Bezzecchi Denies Marquez in Crash-Hit Phillip Island Friday as Title Rivals Set Up Q2 Scramble

Marco Bezzecchi laid down a marker on Friday at Phillip Island, topping the timesheets with a 1m26.775s lap to head an Aprilia 1-2-4-5 in the afternoon Practice session of MotoGP's final weekend at the famous circuit before its move to Adelaide in 2027.

Raul Fernandez was second, just 0.072s behind his teammate, while title rivals Marc Marquez and championship leader Jorge Martin were third and fifth respectively, 0.126s and 0.255s off the pace. Marquez had earlier set the FP1 pace with a 1'27.985s, edging Fernandez by 0.048s, with Jack Miller third.

It was a chaotic day by the sea. Fernandez barrel-rolled off at Turn 7, Iker Lecuona — standing in for the injured Fermin Aldeguer — hit the tyre wall at the same corner, and Miller crashed at Turn 2 seconds after going fastest. Brad Binder's KTM suffered an engine blow-up, and Bezzecchi clipped Alex Marquez's Ducati at Turn 4 to trigger the first red flag, with a second stoppage caused by wildlife on the track. All riders escaped uninjured.

With Martin leading Marquez 355–353 with five rounds remaining, every session matters. The top 10 went straight into Saturday's Q2, with the Sprint at 3pm AEDT Saturday and the Grand Prix at 2pm AEDT Sunday.