San Marino MotoGP FP Results | Bastianini quickest at home, Bagnaia grid penalty

Enea Bastianini toasted his newly announced deal to join the factory Ducati team for the 2023 MotoGP World Championship by topping the timesheets on home soil at Misano in practice for the San Marino MotoGP.

Returning to the scene of his two spectacular podium results at the Rimini venue a year ago on the ageing Avintia Ducati, Bastianini consolidated his soft-favourite status at Misano by clocking the fastest time in FP2.

Leading a Ducati 1-2-3-4, Bastianini arrives in Misano on the back of his maiden pole position start in Austria two weeks ago, which was then followed by confirmation Ducati has selected him over Jorge Martin for its works ride next year.

Poised to join Pecco Bagnaia in the ‘red squad’, Bastianini led his future team-mate on the Friday timesheets at a margin of just over a tenth.

However, Bagnaia - who has inched his way back into the title fight following three victories on the bounce - will seek a fourth success from a compromised position after being handed a three-place grid penalty for clumsily impeding Alex Marquez when he sat up on the racing line at the exit of Turn 2.

Jack Miller and Johann Zarco completed an all-Ducati top four, with championship leader Fabio Quartararo - who clinched his 2021 MotoGP title at Misano a year ago - once again leading the ‘best of the rest’ in fifth place.

Maverick Vinales headed up his title-fighting team-mate Aleix Espargaro in sixth and seventh respectively, the Aprilia pair chased by two more Ducati riders in Pramac’s Jorge Martin and VR46’s Marco Bezzecchi.

With possible rain being forecast for Saturday morning, the fight to end FP2 inside the top ten for a provisional Q2 entry spot gave the session added intensity with Franco Morbidelli emerging as the surprise figure in tenth place.

Though the Italian is a race winner at Misano - scoring his first win at the venue in 2020 on the Petronas SRT Yamaha - this is the first time he has featured inside the top ten at the end of a session for some time in what has been a torrid year for Quartararo’s team-mate.

Of those no doubt hoping rain stays away for FP3, Pol Espargaro was the best of the Honda contingent in 11th, followed by the factory KTM pair of Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder, while Alex Rins was the fastest Suzuki man in 14th.

Elsewhere, Andrea Dovizioso’s final MotoGP race weekend before retiring got off to a low key start in 20th place, while Remy Gardner - who revealed he is out of a MotoGP ride for 2023 after being axed by KTM - was 23rd best, just behind RNF Aprilia-bound team-mate Raul Fernandez.

Bringing up the rear was Kazuki Watanabe, the Japanese Superbike rider - who is deputising for the injured Joan Mir - three seconds off the next slowest rider Darry Binder in 25th and last.

2022 San Marino MotoGP | Misano | Friday Free Practice Results [FP1 + FP2]