Rins does not give an option at the start in Austin

Austin.- Immediately after starting, Rins had a breakdown in the first of his GSX-RR and had to leave it parked on the road and get on a support bike. Upon rejoining the track with the second unit, the Barcelona native had to return to the garage lane to refuel. Despite those setbacks, Rins was able to string together a series of fast turns that put him at the front of the board.

Just eight thousandths of a second from #42 finished Maverick Viñales, to whom the victory 15 years ago by Aleix Espargaró, his teammate on Aprilia, seems to have given him a great boost of confidence. Viñales was four tenths ahead of Jack Miller, who at the last minute was third and relegated Fabio Quartararo to fourth position.

Marc Márquez only needed five laps to build that confidence that he said he needed in the run-up to this event, after missing the previous two. The one from Cervera (Lleida) finished fifth, half a second behind the first and in this way closed a poker game with five of the six constructors that are measured in the championship in the top five positions.

Pol Espargaró, a neighbor of the #93 workshop in the garage of the official HRC structure, finished sixth, while Enea Bastianini finished seventh.

Aleix Espargaró, the leader of the contest, was the eighth fastest, and Takaaki Nakagami (ninth) and Johann Zarco (tenth) closed a top ten from which Joan Mir (eleventh) and Pecco Bagnaia (13th) were left out.

The grip levels of a recently resurfaced circuit are expected to increase with the passing of the sessions and the running of the bikes, so the panorama will probably change considerably with a view to the second practice session, scheduled for a few hours.

MotoGP FP1 classification:

Cla	#	Pilot		Motorcycle	laps	Weather	Difference	Interval	Km/h	Top speed
1	42	Alex Rins		Suzuki	14	2’04.007			160.045	0
2	12	Maverick Viñales		Aprilia	15	2’04.015	0.008	0.008	160.035	0
3	43	Jack Miller		Ducati	18	2’04.437	0.430	0.422	159,492	0
4	20	Fabio Quartararo		Yamaha	17	2’04.450	0.443	0.013	159,476	0
5	93	Marc Márquez		Sling	17	2,04,469	0.462	0.019	159,451	0
6	44	Pol Espargaro		Sling	fifteen	2,04,581	0.574	0.112	159,308	0
7	23	Enea Bastianini		Ducati	15	2’04.594	0.587	0.013	159,291	0
8	41	Aleix Espargaró		April	16	2’04,686	0.679	0.092	159,174	0
9	30	Takaaki Nakagami		Honda	18	2’04,744	0.737	0.058	159,100	0
10	5	Johann Zarco		Ducati	17	2’04.893	0.886	0.149	158.910	0
see results

Maverick Viñales, Aprilia Racing Team

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Foto de: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images