Oct 26, V7N- Francesco Bagnaia secured pole position for the Thailand Grand Prix at the Buriram International Circuit, showcasing impressive speed in warm and humid conditions. The reigning MotoGP champion set two new lap records during qualifying, first clocking in at 1:29.076 in the second session and then becoming the first rider to break the 89-second barrier with a blistering time of 1:28.700 on his sixth lap.

Feeling optimistic, Bagnaia expressed confidence in his performance, stating, "I think we did a very good job with the bike... We managed to do a very good lap time." His success contributed to a strong showing for Ducati, which locked out the front row with Bagnaia’s teammate Enea Bastianini and championship leader Jorge Martin of Pramac Racing securing the second and third spots, respectively.

Bagnaia is currently 20 points behind Martin in the championship standings and sees the sprint race as an opportunity to close the gap. Martin, who was aiming for a lap record late in the session, ended up crashing but was satisfied with starting from the front row, saying, "I see (Bagnaia) is quite strong, so let's go, let's go for it."

Meanwhile, six-time world champion Marc Marquez of Gresini Racing, who won the previous week's Australian Grand Prix, qualified fifth. Marquez, who had set the prior lap record in practice, faced challenges during Q2, crashing after losing the front end of his bike. This marks another tough qualifying session for the veteran rider, who has struggled to navigate qualifying rounds without incident in recent weeks.

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