Franco Morbidelli upstaged the leading riders in the MotoGP championship standings to head the second Friday practice session at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Key moments:
- Ducati 1-2-3-4-5
- Quartararo best of the rest
- Every manufacturer but Aprilia in top 10
- Martin 20th again
Either Marc Marquez or Pecco Bagnaia led for much of the 60-minute session, but a late improvement from Morbidelli - a 1m50.830s that wasn't far off being the new premier-class record lap at Lusail - put him clear of both and convincingly so.
Bagnaia ended up 0.145s back from Morbidelli, with Marquez another 0.02s off.
Morbidelli's VR46 team-mate Fabio Di Giannantonio and championship leader Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) completed an all-Ducati top five.
And sixth Ducati rider Fermin Aldeguer booked a Q2 spot, too, placing ninth.
The remaining spots directly in tomorrow's pole shoot-out went to KTM duo Pedro Acosta and Maverick Vinales, LCR Honda's Johann Zarco - whose last-second improvement thwarted Yamaha's Alex Rins - and Rins' Yamaha team-mate Fabio Quartararo.
Quartararo's lap, without using a reference rider, was particularly impressive to take him to eventual sixth place - though it was still 0.463s the best of the Ducatis.
Advancing to Q2: Morbidelli, Bagnaia, M Marquez, Di Giannantonio, A Marquez, Quartararo, Acosta, Vinales, Aldeguer, Zarco
Contesting Q1: Rins, Marini, Mir, Binder, Ogura, Bastianini, Miller, R Fernandez, Bezzecchi, Martin, A Fernandez, Chantra
Pramac Yamaha rider Jack Miller was in the mix for a top-10 spot until his second crash of the day, at Turn 7 late on, his M1 getting shredded as it bounced through the gravel.
Yellow flags and that could prove costly for some! 😱 @jackmilleraus has crashed out at T7 but he's up and walking 👍#QatarGP 🇶🇦 pic.twitter.com/xDoQSiNryp
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) April 11, 2025
His stand-in team-mate Augusto Fernandez - riding in lieu of the still-injured Miguel Oliveira - also had a crash, with LCR Honda rookie Somkiat Chantra going down at the same spot (and then narrowly avoiding a bigger crash later on).
That was some save from Somkiat! Just wow 🤯#QatarGP 🇶🇦 pic.twitter.com/leipeKkzfB
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) April 11, 2025
And there was a late fall for KTM's Brad Binder just as he was relegated from the top 10.
Returning champion Jorge Martin was only 20th in the end, four tenths back from the best of the Aprilias - which was Trackhouse rookie Ai Ogura in 15th.
