Marquez Stunner puts him on top in Tricky Texas Friday Practice

Miller sixth as early rain gives way to late-day heroics

Friday afternoon’s MotoGP™ Practice at the Circuit of the Americas turned into a drama-filled showcase as unpredictable Texas weather set the tone. With a wet start and a dry finish, riders braved the mixed conditions to push the pace under clearing skies.

After a lunchtime shower left the track slick, the first 20 minutes were spent on wet tyres as riders carefully gauged grip levels. As a dry line began to emerge, teams quickly switched to slicks — Jack Miller (Prima Pramac MotoGP Team) leading the charge as one of the first to gamble. He was closely followed by the factory Ducati duo and rookie Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP), all of whom leapfrogged Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol), who had been quickest during the early stages.

With the clock ticking down, the session evolved into a time-attack frenzy. Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) was the man to beat, unleashing a blistering 2:02.929 lap — the only one in the 2:02s all day — to top the timesheets by a remarkable 0.736s margin. The Spanish superstar was tailed by Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team pairing Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli, both finding strong late pace in the flurry of fast laps.

Late-session drama came courtesy of Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR), who crashed and triggered yellow flags in the dying minutes, although he was unharmed. Despite the disruption, Alex Marquez and Aldeguer locked in P4 and P5, respectively — young Aldeguer making his first direct Q2 entry.

Jack Miller ended the session as top Yamaha representative, ahead of impressive runs from Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3), with the latter also earning his first Q2 berth with KTM. Joan Mir clung to a top-ten spot alongside a relieved Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team), who edged through by a mere tenth.

The Q1 fight promises fireworks, with heavyweights like Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) and Ai Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP) all set to battle for just two available Q2 slots when action resumes at COTA on Saturday morning.

MotoGP COTA Friday Practice