Meanwhile, the riders present had the opportunity to take to the track on sportbikes, offering them an initial feel for the layout.
Marini shared his impressions, stating, “I think it’s a super-fast track. Maybe the average speed is the fastest in the MotoGP calendar.”
“On a circuit like this, where you can see many corners from the grandstands, it will be amazing for the fans. We’ll try to bring them the best show possible.”
If there were any doubts left about Marc Marquez’s speed, they were blown away in Friday practice at Le Mans.
The eight-time world champion was on a different planet in the closing stages, setting a blistering 1:29.855 to break the all-time lap record and end the session as the only rider in the 1:29s.
The Ducati rider was almost two tenths clear of home hero Fabio Quartararo, who pushed hard on the Yamaha but couldn’t bridge the gap.
Francesco Bagnaia joined them in the top three with a 1:30.039, only 0.007s behind Quartararo.
Behind the big names, it was Fermin Aldeguer who continued to impress. The Gresini rookie slotted into fourth with a 1:30.221, making him the fastest satellite rider of the day.
His teammate Alex Marquez followed in fifth, while Jack Miller put the Prima Pramac Yamaha into sixth.
It was a chaotic final ten minutes. Maverick Viñales, having looked sharp on the KTM throughout the session, crashed in sector four just as the attacks peaked – his first fall of the season.
Down goes Maverick as he found the limit 💥#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/eld2Mx01vK
— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) May 9, 2025
Moments later, Johann Zarco and Brad Binder both went down in the final minute, bringing yellow flags out and ruining most last-lap efforts.
Binder’s crash capped a frustrating session for the KTM squad. He and Pedro Acosta were left outside the top 10 for most of the hour with only the latter being able to ramp up the pace at the end of the session and making the Q2 cut in 7th.
Elsewhere, VR46 had a tough run. While Franco Morbidelli was able to secure a direct Q2 spot in 9th, teammate Fabio di Giannantonio was nowherer to be seen.
Having struggled to find any sort of positive feeling with his GP25 in the morning , the Italian didn’t make the top 17.
There was also no shortage of tech news: Yamaha debuted a new chassis alongside their fresh engine spec (not a V4!), while Marco Bezzecchi tested Aprilia’s new rear wing, first seen during the Jerez test.
