Marc Marquez shrugged off technical gremlins and a soaked Czech track to top the timesheets in a wild opening MotoGP FP1 session at Brno.
The Ducati rider posted a 1’54.606 on his final lap, just 0.01s off the all-time lap record he set back in 2016.
The session began with gloomy skies and steady rain, catching out several riders early on.
Marco Bezzecchi was the first to hit the deck just five minutes in, while Ai Ogura suffered a violent highside later that left his Aprilia destroyed – though the Japanese rookie thankfully walked away unhurt.
Marquez’s morning looked bleak when his first Ducati failed to start in pitlane due to a temperature alert.
A massive SPINNING crash for @AiOgura79 😱😱😱
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) July 18, 2025
Great to see he's walking away from it (also with the fairing in his hand) 👍😅#CzechGP 🇨🇿 pic.twitter.com/KB5PkzcpxJ
With his backup bike still in dry setup trim, he was temporarily sidelined while his crew scrambled to get the first one going again.
By the time he rejoined, Jack Miller and Johann Zarco had taken turns at the top, and Fabio Quartararo had fired Yamaha to an early 1-2 with a 2:00.564.
But as the track began to dry and the slick tyres came out, lap times tumbled. Quartararo, Miller and Bezzecchi all flirted with top spot as the surface improved rapidly, but it was Marquez who made the decisive jump.
With just under five minutes left, he became the first rider into the 1:55s, then shaved another four tenths off to end the session more than half a second clear of Miller.
Francesco Bagnaia slotted into third with a late flyer with Alex Marquez fourth just ahead of returnee Enea Bastianini, who ended the session as top KTM.
Pedro Acosta quietly pieced together a solid lap to take sixth, leading Bezzecchi and Honda’s Luca Marini.
Alex Rins and LCR’s replacement for Somkiat Chantra, Takaaki Nakagami, rounded out the top 10.
Jorge Martin, returning from injury and making his first ever wet run on the Aprilia, endured a subdued session.
First session done👏
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) July 18, 2025
A stoppie's always a fitting way to celebrate 🔝 @88jorgemartin#CzechGP 🇨🇿 pic.twitter.com/daNpP6wjv8
His fastest effort was deleted for track limits late on, leaving him 17th and over 2.5s off Marquez.
While it might not look the part on paper, the Spaniard is without a doubt one of the surprises of the session with his fastest lap time, which briefly put him P4, cancelled due to track limits.
Maverick Viñales was absent following shoulder surgery, with Pol Espargaro standing in at Tech3.
Franco Morbidelli was also missing, VR46 opting not to replace him after his Sachsenring crash.
