ALEX MARQUEZ TOPS FP1 AT SILVERSTONE AS PEDRO ACOSTA CRASHES LATE
7 Aug·
Silverstone’s MotoGP Friday opened with a familiar reshuffle on the grid and a sharp early statement from Alex Marquez in FP1. The 45-minute session took place under friendly skies, with air temperature around 19°C, and the riders hit the track on time at 11:45 local.
The day also reflected the weekend’s injury and availability issues. Johann Zarco, still sidelined after his injury, was replaced by Cal Crutchlow, giving the 40-year-old British rider the chance to compete in front of home fans. Two other regulars were absent: Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) and Maverick Viñales (KTM Tech3). For Aldeguer, Superbike rider Iker Lecuona stepped in, having already made a MotoGP appearance in Hungary. On the KTM side, test rider Pol Espargaro took over the RC16. Yamaha also brought in a wildcard: Augusto Fernández was entered for Silverstone.
On track, the headline storyline in the morning was Marco Bezzecchi’s return. The Aprilia rider had been forced out after a crash on the Sachsenring that left him with a broken collarbone, but he was back in England and focused on assessing his fitness in the first practice. Meanwhile, Pecco Bagnaia underwent an “arm pump” operation on his right forearm during the summer break, and his recovery was also a key backdrop to the session.
Bezzecchi set the first benchmark, going quickest with a 2:01.600. The lead changed quickly: Raul Fernández moved ahead with 1:59.867, and Pedro Acosta immediately matched the same time. Alex Marquez then produced a new best lap of 1:59.436 to take over the top spot. Early in the session, the top five was led by Marquez, followed by Raul Fernández and Acosta, with Mir and Marc Marquez also in the mix.
As the minutes ticked by, Jorge Martín—riding for Aprilia—briefly took control with a 1:59.372. After 13 minutes, Raul Fernández responded with 1:59.021 to reclaim first place. Marquez continued to press, dropping under 1:59 for the first time with an 1:58.692 at the 15-minute mark. At that point, the order was Marquez, Raul Fernández, Martín, Bezzecchi and Marc Marquez, with Bagnaia sitting sixth.
By the halfway point, the leading positions remained unchanged. Then came the first major incident: about 20 minutes from the end, Pedro Acosta crashed in Turn 15 and ended up in the gravel, sprinting back to the pits immediately afterward. Marc Marquez improved to fourth following the disruption.
With 15 minutes remaining, “Bez” posted the second-fastest time, suggesting he was back to a good level after his collarbone injury. Fabio Di Giannantonio moved up into fourth. In the closing stages, traffic increased again, and Acosta returned to the circuit after his crash. Two minutes before the end, Acosta climbed to third, but Marquez’s fastest lap held.
The final FP1 results saw Alex Marquez top the session, with Bezzecchi, Acosta, Raul Fernández and Di Giannantonio completing the top five. Marc Marquez finished sixth, followed by Ogura, Martín, Morbidelli and Bagnaia to round out the top ten.
Notably, no Honda or Yamaha rider made the top ten. Joan Mir was the best Honda finisher in 11th, while Fabio Quartararo—top Yamaha—ended the session 15th. Toprak Razgatlıoğlu, the Superbike world champion, was last, 2.3 seconds off the pace.