2025 French GP round of MotoGP saw a thrilling qualifying session that had the home crowd on their feet. Fabio Quartararo delivered a magnificent performance to secure pole position at the Michelin Grand Prix of France. The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP rider set a new lap record of 1:29.324 at the Le Mans circuit, denying Marc Marquez a top spot for the second consecutive Grand Prix.
‘El Diablo’ Makes It Back-to-Back Poles at Home Circuit
Fabio Quartararo, nicknamed ‘El Diablo,’ has now achieved back-to-back pole positions for the first time since 2021 and his third pole at Le Mans overall. The flying Frenchman’s last-minute heroics sent the rapturous home crowd into a frenzy as he snatched pole from Marc Marquez, who had dominated much of the qualifying session.
“I left nothing on the table,” Quartararo reportedly said after his impressive performance in front of his home fans.
Marquez Brothers Complete Front Row
The Ducati Lenovo Team’s Marc Marquez will start from second position after setting what initially seemed like an unbeatable time of 1:29.442 during his first run. The eight-time world champion looked certain for pole until Quartararo’s stunning final lap.
Completing the front row is Championship leader Alex Marquez from BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP, making it a Marquez brothers affair alongside Quartararo at the front of the grid for tomorrow’s race.
Q1 Drama Sets the Stage for Thrilling Qualification Battle
The qualification day wasn’t without its drama. The Q1 session was briefly interrupted by a red flag after Ai Ogura suffered a fall at Turn 3. Once action resumed, Johann Zarco gave the home fans another reason to cheer by finishing top of Q1 to progress to Q2, along with Raul Fernandez.
Brad Binder narrowly missed out on a Q2 spot by a mere 0.010 seconds, highlighting the incredibly tight margins in MotoGP qualification.
Rising Stars and Championship Contenders Face Mixed Fortunes
Rookie sensation Fermin Aldeguer delivered an impressive performance to secure fourth place on the grid—his best-ever MotoGP qualifying result—despite crashing at Turn 3 during his final attempt. Maverick Viñales continued his consistent form with fifth place, marking his third consecutive second-row start.
Reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia recovered from a disappointing start to qualifying, climbing from P11 to secure sixth place on the grid. The Ducati Lenovo Team rider will need one of his trademark lightning starts to challenge for victory.
Grid Positions Set for Sprint Race and Sunday’s Main Event
The third row will be led by Marco Bezzecchi as the fastest Aprilia rider, followed by Jack Miller on the Prima Pramac Yamaha and Franco Morbidelli, who crashed on his final flying lap.
Raul Fernandez rounded out the top ten, achieving his second top-ten qualification of the season. Johann Zarco and Pedro Acosta will join him on the fourth row, with the latter struggling during the 15-minute Q2 session.
MotoGP 2025 French GP (Le Mans) Qualifying Results:
- Fabio Quartararo (Monster Yamaha) : 1’29.324s
- Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo) : +0.118s
- Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Ducati) : +0.247s
- Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Ducati) : +0.452s
- Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3) : +0.699s
- Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo) : +0.723s
- Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) : +0.859s
- Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) : +0.867s
- Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina VR46 Ducati) : +0.874s
- Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) : +1.061s
- Johann Zarco (Castrol Honda LCR) : +1.120s
- Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM) : +1.138s
- Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) : 1’30.441s
- Alex Rins (Monster Yamaha) : 1’30.455s
- Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) : 1’30.479s
- Luca Marini (Honda HRC Castrol) : 1’30.505s
- Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina VR46 Ducati) : 1’30.651s
- Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3) : 1’30.697s
- Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) : 1’31.576s
- Miguel Oliveira (Pramac Yamaha) : 1’31.782s
- Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia Factory) : 1’31.982s
- Takaaki Nakagami (Honda HRC Castrol) : 1’32.544s
The Michelin Grand Prix of France continues with the sprint race scheduled for 15:00 local time today, followed by Sunday’s main event where Quartararo will aim to convert his pole position into victory in front of an enthusiastic home crowd.
Will Quartararo’s pole position advantage translate to victory at Le Mans? Or can the Marquez brothers spoil the French celebration? The stage is set for an epic battle at the historic circuit.
The comeback of El Diablo!