Marco Bezzecchi has made a strong comeback after a sanction in the previous race, achieving the best time in the Friday practice session for the Dutch Grand Prix of MotoGP. The Italian led a spectacular 1-2 for the Aprilia team during the 60 minutes of activity on the track, which was interrupted with only three minutes to go due to the fall of Alex Marquez, Gresini’s rider.
Bezzecchi, with a time of 1m31.123s, defeated Raúl Fernández, who secured second place just 0.177s behind. KTM’s Pedro Acosta and Ai Ogura completed the podium, while Francesco Bagnaia, the current MotoGP champion, finished in fifth place.
The first minutes of the session were very dynamic, with Bezzecchi and Acosta exchanging the top spot. The KTM rider improved his times as the session progressed, but Bezzecchi always had a response, setting an initial competitive time.
Around the halfway point of the session, the Aprilia riders began to shine with soft tires, with Jorge Martín setting a new best time of 1m31.956s. However, Bezzecchi managed not only to match but to surpass that mark by setting a new record.
The situation became complicated when, with three minutes remaining, Alex Marquez suffered a fall that brought out the red flag. Despite the interruption, Bezzecchi’s time was enough to keep him at the top, marking a perfect day in his two practice sessions.
Fernández and Acosta continued to improve their times, with Acosta managing to displace Ogura from fourth place minutes before the end of the session. The red flag was a decisive factor for some riders, including Bagnaia, who lost vital time due to yellow flags for other incidents.
The Ducati rider was able to complete a fast lap after the resumption, securing a direct spot in Q2. Marc Marquez, after a minor fall, opted not to return to the track and finished in sixth place.
The final classification of the session left Bezzecchi and Fernández with a significant advantage for the upcoming sessions, while riders like Fabio Quartararo struggled to find pace. Competition is expected to be intense as the rest of the race weekend approaches.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
