DI GIANNANTONIO TAKES SECOND POLE POSITION IN A ROW
Fabio Di Giannantonio delivered an outstanding performance in qualifying for the Grand Prix of the Americas, setting a new lap record at COTA and securing pole position.
The VR46 Racing Team rider was almost two tenths faster than Marco Bezzecchi, who continued his strong form for Aprilia Racing by taking second place.
Pedro Acosta completed the front row for KTM, just ahead of Francesco Bagnaia, who missed out on a top-three start after being affected by traffic during his final attempt. Bagnaia had shown strong pace earlier in the session but could not improve when it mattered most.
One of the biggest surprises came from Joan Mir, who secured fifth place for Honda after coming through Q1.
He even briefly held provisional pole before being pushed down the order in the final minutes. Just behind him, Marc Márquez could only manage sixth place at one of his strongest tracks, a result that was below expectations.
Márquez’s session was also complicated by a possible impeding situation involving Bezzecchi during the first runs. The Aprilia rider slowed at one point, but several riders ahead had also reduced speed, leaving the decision to the stewards. Later in the session, Márquez himself was placed under investigation after a similar situation involving Enea Bastianini.
Further down the order, Jorge Martín finished seventh, followed by Alex Márquez and Luca Marini. Fermín Aldeguer completed the top ten after progressing through Q1, showing a solid recovery after his recent injury.
Ai Ogura ended the session in eleventh place after struggling to find consistency following crashes earlier in the weekend, while Bastianini finished twelfth after also dealing with incidents during qualifying.
Q1 saw a tight battle for the final places in Q2, with Aldeguer and Mir advancing, while Raul Fernandez narrowly missed out. Diogo Moreira impressed by outperforming his more experienced teammate Johann Zarco.
It was a very difficult qualifying session for Yamaha, with all of its riders starting far down the grid. Fabio Quartararo was the best of them but only managed sixteenth place. Toprak Razgatlioglu was close behind, while Brad Binder and Franco Morbidelli also had disappointing results.
The session also took place without Maverick Viñales, who withdrew earlier in the weekend to undergo surgery on his shoulder after ongoing pain from a previous injury.
In the end, Di Giannantonio’s record-breaking lap was the highlight of qualifying, confirming his excellent form and setting up an exciting race at COTA, with several top riders starting further back than expected.
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