Marc Márquez was the fastest rider in the first session that counted for the Japanese Grand Prix, the 16th round of the 2026 MotoGP season. The session, held on the night of this Thursday (1) at the Motegi circuit, which started on a damp track and finished on dry asphalt, saw the Ducati rider seize the closing moments to clock 1:44.073, topping the timesheets.
The second position went to Jorge Martín, the Aprilia rider who was edged by Márquez by 0.099 seconds. The championship leader was followed by Marco Bezzecchi, third with the other Aprilia. Álex Márquez, aboard a Gresini Ducati, finished the session in fourth place, ahead of Johann Zarco, fifth on the LCR Honda.
Fabio Quartararo placed Yamaha in sixth position, while Raúl Fernández, aboard a Trackhouse Aprilia, finished seventh. Francesco Bagnaia, on a Ducati, was the eighth fastest, with Fabio Di Giannantonio on a VR46 Ducati finishing ninth. The list of the ten fastest also included Pedro Acosta of KTM. Diogo Moreira was 11th with the LCR Honda after climbing to second place in the late stages of the session.
The session that opened Motegi’s MotoGP program featured a crash. Takaaki Nakagami crashed his Honda in the early minutes of the action at turn 11. Before the session ended, Honda announced a fracture to the Japanese rider’s collarbone, meaning he will miss the remainder of the Japan weekend for the Grand Prix.
From 3:00 a.m. this Friday (the 2nd) the session to determine the ten riders who will be directly qualified for Q2 will take place, the session that will define the starting grid positions. On the same day the second free practice is scheduled at 22:10, and the qualifying at 22:50. The Sprint is planned for Saturday at 3:00, while the Japanese Grand Prix will be held on Sunday, starting at 2:00.
