Scott Redding moved to the top of the timesheets as the MotoGP form-book appeared to disappear out of the window in FP2 at Losail. The Briton led a Ducati 1-2 ahead of factory rider Andrea Dovizioso while yesterday’s dominant pacesetter Maverick Vinales slipped to fifth after his first crash in Yamaha colours.
After torrential rain earlier in the day, conditions were far from ideal with grip levels much lower than the first session but Vinales remained the man to beat early on, clocking a 1:55.378 to go fastest, albeit a second shy of his FP1 time. His evening took a turn for the worse fifteen minutes in though when the front end of his YZR-M1 folded at turn four and he wouldn’t improve from there.
His benchmark time remained unbeaten until a frantic final four minutes which resembled more of a qualifying session than free practice. Surprisingly, it was the Tech 3 Yamahas that rose to the top with Jonas Folger going quickest, only to be usurped immediately by team-mate Johann Zarco. The last word would go to the Ducati riders though with Dovizioso edging ahead with a 1:55.185, shortly before Redding’s 1:55.085 which ultimately topped the session.
Folger would eventually get the better of Zarco for third while Vinales dropped to fifth, one spot ahead of team-mate Valentino Rossi who showed signs of improvement after a difficult day one. Alvaro Bautista was seventh ahead of Jorge Lorenzo while reigning champion Marc Marquez had a quiet session on his way to ninth, seven tenths slower than he had gone yesterday.
2017 Grand Prix of Qatar: Free Practice 2 Classification
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