First MotoGP pole for Ogura in Czech GP qualifying
Trackhouse Aprilia rider Ai Ogura took his maiden MotoGP pole position with an emphatic lap in Czech Grand Prix qualifying at Brno.
Ogura, set to be announced as a factory Yamaha rider for 2027 in due course, had started no higher than fifth in his MotoGP career previously - having achieved that grid spot on his debut in Thailand last year.
But he had topped Friday practice and found a staggering six-tenths improvement between his first and second runs in Q2.
It put him two tenths clear of the two Ducati riders that will join him on the front row, Fabio Di Giannantonio and Pecco Bagnaia.
Championship leader Marco Bezzecchi was three tenths off Ogura in fifth and 0.008s up on Marc Marquez, who had had his initial best lap deleted but improved considerably anyway in the end.
Diogo Moreira had followed Ogura to secure a Q2 spot on Friday, and did so again here to place as the top Honda, with the last spot on the second row.
Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia), Pedro Acosta (KTM) and Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) make up row three.
Aprilia rider Jorge Martin, second in the championship, advanced to Q2 with ease but could only beat two riders - Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) and Joan Mir (Honda) - in said session.
It means Martin faces a mountain to climb for a strong result on Sunday, when he will have to serve a double long-lap penalty for triggering the Turn 1 pile-up in Hungary.
Provisional Czech GP grid
1 Ogura 2 Di Giannantonio 3 Bagnaia
4 Bezzecchi 5 M Marquez 6 Moreira
7 Fernandez 8 Acosta 9 Morbidelli
10 Martin 11 Aldeguer 12 Mir
13 Vinales 14 Quartararo 15 Marini
16 Bastianini 17 Miller 18 Rins
19 Binder 20 Crutchlow 21 Razgatlioglu
Maverick Vinales was second-best of the four KTMs but came up just short of joining Acosta in Q2, 0.033s off a spot in the pole shootout.
Alex Marquez, returning from injury, was close behind in 14th - but withdrew from the weekend soon after qualifying, yielding the spot on the grid to Fabio Quartararo.
KTM's 2020 Czech GP winner Brad Binder had a time good enough for 16th sans Marquez (0.01s up on Enea Bastianini, who was frustrated to encounter a slower Toprak Razgatlioglu during a flying lap) erased for track limits.
He will start the sprint and grand prix in 19th, ahead only of aforementioned rookie Razgatlioglu (who has received a three-place grid penalty for Sunday that will drop him one spot) and LCR Honda stand-in Cal Crutchlow.
