The Ducati rider missed out on pole position to Espargaro by 0.031s, but already anticipates the Barcelona race to be a different challenge due to the hot and slippery track conditions in the high temperatures, which will make tyre conservation over the race distance the key test.
Aprilia’s Espargaro demonstrated eye-catching race pace in practice, while topping three of the four practice sessions, as his RS-GP bike could find better mechanical grip in the conditions compared to his rivals.
