Hot temperatures and hot laps were in abundance in Buriram on Friday as practice for round 18 got underway, Luca Marini finishing in 17th and Joan Mir in 19th – both ready to work for improvements tomorrow. The 4.55 kilometres of the Chang International Circ View this email in your browser   Practice Report Friday, Oct 25th 2024   Thailand Grand Prix MotoGP 2024   Round 18 Repsol Honda Team working for Saturday improvements in Thailand Hot temperatures and hot laps were in abundance in Buriram on Friday as practice for round 18 got underway, Luca Marini finishing in 17th and Joan Mir in 19th – both ready to work for improvements tomorrow. The 4.55 kilometres of the Chang International Circuit roared into life once again as the Repsol Honda Team, and the rest of the MotoGP World Championship, started Friday practice. Conditions were as warm as ever in Thailand, putting an even greater demand on the riders. As is often the case at tracks like Buriram, times were incredibly close as 19 riders were split by one second when all was said and done. Luca Marini finished the day in 17th position with a best time of 1'30.138, ending 0.973s shy of P1. It was a productive day for the Italian as he and his team spent much of it experimenting with new and different bike setups to continue to deepen their understanding and prepare for next year. Saturday's objective is to put it all together and deliver a strong flying lap – just three tenths would move Marini to the edge of the top ten. Setting a best lap of 1'30.217 in the afternoon, Joan Mir finished Friday in 19th spot. Improving his time by 1.2 second from the morning to the afternoon, the #36 spent much of the day working to improve the recent vibrations he has been feeling. The speed of both LCR Honda riders has Mir adamant that he can improve his fortunes come Qualifying. Luca Marini  10 17th  1'30.138 "It's always incredible how close MotoGP is, putting in a good lap is really important and even the smallest difference can change your position a lot. I wasn't able to put in this really good lap today, so we have some margin to improve tomorrow still. We spent a decent amount of time trying different things with the bike, with one eye on next year. There are some points to still understand, but we found some positives – especially in braking with these changes. I also need to work on my riding, to keep improving that as the bike evolves. I am looking forward to delivering more tomorrow." Joan Mir  36 19th  1'30.217 "Tonight we need to work well to match the results of Taka and Zarco, because they show that there is more to unlock. It was a difficult day for me as we still have some vibrations in the bike which means I am not able to show my full potential. We need to work to understand what the other riders are doing and why I am suffering more than the others. When you give your 100% you don't have regret, and I am always giving my 100%." Grand Prix of Thailand - Friday Practice Pos. Rider Num Nation Team Constructor Time/Gap 1 Marquez Marc 93 SPA Team Gresini Racing MotoGP Ducati 1'29.165 2 Martin Jorge 89 SPA Pramac Racing Ducati 0.110 3 Bastianini Enea 23 ITA Ducati Lenovo Team Ducati 0.162 4 Bagnaia Francesco 1 ITA Ducati Lenovo Team Ducati 0.195 5 Vinales Maverick 12 SPA Aprilia Racing Aprilia 0.341 6 Morbidelli Franco 21 ITA Pramac Racing Ducati 0.384 7 Acosta Pedro 31 SPA Red Bull GASGAS Tech 3 KTM 0.437 8 Marquez Alex 73 SPA Team Gresini Racing MotoGP Ducati 0.448 9 Bezzecchi Marco 72 ITA Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducati 0.455 10 Zarco Johann 5 FRA LCR Honda Honda 0.517 11 Binder Brad 33 RSA Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM 0.518 12 Quartararo Fabio 20 FRA Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha 0.591 13 Miller Jack 43 AUS Red Bull KTM Factory Racing KTM 0.672 14 Fernandez Raul 25 SPA Trackhouse Racing Aprilia 0.692 15 Nakagami Takaaki 30 JPN LCR Honda Honda 0.831 16 Di Giannantonio Fabio 49 ITA Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducati 0.834 17 Marini Luca 10 ITA Repsol Honda Team Honda 0.973 18 Rins Alex 42 SPA Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Yamaha 1.033 19 Mir Joan 36 SPA Repsol Honda Team Honda 1.052 20 Fernandez Augusto 37 SPA Red Bull GASGAS Tech 3 KTM 1.264 21 Savadori Lorenzo 32 ITA Trackhouse Racing Aprilia 1.847 22 Espargaro Aleix 41 SPA Aprilia Racing Aprilia 2.218 Copyright Free Images For editorial use only, click here to download images. Location Information Designed by German architect Herman Tilke, the Buriram International Circuit opened in 2014 and will see MotoGP™ making its debut this season. Located around 410km northeast from the country's capital of Bangkok, the town of Buriram in the Buriram province literally translates into "city of happiness", and its typically hot… read more. Length 4.6 km / 2.83 miles Width 12 metres / 39.37 ft. Left corners 5 Right corners 7 Longest straight 1 km / 3280.84 ft. Constructed 2014 Modified / Circuit Records Track Best lap 1m29.287s (183.6 Km/h) Jorge Martin (Ducati, 2023) Pole Position 1m29.287s (183.6 Km/h) Jorge Martin (Ducati, 2023) Race Lap 1m30.178s (181.8 Km/h) Jorge Martin (Ducati, 2023) 2023 Sprint Winner Jorge Martin (Ducati) 2023 Winner Jorge Martin (Ducati) 444 Moo 15 Buriram Chang Wat Buri Ram 31000, Thailand –  View in Google Maps bric.co.th You are receiving this email because you have registered your interest with Honda Racing Corporation If you no longer want to receive emails from Repsol Honda Team - MotoGP, please click here to unsubscribe .