Aleix Espargaro went quickest on Day 1 of the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, mastering Phillip Island in FP2 to head the timesheets ahead of reigning Champion and points leader Marc Marquez – but not by much.
It was only 0.005 seconds splitting the two men, with Marquez’ key title rival Andrea Dovizioso in third and still within a tenth. The top on Day 1 was anything but lonely.
Weather on Day 1 was sunny and fair but with some wind giving pause for thought, and the forecast for Saturday remains a worry for some – with temperatures looking set to fall.
That made for some good squabbling for position, with a real chance that FP1 and FP2 combined timesheets may decide direct entry to Q2 should FP3 not give the field a chance to improve their times.
Behind the top three, last year’s winner at the Island Cal Crutchlow was fourth fastest after moving up the timesheets in FP2 to get in the mix at the front, ahead of Maverick Viñales. Viñales, who topped testing at the venue in preseason, also suffered a crash in the afternoon as he slid off at Turn 8 – rider ok.
Jack Miller impressed in the morning and again in the afternoon as he rides at home and only three weeks after breaking his leg in a training accident.
The rider from Townsville put his Honda in sixth, and was a fitting 0.043 off Viñales ahead of him. Andrea Iannone was another who enjoyed a notable Friday, with the Italian’s P4 at Motegi giving him a boost and Day 1 of the Australian GP seeing the former podium finisher at the venue put himself in seventh.
Johann Zarco had a solid start to the Australian GP in eighth, with the Frenchman gunning for the Rookie of the Year title and, with the absence of teammate Jonas Folger, needing only a top six finish to complete the task on Sunday. Dani Pedrosa was ninth quickest, and was back nearer the front following a tough Japanese GP.
The next three names on the timesheets made some headlines, as Pol Espargaro went a tenth quicker in the afternoon to take P10, leaving both Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi in eleventh and twelfth respectively.
That could be a hurdle for the two multiple World Champions as the weather remains in doubt for Saturday, when automatic graduation to Q2 will be finalised.
FP2 result
| Pos | Rider | Team | Time | Gap 1st/Prev |
| 1 | Aleix ESPARGARO | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 1’29.225 | |
| 2 | Marc MARQUEZ | Repsol Honda Team | 1’29.230 | 0.005 / 0.005 |
| 3 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | Ducati Team | 1’29.322 | 0.097 / 0.092 |
| 4 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | LCR Honda | 1’29.329 | 0.104 / 0.007 |
| 5 | Maverick VIÑALES | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 1’29.423 | 0.198 / 0.094 |
| 6 | Jack MILLER | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’29.466 | 0.241 / 0.043 |
| 7 | Andrea IANNONE | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | 1’29.604 | 0.379 / 0.138 |
| 8 | Johann ZARCO | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | 1’29.667 | 0.442 / 0.063 |
| 9 | Dani PEDROSA | Repsol Honda Team | 1’29.702 | 0.477 / 0.035 |
| 10 | Pol ESPARGARO | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 1’29.760 | 0.535 / 0.058 |
| 11 | Jorge LORENZO | Ducati Team | 1’29.820 | 0.595 / 0.060 |
| 12 | Valentino ROSSI | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 1’29.977 | 0.752 / 0.157 |
| 13 | Karel ABRAHAM | Pull&Bear Aspar Team | 1’29.987 | 0.762 / 0.010 |
| 14 | Bradley SMITH | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | 1’30.046 | 0.821 / 0.059 |
| 15 | Alex RINS | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | 1’30.085 | 0.860 / 0.039 |
| 16 | Scott REDDING | OCTO Pramac Racing | 1’30.140 | 0.915 / 0.055 |
| 17 | Danilo PETRUCCI | OCTO Pramac Racing | 1’30.269 | 1.044 / 0.129 |
| 18 | Loris BAZ | Reale Avintia Racing | 1’30.274 | 1.049 / 0.005 |
| 19 | Tito RABAT | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’30.546 | 1.321 / 0.272 |
| 20 | Sam LOWES | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 1’30.682 | 1.457 / 0.136 |
| 21 | Hector BARBERA | Reale Avintia Racing | 1’30.777 | 1.552 / 0.095 |
| 22 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Pull&Bear Aspar Team | 1’31.688 | 2.463 / 0.911 |
| 23 | Broc PARKES | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | 1’32.152 | 2.927 / 0.464 |