Second row start for French MotoGP is “best dream”

The six-time world champion was on course to claim a sensational pole for the first time since 2019, having gone top in the closing moments of a chaotic qualifying session just as rain began to fall.

But the returning Spaniard – who sat out the entirety of last year and missed the first two races of 2021 while he recovered from arm injuries sustained in the 2020 season-opening Spanish…