Marco Bezzecchi Tops Australian GP Practice: Who Is Through to Q2

Marco Bezzecchi set the pace in Friday afternoon Practice at the Australian Grand Prix, recording the fastest lap of the session at 1m26.775s. The Italian rider, who won the Indonesian Grand Prix a fortnight ago, headed a tightly packed field at Phillip Island.

Raul Fernandez finished second with a lap of 1m26.847s, just 0.072s behind Bezzecchi. Defending 2025 MotoGP champion Marc Marquez placed third with a 1m26.901s lap, exactly matching the time set by fourth-placed Ai Ogura, whose gap was also 0.126s from the top.

Practice awards no world championship points and does not determine the final grid order. However, it is one of the most critical sessions of the weekend because it decides which riders bypass the first phase of Saturday qualifying.

Why does Friday Practice matter so much for qualifying?

In MotoGP, the Friday afternoon timed session is simply called Practice. It determines which ten competitors advance directly to Qualifying 2, commonly known as Q2.

Qualifying is split into two sessions to keep the track from getting overcrowded. For a full explanation of how the grid is set, take a look at our guide on how qualifying works. Riders who finish in the top ten on Friday afternoon bypass Qualifying 1 (Q1) entirely.

Skipping Q1 is a huge advantage. It guarantees a starting spot somewhere on the front four rows of the grid, between first and twelfth, while saving valuable fresh tyres for the pole position shootout.

AI

Who secured a safe spot in Qualifying 2?

Ten riders earned their direct tickets to Q2 on Friday afternoon, led by Bezzecchi and Fernandez. Both title contenders in the 2026 championship hunt safely made the cut without needing to stress over Saturday morning.

Marc Marquez, who holds nine world titles including seven in the premier class, secured third position. Current championship leader Jorge Martin, the 2024 MotoGP champion, joined his Aprilia team-mate in the top ten by finishing fifth with a time of 1m27.030s, 0.255s off the pace.

Behind them, Alex Marquez was sixth on a 1m27.150s, followed by Enea Bastianini in seventh on 1m27.182s. Pedro Acosta took eighth with a 1m27.208s, while rookie Diogo Moreira placed an impressive ninth on 1m27.519s. Fabio Di Giannantonio claimed the final transfer spot in tenth with a 1m27.531s, exactly 0.756s slower than Bezzecchi.

To learn more about how teams prepare their machines during these Friday runs, see our breakdown of MotoGP practice sessions explained.

AI

Which major riders are trapped in Q1?

Anyone who finishes eleventh or lower in Friday Practice must take part in Q1 on Saturday. In Q1, the remaining riders fight for just two transfer spots into Q2, leaving the rest locked into 13th on the grid or lower.

Several prominent names missed out on the top ten and face that difficult battle. Johann Zarco ended the session in 11th, missing direct progression by just a fraction of a second. Home favourite Jack Miller finished 12th, while Brad Binder was 13th.

Most surprisingly, 2022 and 2023 MotoGP world champion Francesco Bagnaia placed 14th on his factory Ducati. Bagnaia will have to fight through Q1 alongside 2021 MotoGP world champion Fabio Quartararo, who ended Friday in 15th position.

Other riders heading to Q1 include Iker Lecuona in 16th, Franco Morbidelli in 17th, Alex Rins in 18th, Maverick Viñales in 19th, and Augusto Fernandez in 20th. Luca Marini did not take part after being told to sit out the session through illness.

AI

What happens next this weekend at Phillip Island?

Action resumes on Saturday with a brief Free Practice 2 session, which gives teams a final chance to test bike setup before the serious business begins. Free Practice times have no bearing on qualifying order, so riders use it to test race tyres.

Qualifying takes place immediately afterwards, starting with Q1. The fastest two riders from Q1 will earn promotion to Q2, joining the ten riders who qualified directly on Friday to decide the top 12 grid slots.

Once the grid is established, riders will line up for the half-distance Sprint on Saturday afternoon. The weekend concludes with the full-distance Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, 25 October 2026.

Quick Takeaways

• Marco Bezzecchi topped Friday Practice with a fastest lap of 1m26.775s, edging out Raul Fernandez by 0.072s.
• The top ten riders, including title contenders Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez, advanced directly to Saturday’s Q2 shootout.
• Former MotoGP champions Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio Quartararo both missed the cut and must contest Q1.
• Only the top two riders from Saturday morning’s Q1 session will be promoted into Q2 to fight for pole position.