Marc Márquez came out on top in the opening practice session of the San Marino Grand Prix, producing a late lap to deny Marco Bezzecchi the fastest time after the Italian had set the pace for much of FP1 at Misano.
Early Drama for Jack Miller and Pedro Acosta
The session began with early drama for Jack Miller. The Australian slammed hard into the tarmac at Turn 4 on his Out Lap. There was another early fall around 10 minutes into the session when Pedro Acosta crashed at Turn 1. Acosta’s crash added another fall to what has been a crash-heavy season for the Spaniard.
While others struggled to find their rhythm, Bezzecchi quickly emerged as the rider to beat. At his home circuit, the Italian steadily improved his lap times despite continuing to deal with issues concerning his left knee.
Bezzecchi eventually set a 1:31.988 as the session entered its second phase, continuing to lead the way before the battle for the top spot intensified in the final 15 minutes when M. Márquez claimed first, being almost two tenths clear of Bezzecchi.
Marc Márquez and Marco Bezzechi Trade the Top Spot
The final moments saw the timesheets change rapidly. With four minutes remaining, the Bezzecchi reclaimed the top spot. Acosta produced an impressive recovery from his earlier crash to move into second before being replaced by Johann Zarco. Meanwhile, Bezzecchi continued improving at the front.
Márquez had the final word, producing another improvement to take P1 at the end of FP1. Raúl Fernández secured third, ahead of Álex Márquez and Zarco. Acosta finished in P6, while Jorge Martín ended the session in P8 after a brief look at P3 earlier in the session. Francesco Bagnaia finished down in P18, another disappointing result in what has been a woeful season for the factory Ducati rider.
Early Glimpses Into the Weekend
The final top 5 of FP1 stand as follows: M. Márquez, Bezzechi, Fernández, A. Márquez and Zarco. With the leading riders separated by narrow margins, FP1 offered no clear indication yet of which manufacturer will emerge as the benchmark for the rest of the weekend.
Meanwhile, Ai Ogura will miss the San Marino Grand Prix after a medical check-up determined that his injured left thumb has not healed sufficiently for him to return to action. The SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team hope to see him in action in Austria.