2024 Indonesian MotoGP Friday Practice LIVE: Morbidelli Dominates Slippery Mandalika, Oliveira Injured in Highside

2024 Indonesian MotoGP: Friday Practice – LIVE!

Stay tuned for real-time coverage of Friday's practice session at the 2024 Indonesian MotoGP.

Just after the Emilia Romagna round last weekend, the international segment of the 2024 MotoGP World Championship begins with the Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika.

Although Jorge Martin was overtaken by Enea Bastianini on the final lap at Misano, Francesco Bagnaia’s seventh failure to finish this season allowed the Pramac racer to gain a 24-point advantage over the current champion.

Bastianini enters the last seven races of the season in third place in the world championship standings, trailing Martin by 59 points but leading 2025 replacement Marc Marquez by only one point.

Martin claimed victory in the Mandalika Sprint race last year, momentarily taking the lead in the 2023 championship standings. However, an error while he was leading the grand prix allowed Bagnaia to regain the top position.

Maverick Vinales from Aprilia and Fabio Quartararo from Yamaha stood alongside the race victor Bagnaia on the podium at the 2023 Indonesian Grand Prix.

The first free practice session (FP1) kicks off at 10:45am local time (3:45am BST), while the practice session that determines the top ten riders who will directly advance to Qualifying 2 is set to start at 3pm (8am BST).

Update: After his highside incident in FP1, Miguel Oliveira has been found to have a broken right wrist.

The slick track conditions are evident as Jorge Martin botches both of his practice starts on the grid following the end of the session.

The first practice session concludes as the chequered flag is waved.

Franco Morbidelli continues to hold the top spot, while Maverick Vinales from Aprilia advances to second place, trailing the Pramac rider by 0.221 seconds.

Jorge Martin also secures third place at the last moment.

Currently, every rider is using medium rear tires to conserve their soft tires for critical moments, beginning this afternoon with the top ten positions for Qualifying 2.

Morbidelli is the first racer to break the 1 minute 30 second mark this weekend, leading by more than half a second with 5 minutes left.

With only seven minutes remaining, Morbidelli has reclaimed the lead, while Zarco finds himself between two Pramac riders, ahead of Martin.

Rins and Brad Binder are the only riders trailing the missing Oliveira in the current standings.

Once again, one of Quartararo's swingarm wings has come loose. The French rider is now in 10th place.

In the meantime, Miguel Oliveira is heading to the medical facility for an examination.

With just ten minutes remaining in the session, the leading eight riders are Zarco, Martin, di Giannantonio, Bezzecchi, Nakagami, Bagnaia, Marc Marquez, and Vinales.

Johann Zarco reacts to the swift pace of his teammate Nakagami by leading the LCR team in pursuit of Martin.

Miguel Oliveira experienced a significant highside at Turn 4. The Trackhouse rider was thrown onto the track and the marshals quickly came to his aid.

Takaaki Nakagami, the lone RC213V racer using the older Honda fairing, momentarily leads the pack with a lap time of 1 minute and 31.767 seconds.

Martin briefly takes the lead by a margin of 0.042 seconds ahead of the Japanese competitor, with Marco Bezzecchi subsequently moving into second place.

Each of the three are now faster than Martin's time in the first practice session from last year.

Pedro Acosta was set to record the fastest lap time… but veered off track at Turn 15.

Bagnaia has come back to the Ducati pit and is preparing to go back on the track.

Standings at the mid-point of the 45-minute FP1 session:

Sure

Francesco Bagnaia exits from the rear of the Ducati garage.

It seems he believes the track isn't suitable for gaining any insights right now.

Mandalika is a crucial weekend for Yamaha, as the team needs to determine if its remarkable performance at Misano can be replicated on a vastly different circuit.

The initial indications are promising, as Fabio Quartararo holds the 2nd position.

Alex Rins, who is making a comeback after being ill, is positioned 21st, just in front of Johann Zarco.

Francesco Guidotti, the team manager for Red Bull KTM, informed Simon Crafar that Jack Miller has noted the track's slipperiness, which was anticipated.

Franco Morbidelli has just clocked the fastest time at 1 minute and 31.838 seconds.

Maverick Vinales has moved into the lead for Aprilia, clocking a time of 1 minute 31.896 seconds while equipped with medium tires on both the front and rear.

This weekend, the Pertamina VR46 MotoGP team, which is considered the local favorite, is opting out of their distinctive red and white livery for practice sessions. However, this hasn't hindered their performance. Fabio di Giannantonio is currently holding the second position, trailing only Martin, while Marco Bezzecchi is in third place.

Factory Ducati riders Enea Bastianini and Francesco Bagnaia have begun their weekend with consistent performances, currently positioned in 13th and 19th place respectively after completing 6 laps.

This weekend, many people are anticipating a strong performance from Marc Marquez.

He never crossed the finish line at Mandalika while riding for Honda, but the slick surface and the more rigid rear tyre design, similar to those used in Austria, should suit his abilities.

Marquez has moved up to the second spot, trailing only Martin, while Maverick Vinales holds third place for Aprilia.

On his fourth lap, Jorge Martin overtakes rookie Pedro Acosta to claim the leading position.

To conserve fresh soft rear tires for time trials and the Sprint, all racers are beginning the session with medium rear tires. However, they are utilizing a variety of front tire options.

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