Marco Bezzecchi
Toprak Razgatlioglu was arguably the star of Friday at the Brazilian Grand Prix as he secured direct passage to Q2, and it sounds as if his confidence is growing.
Razgatlioglu was third-fastest in the second practice session, just three-tenths off the overall pace set by Johann Zarco. He was also two-tenths quicker than Fabio Quartararo.
Quartararo said Yamaha wouldn’t benefit from the novelty of the Goiana circuit, but there were signs on Friday that the unusual track conditions, after days of torrential rain, could in fact offer an opportunity. Razgatlioglu is guaranteed to start a MotoGP race inside the top 12 for the first time.
Johann Zarco leads the timed practice in Brazil
And look at Toprak Razgatlioglu in P3!
Gino Borsoi says Toprak Razgatlioglu’s rivals have ‘no advantage’ at Brazilian Grand Prix
Speaking to TNT Sports during the session, Pramac team manager Gino Borsoi said Razgatlioglu was capitalising on the fact that ‘everybody starts from zero’ in Brazil. It gave him an opportunity to show his ‘talent’, which has been somewhat hidden by Yamaha’s struggles up to this point.
Razgatlioglu has found it ‘very difficult’ to adapt to MotoGP so far after leaving World Superbikes, but Borsoi says his feedback was much more positive after FP1.
“This morning, he felt so good on the bike,” he said. “Everybody starts from zero, so they have no advantage compared to Toprak.
“For sure, he has to learn a lot about the tyre and the bike, but the talent is there, and we know how big it is. Sooner or later, he will arrive.”
Yamaha were satisfied with Razgatlioglu’s debut in Thailand, which saw him finish 17th. He suffered his first MotoGP crash in the Sprint race, but put this down to a technical problem.
Jack Miller lost a ‘perfect opportunity’ in Brazil
On the other side of the garage, there was frustration for Jack Miller. The Australian had set the second fastest time in FP1 after taking a characteristic gamble to venture out on slick tyres before the rest of the field.
But Miller crashed in the early stages of the competitive practice session, and the accident proved costly as rain arrived and effectively cemented the pecking order.
Miller, who’s among the true wet-weather specialists on the grid, finished the session 12th and will go up against the likes of Marco Bezzecchi and Raul Fernandez in Q1. He may have been guilty of overriding the bike as he sensed the opportunity before him.
“It’s a shame, because these kinds of conditions are perfect for Jack Miller,” said Borsoi. “We threw away maybe a perfect opportunity.
“Maybe Jack, at that point, took some more risks because he knows he has the speed to do better.”
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