Teruel MotoGP: Nakagami fastest in FP2, Ducatis struggle
LCR Honda’s Takaaki Nakagami led Maverick Vinales in second practice for the MotoGP Teruel Grand Prix as the factory Ducatis endured a tough session.
Andrea Dovizioso is just 15 points from the championship lead but his Aragon woes continue after he ended FP2 on Friday 1.4 seconds off the pace in 18th.
Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro set the early pace with a 1m50.147s, though Franco Morbidelli bettered this immediately on his Petronas SRT Yamaha with a 1m49.270s.
Aragon GP race winner Alex Rins edged ahead with a 1m49.111s on the Suzuki, before Morbidelli returned to the top of the pack with a 1m48.612s.
With just over half an hour of the session still to run, Nakagami on the LCR Honda comfortably moved clear of the field with a 1m48.354s.
KTM’s Pol Espargaro would close down the Japanese rider’s advantage to 0.085 seconds midway through the session, but Nakagami’s time remained intact until the closing stages as most focused on longer runs.
A number of riders played around with the new Ohlins shock absorber Honda and Suzuki have been using to good effect recently, with both SRT M1’s of Morbidelli and Fabio Quartararo among those looking at the suspension item.
Improvements on the time sheets flooded in as the session entered its closings stages, with championship leader Joan Mir taking over top spot on the Suzuki with a 1m48.182s.
Nakagami was soon lighting up the timing screens and produced a 1m47.931s to depose Mir, before improving to a 1m47.782s to end Friday fastest of all.
Maverick Vinales made a late improvement to second on the works team Yamaha with a 1m47.957s to split up the LCR Hondas, with Cal Crutchlow rounding out the top three.
Quartararo was fourth ahead of Mir, with Rins rounding out the top six ahead of an impressive showing from Tech 3 KTM rookie Iker Lecuona.
Aleix Espargaro led his KTM-mounted brother Pol in eighth – who didn’t run a fresh soft rear at the end of the session - while Alex Marquez took the last provisional Q2 place in 10th.
That came at the expense of Honda teammate Stefan Bradl, who was denied a place in the top 10 by 0.001s.
Morbidelli was shuffled down to 15th after his earlier assaults on the top of the timesheets.
Top Ducati runner was Johann Zarco in 13th on the year-old Avintia-run bike, with Danilo Petrucci the leading GP20 runner in 17th ahead of Dovizioso and Pramac’s Francesco Bagnaia, who crashed at the first corner at the end of the session.
This forced teammate Jack Miller’s last lap to be cancelled, dropping him to 21st and last.
FP2 results:
| Cla | Rider | Bike | Time | Gap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Takaaki Nakagami |  | Honda | 1'47.782 | |
| 2 |  Maverick Viñales |  | Yamaha | 1'47.957 | 0.175 |
| 3 |  Cal Crutchlow |  | Honda | 1'48.111 | 0.329 |
| 4 |  Fabio Quartararo |  | Yamaha | 1'48.164 | 0.382 |
| 5 | Joan Mir |  | Suzuki | 1'48.182 | 0.400 |
| 6 | Alex Rins |  | Suzuki | 1'48.190 | 0.408 |
| 7 | Iker Lecuona |  | KTM | 1'48.360 | 0.578 |
| 8 | Aleix Espargaro |  | Aprilia | 1'48.426 | 0.644 |
| 9 | Pol Espargaro |  | KTM | 1'48.439 | 0.657 |
| 10 | Alex Marquez |  | Honda | 1'48.443 | 0.661 |
| 11 |  Stefan Bradl |  | Honda | 1'48.444 | 0.662 |
| 12 |  Miguel Oliveira |  | KTM | 1'48.527 | 0.745 |
| 13 | Johann Zarco |  | Ducati | 1'48.532 | 0.750 |
| 14 |  Brad Binder |  | KTM | 1'48.545 | 0.763 |
| 15 |  Franco Morbidelli |  | Yamaha | 1'48.612 | 0.830 |
| 16 | Bradley Smith |  | Aprilia | 1'48.810 | 1.028 |
| 17 | Danilo Petrucci |  | Ducati | 1'48.870 | 1.088 |
| 18 | Andrea Dovizioso |  | Ducati | 1'49.240 | 1.458 |
| 19 | Francesco Bagnaia |  | Ducati | 1'49.319 | 1.537 |
| 20 | Tito Rabat |  | Ducati | 1'49.733 | 1.951 |
| 21 |  Jack Miller | | Ducati | 1'48.983 | 1.201 |
| View full results | |||||
Related video
Previous article
Michelin explains Quartararo’s Aragon GP tyre issue
Next article
Mir admits he's “really surprised” by Honda’s pace in Aragon
About this article
| Series | MotoGP |
| Event | Teruel GP |
| Sub-event | FP2 |
| Drivers | Takaaki Nakagami |
| Teams | Team LCR |
| Author | Lewis Duncan |
MotoGP 2021 kicks off in Qatar
Mandalika Circuit update
MotoGP Starting Grid: Doha Grand Prix
MotoGP Starting Grid: Qatar Grand Prix
Top 10 most successful Repsol Honda Team riders
Where does Espargaro sit ahead of Marquez's return?
Pol Espargaro’s first results as a Honda MotoGP rider may not appear special. But dig a little deeper and a clearer picture of his performance emerges. And, as Lewis Duncan writes, it’s cause for celebration at Honda with the return of Marc Marquez set to provide Espargaro with the reference he has been missing so far this year
The "pit bull" MotoGP rookie already drawing legendary comparisons
MotoGP’s 2021 rookie crop is one of the strongest in recent years, but one is already standing out. Jorge Martin’s Doha GP heroics have courted many to compare him to numerous MotoGP legends. Autosport spoke to Pramac boss Francesco Guidotti to find out why MotoGP’s latest Spanish star is already making such an impact
Why MotoGP's stewards must revisit Miller and Mir's Losail clash
Despite Suzuki’s decision not to appeal against Race Direction’s refusal to penalise Jack Miller following the incident with Joan Mir in Losail, something must be done to avoid a repeat of such an incident, which could have easily ended in tragedy
Why MotoGP’s top gun looks more dangerous at the Doha GP
Lightning hasn't struck twice for Maverick Vinales since 2017 and his wayward form of recent years makes predicting how he'll fare each MotoGP race weekend tricky. But fresh from his Qatar GP win, Vinales looks like an even more dangerous prospect for the Doha GP following an intriguing Friday practice.
Why MotoGP’s new Amazon Prime series is long overdue
OPINION: MotoGP is getting its own version of Drive to Survive on Amazon Prime at some point in the near future. It was news welcomed by the grid’s leading riders. And following the impact DTS has had on Formula 1, MotoGP desperately needs the same boost.
The key changes behind the latest 'return of the Mack'
Maverick Vinales’s authoritative victory at the MotoGP season opener came during a period of personal and professional change for the Yamaha rider. Can it be the springboard for a title challenge?
Why Lorenzo needs to ditch social media and enjoy retirement
OPINION: Jorge Lorenzo's status as one of the greatest MotoGP riders of all time is hard to dispute. But his constant social media spats with fellow riders and insistence on listing his achievements to his detractors are running the risk of tarnishing a legacy he worked hard to create.
Can leaving a factory team end Rossi’s MotoGP win drought?
It is over three-and-a-half years since the Italian national anthem rang out to declare a Valentino Rossi victory in MotoGP. To some onlookers his move out of the factory Yamaha squad meant the 2017 Dutch TT could remain his final win, but after an encouraging transition at Petronas SRT hope is far from lost
