Di Giannantonio breaks US Grand Prix lap record for back-to-back poles

## Summary
Advertisement Sport Di Giannantonio breaks US Grand Prix lap record for back-to-back poles Mar 27, 2026; Austin, TX, USA; Team VR46 Fabio di Giannantonio (49) rides during practice for the 2026 MotoGP Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas at Circuit of The Americas Austin. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST March 28 : VR46 Racing's Fabio Di Giannantonio claimed pole position at the United States Grand Prix after a thrilling qualifying session at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin where the lap record was broken repeatedly on Saturday. But we need to be focused and try to give our best in the afternoon (sprint)." LAP RECORDS TUMBLE Saturday's qualifying turned into a record-breaking bonanza, with the lap record changing hands multiple times during the session. Ducati's reigning champion Marc Marquez was repeatedly frustrated by traffic as he attempted to set a fast lap while his Ducati teammate Bagnaia was seen slapping his fuel tank when other riders impeded his bid for another quick time.

## Article Content
Advertisement
Sport
Di Giannantonio breaks US Grand Prix lap record for back-to-back poles
Mar 27, 2026; Austin, TX, USA; Team VR46 Fabio di Giannantonio (49) rides during practice for the 2026 MotoGP Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas at Circuit of The Americas Austin. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
29 Mar 2026 01:11AM
Bookmark
Bookmark
Share
WhatsApp
Telegram
Facebook
Twitter
Email
LinkedIn
Set CNA as your preferred source on Google
Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results.
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
March 28 : VR46 Racing's Fabio Di Giannantonio claimed pole position at the United States Grand Prix after a thrilling qualifying session at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin where the lap record was broken repeatedly on Saturday.
Di Giannantonio's record-setting time of two minutes 0.136 seconds secured back-to-back pole positions for the Italian who topped qualifying in Brazil last weekend.
MotoGP championship leader Marco Bezzecchi qualified second fastest for Aprilia, with KTM's Pedro Acosta completing the front row.
"The team did an incredible job yesterday because we did a big change for this morning and they sent perfectly what they needed to improve, to be faster. For this, I'm super grateful to them," Di Giannantonio said.
CNA Games
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
Show More
Show Less
"Then we did an amazing lap. This lap was the most adrenaline-packed lap of my life, honestly.
"For sure, it's a great shot to start from where we are. But we need to be focused and try to give our best in the afternoon (sprint)."
LAP RECORDS TUMBLE
Saturday's qualifying turned into a record-breaking bonanza, with the lap record changing hands multiple times during the session.
Ducati's former world champion Francesco Bagnaia set the early pace in Q2 by breaking the track record.
But his moment in the spotlight lasted barely two minutes until Joan Mir stunned the field by shattering the record again aboard his Honda.
Ducati's reigning champion Marc Marquez was repeatedly frustrated by traffic as he attempted to set a fast lap while his Ducati teammate Bagnaia was seen slapping his fuel tank when other riders impeded his bid for another quick time.
Stewards said they were investigating an incident in which Bezzecchi cut across Marquez, forcing the Spaniard to slow down and abandon his flying lap.
"Honestly, I have no idea. I didn't see him," Bezzecchi said when asked about the incident.
Despite the qualifying chaos, Bagnaia managed to secure fourth position on the grid, relegating Mir to fifth. Marquez will start sixth in Sunday's race after setting a time that was half a second slower than Di Giannantonio's pole-winning effort.
Aprilia's Jorge Martin was seventh fastest and is joined on the third row by Gresini Racing's Alex Marquez and Honda's Luca Marini.
Source: Reuters
Newsletter
Recommended Read
Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read
A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Just one a day.
Sign up for our newsletters
Get our pick of top stories and thought-provoking articles in your inbox
Subscribe here
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Download here
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Join here
Advertisement
Also worth reading
Content is loading...
Advertisement
Expand to read the full story
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST

---

## Expert Analysis

### Merits
N/A

### Areas for Consideration
- CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less "Then we did an amazing lap.

### Implications
- MotoGP championship leader Marco Bezzecchi qualified second fastest for Aprilia, with KTM's Pedro Acosta completing the front row. "The team did an incredible job yesterday because we did a big change for this morning and they sent perfectly what they needed to improve, to be faster.
- Marquez will start sixth in Sunday's race after setting a time that was half a second slower than Di Giannantonio's pole-winning effort.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers lap, fast, record topics. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 651.