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MotoGP Mugello: Petronas on top in Moto3 with Binder fastest, McPhee third

Petronas SRT enjoyed the opening day at Mugello as Darryn Binder and John McPhee completed Friday’s Moto3 preparations for the ItalianGP in first and third respectively. 

It was looking to be a perfect start for the Malaysian team before Leopard’s Dennis Foggia spoiled the party in the final seconds, stealing second from the Scot by a mere 0.085s. 

Moto3 got down to work at the spectacular, if much quieter than normal, Mugello circuit as blue skies gave way to perfect track conditions for the opening practice of the ItalianGP. 

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Pedro Acosta initially led the way as the first times registered, the now 17-year-old championship leader fighting Xavier Artigas, Gabriel Rodrigo and Andrea Migno at the head of the timings as the trio took over, with the Argentinian holding court after the opening 10-minutes of action. 

Ricardo Rossi joined the challenge with his fourth lap, claiming second from Migno and Deniz Öncü as McPhee - beginning his session slightly later than the rest - entered the top-10 on his second attempt before advancing again, this time to sixth.

Rodrigo continued to lead the way as the mid-session approached, setting the first 1’59 of the morning on his sixth lap, 0.7s ahead of Sergio Garcia in second place. Öncü, Niccolò Antonelli and Ayumu Sasaki bettered the GasGas rider as they battled for the top-five on the next two revolutions with Foggia gaining third moments later. 

There was little change at the top over the next 10-minutes, Romano Fenati the only mover as he took sixth on his eighth lap before the majority headed for the pits. 

The action eventually picked up pace as the clock neared the closing quarter, Rodrigo retaining the fastest times, 1’58.844 now the target, with Jason Dupasquier, Binder and Migno joining him under the 2’00 barrier as the final 10-minutes got underway. 

Rodrigo’s session-long reign at the head of the standings looked to be over as Öncü out-mastered the Gresini rider by two-tenths. Fenati joining the Turk at the top on the next lap as Tatsuki Suzuki and McPhee navigated their respective Honda’s to fourth and fifth. The Italian was on a charge, however, sweeping his Husqvarna into first on his 12th attempt before repeatedly bettering his own time with successive laps in the remaining three minutes.  

Migno was the only rider to challenge his countryman as the session reached its conclusion, claiming the lead on his final lap with a 1’57.724 to sit 0.495s ahead of Fenati and Antonelli before a last-second shot from Jaume Masia spoiled an all-Italian top-three. The KTM demoted the Avintia to fourth ahead of Binder, Öncü, Foggia and McPhee with Filip Salac and Rodrigo concluding the morning’s top-10. 

The afternoon got underway on a track more than double the temperature of the opening 40-minutes, as the Italian sun bathed the asphalt to a tropical 46℃. 

Migno continued his reign at the top as the first laps of the afternoon registered on the timing screens with Binder narrowly behind while a wildcard challenge came in the form of Alberto Surra, for third - the Bardahl VR46 team headed by Pecco Bagnaia’s father, Pietro - with team-mate Elia Bartolini sitting seventh. 

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First Binder, then Suzuki deposed the Italian for P1, the SIC58 rider taking the lead with a 1’57.809, as Rodrigo, Garcia and Stefano Nepa swept into the top-five with their fourth attempts. McPhee sat seventh, 0.09s behind Migno, after the opening 10-minutes with Foggia, Antonelli and Surra holding on to the fringes of the top-10. 

The Snipers rider was back in charge after 15-minutes of riding, with McPhee also advancing his pace to fifth before the second wildcard of Bartolini claimed the position. 

The halfway stage ushered in the usual lull as the pitlane filled with machines. Masia the first to strike back on track with the fastest time of the day so far - a 1’57.680 - before the Spaniard’s pace continued to climb. Foggia’s speed, however, was building in intensity, with the Leopard sitting third with his eighth lap before hitting the top next time around, Suzuki struck back almost immediately but the time was deleted due to track limits. Acosta falling foul of turn 15, from seventh, to end his session early. 

Suzuki was back at the front as the last 10-minutes got going, 1’57.431 the overall target with less than a second separating the current top-14. 

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The field returned to the pits ahead of the final push. The track firing up once again with six to go as McPhee took charge thanks to a slipstream from Antonelli, and Öncü sliding through to second before Fenati and Binder bettered the pair. The Petronas rider advanced the pace with a 1’56.661, his teammate coming through to lock out the top-two for the SRT squad as Fenati slipped to third, Rodrigo and Öncü holding the top-five with one minute left to play. 

With the flag flying there was little improvement registering a threat, Binder claimed Friday spoils with McPhee looking safe in second before a last-second lap from Foggia spilts the pair to spoil the show. The Scot took third from Fenati, Rodrigo and Suzuki with Öncü, Antonelli, Migno and Masia completing the top-10. Rossi, Carlos Tatay, Nepa and Dupasquier ended the day in Q2 contention with Sasaki just outside in 15th place. Acosta concluded the opening day in 16th from Garcia, Salac, Bartolini and Jeremy Alcoba. 

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