The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team got straight to business on the Friday of the TT Assen. Though riding with a foot injury, Fabio Quartararo‘s speed was high enough to earn him a place in tomorrow‘s Q2, as he finished the Friday in sixth position. Franco Morbidelli found a time improvement in P2 but placed 16th in the combined Friday rankings, putting him in Q1 for tomorrow.
Quartararo had broken his left big toe in a jogging incident prior to the TT Assen race weekend. The Frenchman, however, was adamant that he would ride this weekend, as he enjoys this circuit and is liking his chances. Despite the discomfort, El Diablo soldiered on, and from the get-go he was setting competitive times in the morning. Featuring inside the top 10 at the start, he was holding a top-3 position before the time attack in the final stages. He completed the P1 session in fifth place, 0.558s from first, with a 1‘32.804s best time set on lap 18/18.
At the number-20 rider‘s medical check following P1, he was deemed fit to also take part in the remainder of the race weekend. The positive news gave him an extra boost. Quartararo resumed his campaign aiming for a place in tomorrow‘s Q2 and quickly put his YZR-M1 at the top of the provisional P2 timesheets early on in the one-hour afternoon session. As the times quickened in the final stages, the Yamaha man responded. Saving the best for last, he clocked a 1‘32.341s on lap 26/26 that earned him sixth place in the P2 and combined rankings, 0.278s off the fastest time.
After feeling a bit under the weather at the start of the week, Morbidelli had fully recovered Friday morning. He was ready to get to work in the morning session, getting a good number of laps in. The Italian spent most of P1 in 14th and 13th place before he pushed in the final minutes. He briefly slotted into sixth position with a 1‘33.222s, posted on lap 17, but it was later cancelled due to exceeding track limits. His second-fastest lap, a 1‘33.893s, set on lap 14/18, held him in 16th place, 1.647s from the top.
The number-21 rider continued his work in the afternoon. He was keen to find a time improvement and took up where he had left off in the morning. Having spent the majority of the session on tweaking the setting, he was putting it to the test at the end of P2. On lap 19/20 he clocked a 1‘33.106s that put him in 16th position in the P2 and the combined practice timesheets, 1.043s off today‘s best time.
