Ducati’s Marc Marquez responded to his crash at the MotoGP Spanish Grand Prix by topping the day of action at the Jerez test.
It was a busy day up and down the grid, with important parts being tested on each bike as the manufacturers attempted to respond to Ducati’s dominance, while the Bologna factory hoped to find new ways to keep the field at bay.
There was potential drama, though, as a power cut across the entirety of Spain and Portugal meant the test was at risk of being red-flagged, but the back-up power of the Jerez circuit meant the afternoon session was able to get underway.
For Ducati, it was about trying new items and distributing them across its satellite teams, though both Francesco Bagnaia and Marquez tested an old swingarm.
While Marquez was testing the front-end feeling, Bagnaia was busy working on the balance of the Desmosedici, something the Italian has been critical about in recent weeks.
As the afternoon ran on, Marquez appeared to get comfortable, setting the fastest lap of the test on his 26th tour of the circuit with a 1:35.876
Tech3’s Maverick Vinales put in a strong lap time of 1:36.237 towards the end of the day’s action to finish second as KTM tested a new aero supply.
Fabio Quartararo set a 1:36.353 and finished the day in third, with teammate Alex Rins trailing by just 0.018s in fourth after a successful test for the updated Yamaha inline-four engine.
Pedro Acosta was the first crasher of the day, but took the flag in fifth after a “crucial” test to potentially decide his future with the KTM outfit.
Marco Bezzecchi completed 99 laps testing aero and braking setups for Aprilia and ended the Jerez test in sixth.
Rookie Fermin Aldeguer was eighth, with Raul Fernandez appearing to find a breakthrough on the Trackhouse in ninth.
New items were trialled across both Honda garages, with Johann Zarco proving to have the best pace as he took 10th for the Japanese manufacturer.
Alex Marquez was 11th fresh from his maiden MotoGP victory, with Ai Ogura 12th after admitting he liked some of the new parts his Trackhouse Aprilia had been testing.
Jack Miller echoed the delight at the new inline-four engine as he was 13th for Pramac Yamaha, with Brad Binder 13th for the factory KTM squad and Joan Mir 14th for Honda.
Enea Bastianini tried to find ways to improve the turning of his Tech3 KTM in 15th, while Luca Marini was 16th for Honda after the test.
Bagnaia ended the day’s action in 17th, while Fabio Di Giannantonio was the sole runner for VR46 in 18th.
Augusto Fernandez completed his test action for Pramac in 19th, while Somkiat Chantra suffered from arm pump problems and crashed in the late stages of the test to end the day in 20th.
Takaaki Nakagami returned to track action for Honda in 21st ahead of Lorenzo Savadori in 22nd for Aprilia and KTM’s Dani Pedrosa rounded out the standings in 23rd.
VR46 revealed that Franco Morbidelli would not take part in the Jerez test due to a neck contusion after his crash at the Spanish Grand Prix.
