Marquez Dominates Dramatic Practice as Martin Crashes in Rain-Soaked Australian MotoGP

2024 Australian MotoGP: Marc Marquez tops eventful practice session, Jorge Martin experiences crash

Marquez dominates GP23 with a clean sweep in Friday’s single session.

During the 2024 MotoGP Australian Grand Prix, Marc Marquez dominated a highly intense one-hour practice session. This eventful practice witnessed a crash involving championship frontrunner Jorge Martin and was temporarily halted by a red flag.

Following a morning of intense rainfall that led to the cancellation of the FP1 session at Phillip Island, the weather fortunately cleared up considerably, allowing the MotoGP riders to participate in the day's sole hour-long practice session.

Starting strong right from the beginning of the session, Marquez ultimately took the lead with a time of 1 minute and 27.770 seconds, ahead of his Gresini teammate Alex Marquez.

Jorge Martin, who is currently leading the championship, finished in fourth place despite experiencing an early fall on his Pramac Ducati. His main competitor for the title, Francesco Bagnaia, came in just behind him in fifth place.

Pedro Acosta and Jack Miller faced significant setbacks when their late crashes caused them to miss out on spots in Q2.

As dark clouds suggested possible rain over the Phillip Island circuit, the afternoon session kicked off with intensity. Participants hurried to gather information about the freshly laid track surface and record a lap time.

Marc Marquez quickly established himself as the frontrunner with a time of 1 minute and 29.413 seconds. Meanwhile, Martin ended up crashing at Turn 4 after making contact with the back of Fabio Quartararo's Yamaha in an attempt to prevent a more serious collision.

Miller experienced his initial crash at the very corner that was named after him last year. This occurred shortly after he veered off course onto the damp grass.

Maverick Vinales from Aprilia climbed to the top of the leaderboard 10 minutes into the session, posting a time of 1 minute and 29.383 seconds.

Shortly thereafter, Marquez managed to climb to the top of the leaderboard with a time of 1m29.020s. A few minutes later, red flags were waved as a result of animals making their way onto the track.

The pause was short-lived as KTM’s Miller swiftly resumed pace, clocking in at 1m28.731s to secure the fastest time with slightly less than 35 minutes remaining.

For the next 20 minutes, Marquez and Vinales exchanged the lead, until Marquez secured the fastest time of 1 minute and 27.770 seconds. This happened with eight minutes remaining when he put on a new soft rear tire.

In the final moments, Alex Marquez posted a time of 1 minute 27.872 seconds, elevating him to second place. Meanwhile, Marco Bezzecchi from VR46 secured third, resulting in a sweep of the top three positions by GP23.

Martin secured the fourth position among the GP24 riders despite an early fall, whereas Bagnaia, who appeared unsettled in the initial half of the session, ended up in fifth place.

Maverick Vinales stood out as the sole Aprilia rider to earn an automatic spot in Q2, finishing in sixth place. Meanwhile, Brad Binder represented KTM as their only rider in the top 10. His team-mate, Jack Miller, experienced his second crash towards the session's conclusion, and Tech3 newcomer Pedro Acosta also took a fall.

Fabio Di Giannantonio from VR46, Franco Morbidelli of Pramac, and Alex Rins from Yamaha rounded out the top ten.

As the checkered flag was waved, Quartararo initially secured a spot within the top 10. However, as other riders improved their times at the last moment, he was pushed down to 11th and moved into Q1.

Johann Zarco emerged as the leading rider among those on Hondas, consistently remaining within the top 10 for an extended period. Meanwhile, Enea Bastianini faces a tougher challenge in maintaining his third-place position in the standings this weekend, as he concluded Practice on his factory Ducati in 16th place.

Complete Results of the 2024 Australian MotoGP

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