PARIS (France): Johann Zarco of Ducati-Pramac and Fabio Quartararo of Yamaha set the pace in the second free practice session for the French MotoGP at the Bugatti Circuit at Le Mans on Friday.
The second session took place on a dry track after Jack Miller set the fastest time in the first free practice on a wet surface earlier in the day.
Zarco was 0.095sec faster than his compatriot Quartararo, while Spaniard Maverick Vinales was 0.389sec back in third place also on a Yamaha.
“It’s good to be able to be so fast already,” said Zarco, a two-time Moto2 world champion who has yet to win a race in MotoGP.
“It is clear that here in France we want to do well and when we do well, it makes you feel good.”
FP1 started wet but ended dry, ish, at least for Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team).
The Aussie put in slicks and pulled out a whopping 1.481 seconds on the rest of the field by the flag, with Zarco leading the resistance in second ahead of reigning MotoGP World Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar).
Mir was the first to stop in the damp session, however, as he suffered a technical problem at Turn 8. Two more riders crashed towards the end, first Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) and then Vinales.
By FP2, a few hours of mostly dry skies and no real extra rain saw the track start out dry and remain so.
With the forecast looking decidedly damp for Saturday morning, it was even more important to get a provisional place in Q2 on Friday and predictably, that created a flurry of afternoon action as everyone rushed to set a lap and then better it.
