From Autosport · Rachit Thukral · · 2m
MotoGP Japanese GP: Martin edges out Marquez for pole
Jorge Martin beats Marc Marquez by 0.110s to secure back-to-back pole positions at Japanese GP.
In brief
Jorge Martin beats Marc Marquez by 0.110s to secure back-to-back pole positions at Japanese GP. Jorge Martin claimed pole position at Japanese Grand Prix after narrowly beating Marc Marquez by 0.110 seconds in qualifying. Originally reported by Autosport.
Qualifying report
MotoGP’s championship leader Jorge Martin claimed pole position in a thrilling qualifying at the Japanese Grand Prix, beating Marc Marquez to the top spot by a tenth of a second.
Martin's pole position
Martin had been the slower of the two factory Aprilia riders for much of the weekend, but he upped the pace in Q2, lowering the circuit record to 1m42.371s to secure his third pole position of the season and second in consecutive weekends.
Marquez's performance
Marquez failed to improve his lap time on his second run and ended up second on the factory Ducati, while Austrian GP winner Pedro Acosta secured the final spot on the front row.
Q2 dynamics
At the start of Q2, Friday pacesetter Alex Marquez set the initial benchmark on the Gresini Ducati, lapping Motegi in 1m42.878s on his first flying lap.
Marc Marquez's lap
But his elder brother Marc Marquez immediately moved the goalposts, clocking a time of 1m42.481s to smash the circuit record and put four tenths between him and the rest of the field.
Martin's final push
Raul Fernandez first jumped from 12th to third for Trackhouse, before Martin shot to the top on the factory Aprilia with a 1m42.371s, edging out Marc Marquez by a tenth of a second.
Acosta's position
The reigning world champion made a mistake on his next attempt and ran wide at Turn 3, but gave one final push as the clock ticked down to zero.
Final grid positions
Acosta put on a strong performance aboard the factory KTM, rising to third at the end of the session with a time that was just 0.122s down on polesitter Martin.
The bottom line
Jorge Martin claimed pole position at Japanese Grand Prix after narrowly beating Marc Marquez by 0.110 seconds in qualifying.
