News Summary
- Marco Bezzecchi topped Practice with a 1:26.775, ahead of Raúl Fernández and Marc Márquez.
- All four Aprilia riders advanced directly to Q2, with Jorge Martín fifth and Ai Ogura fourth.
- Francesco Bagnaia, Jack Miller and Fabio Quartararo missed the top ten and will contest Q1.
The ten riders who qualified directly for Q2 at the 2026 Australian MotoGP were confirmed during Friday’s Practice session at Phillip Island, with Marco Bezzecchi leading an impressive Aprilia performance.
The Italian set the fastest lap of 1:26.775, finishing 0.072 seconds ahead of Raúl Fernández. Marc Márquez, fastest in the opening free practice session, placed third with a 1:26.901.
Ai Ogura matched Márquez’s lap time to the thousandth but was classified fourth, followed by championship leader Jorge Martín. Aprilia therefore secured four of the first five positions.
Álex Márquez, Enea Bastianini, Pedro Acosta, Diogo Moreira and Fabio Di Giannantonio completed the ten riders advancing directly to Q2.
Australian MotoGP: Who qualified directly for Q2?
| Pos. | Rider | Team | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | M. BEZZECCHI | Aprilia | 1:26.775 | — |
| 2 | R. FERNÁNDEZ | Trackhouse Aprilia | 1:26.847 | +0.072 |
| 3 | M. MÁRQUEZ | Ducati | 1:26.901 | +0.126 |
| 4 | A. OGURA | Trackhouse Aprilia | 1:26.901 | +0.126 |
| 5 | J. MARTÍN | Aprilia | 1:27.030 | +0.255 |
| 6 | Á. MÁRQUEZ | Gresini Ducati | 1:27.150 | +0.375 |
| 7 | E. BASTIANINI | Tech3 KTM | 1:27.182 | +0.407 |
| 8 | P. ACOSTA | KTM | 1:27.208 | +0.433 |
| 9 | D. MOREIRA | LCR Honda | 1:27.519 | +0.744 |
| 10 | F. DI GIANNANTONIO | VR46 Ducati | 1:27.531 | +0.756 |
The ten riders listed above advance directly to Q2 on Saturday, October 24.
Bagnaia, Miller and Quartararo must compete in Q1
Several leading riders missed direct qualification after failing to finish among the ten fastest.
Johann Zarco came closest, placing 11th with a 1:27.557, just 0.026 seconds outside the final automatic Q2 position.
Home favourite Jack Miller finished 12th after placing third in FP1. The Pramac Yamaha rider will therefore begin Saturday’s qualifying session in Q1 at Phillip Island’s final Australian MotoGP weekend.
Brad Binder was 13th for KTM, followed by Francesco Bagnaia in 14th. The factory Ducati rider finished 0.952s behind Bezzecchi and more than eight-tenths slower than teammate Marc Márquez.
Fabio Quartararo also faces Q1 after finishing 15th for Yamaha.
Only the two fastest riders from Q1 will progress to Q2, where they will join the ten direct qualifiers to contest pole position.
Australian MotoGP: Riders competing in Q1
| Practice pos. | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | J. ZARCO | LCR Honda | 1:27.557 |
| 12 | J. MILLER | Pramac Yamaha | 1:27.598 |
| 13 | B. BINDER | KTM | 1:27.655 |
| 14 | F. BAGNAIA | Ducati | 1:27.727 |
| 15 | F. QUARTARARO | Yamaha | 1:27.826 |
| 16 | I. LECUONA | Gresini Ducati | 1:27.840 |
| 17 | F. MORBIDELLI | VR46 Ducati | 1:27.979 |
| 18 | Á. RINS | Yamaha | 1:28.116 |
| 19 | M. VIÑALES | Tech3 KTM | 1:28.152 |
| 20 | A. FERNÁNDEZ | Pramac Yamaha | 1:28.820 |
| NC | L. MARINI | Honda | No time |
When is Australian MotoGP qualifying?
MotoGP qualifying takes place on Saturday, October 24, at Phillip Island.
| Session | Australia (AEDT) | UK (BST) | US Eastern (EDT) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | 10:50 | 00:50 | Friday 19:50 |
| Q2 | 11:15 | 01:15 | Friday 20:15 |
| sprint | 15:00 | 05:00 | Saturday 00:00 |
The full timetable is available in the Australian MotoGP schedule and start times guide.
GRANDE PRÊMIO is following every session of the Australian MotoGP Grand Prix at Phillip Island this weekend, with breaking news, full coverage and real-time updates in its MotoGP section.
