Jorge Lorenzo puzzled by Marc Marquez gap to Alex in Jerez

Photo by Gold & Goose Photography/Getty Images

Jorge Lorenzo has admitted he’s struggling to understand why Marc Marquez is so far behind his brother Alex at the Spanish Grand Prix, especially with both riders on identical machinery.

The key sessions of the weekend are still ahead, but Ducati have plenty to be positive about after Friday’s practice runs. Fabio Di Giannantonio led a 1-2-3 for Ducati in FP1 before Alex Marquez came close to breaking Fabio Quartararo’s lap record later in the day.

No one came close to matching him in the afternoon, either, with Alex finishing more than three-tenths clear of the field.

His older brother Marc ended up fourth fastest but was still half a second slower by the end of the session.

Lorenzo puzzled by the gap between the Marquez brothers at Jerez

Photo by Gold & Goose Photography/Getty Images

Speaking during DAZN’s Friday coverage of the Spanish Grand Prix, Lorenzo was taken aback by Alex’s speed in pre-qualifying. He also raised questions about Marc’s physical condition, suggesting it could be a factor in the noticeable gap between the two brothers.

The three-time premier class champion told Motosan: “I don’t think he’s at his physical peak. It’s hard to understand that he’s half a second behind his brother. He’s struggling to consistently run in the low 37s. He’s a tad behind.”

Lorenzo went on to predict that race pace for both Saturday’s Sprint and Sunday’s main event would likely hover around high 1:36s or low 1:37s, based on what he saw in practice.

That means Marc will need to find more consistency if he wants to stay with the leaders across both races this weekend.

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