It rained prior to the third day of proceeding at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar which led to the circuit being incredibly wet. This completed brought proceedings to a halt and no track time was spent by any riders, therefore the results from the last Free Practice, set on day two, were used to determine the grid positions ahead of the season opener at Qatar.
Qatar GP: The floodlit race
The Qatar GP is the only meeting on the calendar that is ridden in the evening. The track is completely lit up by floodlights, however, as any rider knows riding in the dark with artificial lighting is hard, doing it on a wet surface is even harder. The riders are already having to deal with the shadows and lights reflecting, in the rain it would prove far too dangerous. Also, they would have to contend with the spray from the track that also reduces visibility.
French tyre manufacturers, Michelin, have brought full wet tyres out to the track situated in the desert however the problem is nothing to do with the tyre allocation. The race takes place in the evening due to the fact that the temperatures during the day are too high for not only the riders, but any tyres to work at the optimum performance.
Delays leads to cancelations due to track conditions
After several delays and following several track inspections, and despite the efforts of the track side marshals who did what they could to clear the water off the track and the surrounding artificial grass areas, the decision was made to cancel the sessions and count the day as a loss.
It means that the results from the combined times of Free Practice that each class completed, are what will be used to determine the grid positions ahead of the season opener at the Losail International Circuit. This was the case for all three classes as it was decided that it was unsafe. The result came following a safety commission meeting with the top classes that had taken place after Free Practice 3.
Vinales on pole for Movistar Yamaha race debut
It means that in the MotoGP class, Maverick Vinales has claimed pole position for the first race; his first with Movistar Yamaha. The young Spaniard more than deserves starting from this position as since he moved to Movistar Yamaha from Team Suzuki Ecstar at the end of the 2016 season, he has worked extremely hard, settled really quickly, and topped the timesheets at each of the off-season IRTA tests since his debut.
He continued with his progress and topped Free Practice 3 with a time that no-one could get near, and in turn will start from his hard-earned pole position on what will be his official race debut for him with the Movistar Yamaha team. He will be joined on the front row by Andrea Iannone who was brought in to replace him in the Team Suzuki Ecstar camp, and five times world champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) will complete the front row.
Zarco the top rookie leading the second row
Double Moto2 champion and rookie to the MotoGP class, Johann Zarco, who now rides for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team, leads the second row from fourth on his MotoGP debut as the highest placed rookie. Beside him, Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) is the lead Ducati in fifth, and British rider Scott Redding’s fastest time that saw him quickest during FP2 means he will line up beside them in sixth.
Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) heads p the third row ahead of the second highest placed rookie, Jonas Folger, teammate to Zarco on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3; this is not necessarily a reflection of the German riders efforts who has been the quickest rookie up to now and has proved he has the potential to do well in the elite class. Cal Crutchlow joins them on the third row on his LCR Honda; the British rider hopes to again finish as the highest placed independent team rider in the championship.
Rossi to start the season opener from tenth
Nine times world champion, Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha) will start from back on the fourth row as he finished 10th on combined times; his time from FP2 securing his place. Danilo Petrucci will line up beside him for the Octo Pramac Racing team on the 2017 evolution of the Desmosedici GP that he was awarded based on results during the 2016 season. He is ahead of Jorge Lorenzo, now also on the 2017 Desmosedici GP as he switched to the factory Ducati team at the end of the 2016 season.
Starting from 13th on the grid, Alvaro Bautista, who has returned to familiar ground for the 2017 season, rejoining his former team Pull & Bear Aspar Team, and remounting the Ducati (on the 2016 evolution of the Desmo). Loris Baz (Reale Avintia Racing) completed a late flying lap during FP1 which was enough to place him on 14th on the grid. On his race debut for the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini, Aleix Espargaro completes the fifth row in 15th.
Jack Miller (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) is 16th ahead of Karel Abraham who is returning to the MotoGP class with the Pull & Bear Aspar Team. Joining them on the sixth row is rookie Alex Rins who has joined the Team Suzuki Ecstar. Miller’s teammate, Tito Rabat leads the seventh row made up of Hector Barbera (Reale Avintia Racing) and British rookie, Sam Lowes making his MotoGP debut with Aprilia Racing Team Gresini.
New manufacturer complete the MotoGP grid
Finally, lining up on the back of the grid are the two riders for the new manufacturer and team, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing. After Mika Kallio made it’s official debut at the 2016 season finale in Valencia, and unfortunately was forced to retire early due to a fault with a cheap yet significant electrical part, Pol Espargaro and British rider Bradley Smith will make up the eighth row, with Pol in 23rd and Smith last in 24th.
The fears now are will it rain on race day? Up to now, the schedule has not been changed for race day. There is a possibility it will be moved to the day time should it rain again ahead of the race. Otherwise it is a serious case of misfortune that the race should be canceled all together because of the safety aspects that are thrown in to play.