FRIDAY ACTION OF MOTOGP AT MISANO
The bikes have got on track for the first time today at the Misano World Circuit, for the MotoGP San Marino Grand Prix. Let’s have a look on today’s action.
Franco Morbidelli began his second home round of the 2025 season in ideal fashion by claiming P1 on Friday morning at Misano. The #21 appeared set to deliver a VR46 1-2 until the closing moments, yet still kicked off his San Marino GP weekend with a statement performance. Meanwhile, all eyes were also on Yamaha’s all-new V4-powered YZR-M1 as it made its Grand Prix weekend debut, ridden by Augusto Fernandez and adding an extra layer of intrigue to proceedings.
Morbidelli produced his fastest lap inside the final ten minutes to seize the top spot by a margin of a quarter of a second over Fabio Quartararo. The Frenchman prevented a VR46 lockout of the top two as Fabio Di Giannantonio settled for third. Despite the strong showing, Morbidelli’s session ended with a tumble at Turn 10 on his last flying attempt, though he escaped unhurt. Fourth place went to Catalan GP victor Alex Marquez, who edged out his title-leading brother Marc Marquez.
Showcasing new rear aero and an updated exhaust, Luca Marini secured top Honda honours with P6 to open his home weekend, with Pedro Acosta following close behind as the leading KTM in seventh. Completing the top eight, Marco Bezzecchi emerged as the quickest RS-GP rider, ahead of Raul Fernandez and Jorge Martin, the latter making his first appearance at a track where he previously rode an Aprilia machine.
Midway through the session, Fernandez’s debut with Yamaha’s V4 machine came to an abrupt halt when the bike stopped at Turn 7 on the run to Quercia. Despite the disruption, he ended the session 1.196s off the top in P21. Yamaha’s difficulties deepened shortly after when Miguel Oliveira suffered two separate crashes, first at Turn 16 and then again at Turn 1 after rejoining, making for a challenging opening session for the Portuguese rider.
Later in the day, a 1:30.480 from Marc Marquez saw the #93 claim Day 1 honours at the Red Bull Grand Prix of San Marino and the Rimini Riviera, capping a fiercely competitive FP2. Marco Bezzecchi delighted the home fans by finishing second, just 0.147s behind Marquez, while Franco Morbidelli maintained his strong form to give Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team a place in the top three heading into Saturday.
The opening half of the session was tightly contested, with Marc Marquez leading the way and Fabio Di Giannantonio sitting less than a tenth behind, Bezzecchi holding P3 as the session approached the final 30 minutes.
At the time the late-session time attacks began, the provisional automatic Q2 spots were held by Marc Marquez, Morbidelli, Di Giannantonio, Bezzecchi, Marini, Acosta, Alex Marquez, Francesco Bagnaia, Quartararo, and Raul Fernandez, separated by only 0.461s. Remarkably, the top 17 were covered by just 0.733s, setting up a fierce battle for the crucial top 10.
With 15 minutes remaining, the pace escalated. Bagnaia briefly took P1 before Marquez eclipsed him by over three tenths with his 1:30.480 benchmark. Bezzecchi responded to move within 0.163s of Marquez as reigning World Champion Jorge Martin momentarily broke into the top 10, only to have his lap time deleted.
Alex Marquez rose to P4 before Joan Mir pushed him down a spot with a 1:30.819, 0.339s shy of the top. Bezzecchi then trimmed the deficit to 0.147s, while Martin capitalised on a tow to jump to P6, knocking Quartararo out of the top 10 with under four minutes to go.
The session was disrupted by yellow flags following crashes for Augusto Fernandez at Turn 2, Mir at Turn 9, and Raul Fernandez at Turn 15. Raul’s fall cancelled several laps, including one for Enea Bastianini, who was stuck in P18 and had only one chance left.
In the closing moments, Marini delivered a strong lap to secure P7 at the flag, while both Quartararo and Bastianini were left outside the crucial top 10, a major disappointment after their form in Barcelona.
By the end of Friday, Ducati led the way ahead of Aprilia, with Morbidelli the only rider within two tenths of Marc Marquez’s time. Bagnaia’s P4 served as a timely boost, while Alex Marquez has extra work to do compared to Barcelona. Mir and Marini put both Hondas in the top 10, and Martin heading straight to Q2 could prove pivotal for his weekend. Acosta and Di Giannantonio rounded out the top 10, setting the stage for a dramatic Saturday.
Q1 promises to be a thriller, with big names like Johann Zarco, Quartararo, Brad Binder, Maverick Viñales, and Bastianini all fighting for the final two Q2 spots in the morning session.
Bastianini was left visibly frustrated at the end of the Pre-qualy session, having lost several promising laps to yellow flags just as he looked set to enter the top 10.
Aprilia’s teamwork stood out on Friday, with Bezzecchi providing a well-timed tow to help Martin secure direct Q2 passage, an effective tactic to offset what has been a lingering weakness in Jorge’s return to form.
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