Fabio Di Giannantonio went fastest in a traffic-disrupted qualifying session at the US MotoGP, with the VR46 rider setting a lap record in the process.
Joan Mir posted a then-record 2:00.591 with eight minutes to go, avoiding disruption from an Enea Bastianini off. As the clock ticked down, multiple riders were poised to set session-best laps with their last attempts of the day.
Di Giannantonio was the one to top the charts in the end, smashing the previous Circuit of The Americas record with a 2:00.136. Despite an off in practice, Marco Bezzecchi will join him on the front row with a 2:00.329.
Pedro Acosta was just a tenth behind in P3, with Francesco Bagnaia and Mir setting near-identical times in the 2:00.5s.
Marc Marquez qualified P6 with a 2:00.637, but may face the wrath of the stewards as they investigate multiple cases of impeding across the Q2 field.
Final practice chart-topper Jorge Martin could only finish P7 with a 2:00.696, as Alex Marquez follows him towards Turn 1 with his 2:00.765.
Luca Marini was the final driver to lap below 2:01 to claim P9, as Q1 progressor Fermin Aldeguer posted a 2:01.014 for P10.
Ai Ogura was unable to shake off his final practice crashes for a disappointing P11, as Enea Bastianini finished bottom of the pile in Q2.
Aldeguer’s 2:00.977 was the only lap of the Q1 session to be sub-2:01, as Mir followed him a few tenths behind with a lap of 2:01.210. Raul Fernandez looked set to take a place in the top two with a 2:01.228 in his first stint, but he will start from P13.
Diogo Moreira also narrowly missed out on Q2 with a 2:01.306, shaking off his final practice crash. LCR Honda teammate Johan Zarco starts behind him in P15.
Fabio Quartararo experienced an unusual crash at Turn 15 during the first stint, losing balance through the corner and falling off his Yamaha. While he did return to running after recovering to the pits, his efforts earned him P16.
Toprak Razgatlioglu posted a 2:01.745 to put himself in P17. Brad Binder followed a tenth behind, with Jack Miller a few hundreths behind him.
Franco Morbidelli and Alex Rins both struggled for pace in final practice and proved to be behind the pack in Q1, only able to occupy the final two spots on the grid.
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