Ai Ogura breaks the all-time lap record at Brno by 0.5 seconds to take top spot in Friday Practice. Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di Giannantonio followed him. The top five were all inside the lap record.
Green Flag to start the session
Everyone was straight out onto the circuit for their one-hour practice session. With track temperatures averaging around 50°C (122°F).
After the first 10 minutes, the only manufacturer not in the top 10 was Honda. Bezzecchi set the fastest lap in the early stages of practice, followed by Di Giannantonio and Marc Márquez. Both the Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP bikes were also in the top 10, while the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team was outside the top 10.
While going for a fast lap, M. Márquez crashed at turn 11. It was a slow crash where he just lost the front. He was okay; he managed to get the bike back to his mechanic for repair.
After the first 20 minutes, the top 18 were covered by less than a second, with all the field covered by 1.6 seconds. With Johann Zarco still out injured after his knee injury in Catalonia, Cal Crutchlow is still in the LCR Honda team and is building speed every session he does.
The KTMs had a strong start to the session, with three bikes in the top 10. There was also a good showing for Ducati and Aprilia, as usual. The Trackhouse MotoGP Team had a 1-2 with Ogura on top. However, that was soon ended when Bezzecchi took the lead and broke the lap record. This put him 0.443 seconds ahead of the rest of the riders.
While Yamaha looked strong in Free Practice One and in the early stages of this session, they seemed to struggle for the rest of the session. Fabio Quartararo was the top bike in 15th. They will want to try to find their pace again.
Acosta took the fastest lap away from Bezzecchi. However, straight after, he had a technical issue with the bike cutting out on the track.
Last 10 Minutes
The last 10 minutes started intensely, with the top positions changing frequently. M. Márquez held the lead, doing the first-ever 1:51 lap time, from Ogura, Bezzecchi, Pedro Acosta and Francesco Bagnaia.
Fermín Aldeguer looked to get stronger as the session went on as the fitter rider in the BK8 Gresini Racing squad. It is easy to forget that he broke his leg in January, and his season looked uncertain. His teammate Álex Márquez is also returning this weekend after an injury at Catalonia. While he isn’t at his best, he is doing well considering what has happened.
The lap times were getting faster as Di Gianantonio Bezzecchi and Ogura took the top spot from M. Márquez. There was a magnificent moment from Jorge Martín where he saved him bike in the final corners.
There was also a crash in the last minute for Joan Mir, bringing out the yellow flags. He walked away from a crash that shouldn’t have really happened.
It was Ogura who managed to put together the best lap. He did a 1:51.735. After only entering the 1:51’s for the first time today, these laps are very impressive.