation Pedro Acosta scored pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix as he set a new lap record at Motegi in the final stages of a dramatic qualifying session that saw world championship leader Jorge Martin (Pramac Ducati) suffer a major setback.

While Acosta continued to look serene as he chased a maiden MotoGP victory on his Tech3 KTM, Martin’s crash at Turn 9 in the critical final stages of Qualifying 2 left him only 11th on the grid for the sprint and Sunday’s Grand Prix.

That will be an opportunity for his main rival Francesco Bagnaia. The Ducati factory rider will start from second on the grid, despite a mistake on his final lap that could deny him the chance to match Acosta.

Factory Aprilia rider Maverick Vinales will complete the front row, while Bagnaia’s teammate Enea Bastianini will start fourth.

KTM’s Brad Binder didn’t quite live up to the promise of his breakthrough practice form on Friday, but will still have a chance to repeat his 2022 Motegi podium by starting fifth. He will appear at the start just ahead of Pramac Ducati’s Franco Morbidelli.

VR46 Ducati duo Fabio di Giannantonio and Marco Bezzecchi qualified seventh and eighth, ahead of Gresini Ducati’s Marc Marquez. The Spanish legend had spent much of the weekend battling various problems and appeared to have overcome them as he took provisional pole in Q2, before his best lap was canceled due to a minor breach of the track limits.

Marquez’s brother and teammate Alex completed the top 10 on the grid, while Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) completed the third row behind Martin.

Earlier, despite very light drizzle, the track became increasingly faster as the second free practice gave way to Qualifying 1.

Morbidelli secured a place in Qualifying 2 with a lap of 1.43.746 seconds, which was close to the ultimate dry pace set by Binder on Friday.

The other rider who had to go through was Quartararo, who ensured that there would be a Japanese motorcycle in the final qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix.

Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) will line up in 13th place, ahead of the battling Jack Miller. The Australian appeared close to dropping his KTM at times during Q1, with his rear end looking on the edge of control under braking. Factory Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaro completed the fourth row.

Zarco managed to hold himself together after his crash in Q1 and set a time good enough for 16th place. Next to him at the start is Joan Mir, the leading Honda rider on the manufacturer’s home track. Augusto Fernandez (Tech 3 Aprilia) completes row five.

Takaaki Nakagami could not perform in front of his home fans in qualifying. The LCR Honda rider will finish in 21st place, despite narrowly missing out on a direct ticket to Q2 due to his efforts in practice on Friday.

Results Q2:

Results Q1: