MotoGP, Buriram Tests D1: Alex Marquez ahead of Acosta and Marc Marquez at half-time

After dancing under the scorching sun of the Sepang International Circuit for three days, the MotoGP circus now sets up camp in Buriram, Thailand, for the final two acts of preparation before the Championship curtain-raiser, which will open with a bang in Buriram from February 28 to March 2.

It should be remembered that there are some notable absences, with George Martin et Fabio Di Giannantonio injured after bad falls in Sepang. Martin et By Giannantonio will be replaced by testers Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia) and Michele Pirro (Ducati). As for Raul fernandez, he returns to the track after his accident in Malaysia.

At Ducati, attention is focused on the choice of engine, with performances in 2025 that have not yet fully convinced the two official drivers. They will have to decide during these tests, because afterwards, the development freeze will last two years.

Aprilia, for its part, will focus entirely on Marco Bezzecchi, the only official driver on the track in the absence of Martin. The drivers will have a 4-hour test session at 12 noon French time. The Sepang test had seen Alex Marquez take the lead, but surprises came with interesting performances from Yamaha and even Honda, which showed better performance than expected.

In Buriram, Luca marini took the lead for a while with a 1'31.887, but this time remains far from the best times achieved during the 2024 qualifications. Peter Acosta et KTM then showed their speed with a time of 1'31.407, before Marc Marquez does not display a solid 1'30.587 on his Ducati GP25, in front of his brother Alex Marquez with the GP24 Gresini.

For its part, Raul fernandez works on his ApriliaMore Yamaha struggles to make it into the top 10, with Fabio Quartararo only in 20th place after more than an hour of exercise. Ai Ogura (Aprilia rookie) is in 2nd position, whileAldeguer (Gresini Ducati rookie) enters the top 10.

Peter Acosta is revealed on the KTM, realizing a 1'29.904 and continues its progression, just like Marco Bezzecchi, which reached 2nd place, followed by Brad Binder in 3rd position, with both drivers KTM at the top of this session.

As for Enea Bastianini, he fell without seriousness and is still struggling to enter the top 10, and Maverick Vinales is more than a second behind the brand colleague Acosta. Also note, Pecco Bagnaia completed 29 laps without managing to break into the top 10 before finishing 4th. Alex Marquez, meanwhile, improves his time with a 1'29.649 and becomes the third driver under 1'30 of the day. At Yamaha is Jack Miller who is leader, tenth, ahead Quarterly who is ahead of his compatriot zarco.

On a track heated to 54° and air at 34°, the riders take a short break before a starting practice session. These last days of testing in Thailand promise to be decisive for the final preparations before the opening of the championship. The start of MotoGP testing at Buriram have confirmed for the moment the trends observed at Sepang. Ducati et KTM have proven to be particularly successful, while Yamaha et Honda are still looking to optimize their settings.

MotoGP, Buriram Tests J1: Half-time times