Álex Márquez tops MotoGP Practice. He was less than 0.1 seconds ahead of Pedro Acosta with his brother Marc Màrquez. The lap for Á. Màrquez made a new all-time lap record at the circuit.
Start of Session
With better conditions than the morning session, riders headed out onto the track. With early crashes for Álex Rins on his out lap at turn three due to a cold tyre, and Luca Marini, it was clear that even with the warmer conditions, this circuit was not easier.
A disappointing start for the home hero, Ai Ogura, with his bike blowing up down the main straight. The red flag came out straight away to check for oil. The track was quickly cleaned up, and the riders got back on with their practice session.
After the first 15 minutes of the session, it was Marco Bezzecchi leading the way ahead of Acosta and M. Márquez. Á. Márquez had a strong start to the session, sitting behind his brother in fourth with Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo in fifth, impressive for the season the Yamaha has had.
As the session hit the midpoint, riders were focusing on finding settings, so track action was slow. Riders came back into the pits to prepare for the time-attack part of the session. A reminder: the top 10 of this session head straight to Q2 in qualifying tomorrow.
Last 15 Minutes
With the sun setting over Motegi, riders headed out on their out laps before trying for some fast laps over the last 15 minutes. The first qualifying runs came thick and fast, with riders battling it out to set the best possible time. Bezzecchi was the fastest rider on track ahead of Acosta and M. Márquez, with riders battling it out to post the best possible time.
The top 10 of the field were covered by less than half a second, with the top 17 within 0.7 seconds. Ogura, after his bike blew up earlier in the session, was sitting in P15, not the result of that, there was a crash involving his teammate, Diogo Moreria, aJapanese rider wanted.
A yellow flag was shown at the final corner after a crash involving Johann Zarco, which knocked the wind out of him. One minute later, there was a crash for his teammate Diogo Moreria at turn 5. Not a great afternoon for the LCR Team. In between yellow flags, Á. Márquez managed to take the top spot, setting a new all-time lap record.