The Austrian MotoGP Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg showcased Ducati as the dominant force on day one, with seven of the top ten spots going to the Bologna manufacturer’s Desmosedici prototypes as action unfolded on a dry track. Valentino Zarco led the charge with a rapid lap that clocked 1:29.837, placing him at the top of the timing sheets and signaling Ducati’s strong pace as the session progressed.
Several Ducati riders followed closely in the top group, including Jack Miller, Jorge Martín, Pecco Bagnaia, Luca Marini, Marco Bezzecchi, and Enea Bastianini, highlighting the Italian team’s depth. France’s Fabio Quartararo on a Yamaha YZR M1 was fourth, while Maverick Viñales on the Aprilia RS-GP occupied ninth. South Africa’s Brad Binder on a KTM RC 16 sat eighth, with the overall field tightly packed within tenths of a second of the leaders as the session moved into its final minutes.
For the first time on a fully dry surface, riders could push on the updated variant of the Spielberg circuit, and Miller’s pace remained strong in the second free practice, helped by the absence of the morning rain and the evident speed of the Desmosedici GP22. Yet Miller could not maintain his initial advantage, with Bagnaia and Quartararo nipping at his heels as the lap times tightened across the board.
In a display of thermal team coordination, Miller’s advantage faded as Bagnaia moved to the front, closely followed by Quartararo with only 0.021 seconds separating the lead contenders. Spaniard Alex Rins, who had led earlier on the Suzuki GSX RR, encountered a mistake in the new circuit section which briefly took him off track. Aleix Espargaró, aboard the Aprilia RS-GP, encountered a rough patch of timing and handling during the session, ending up further back after initially appearing competitive in the early laps.
Rins briefly remained at the top before Quartararo seized the pace again with a late surge. Bagnaia then challenged, and Aleix Espargaró focused on elevating his standing, attempting several high-speed runs that included a setback on a gravel approach but eventually saw him climb into mid-pack by the end of the session as others pushed for improvements and some small errors crept in under pressure.
Quartararo maintained leadership for much of the time with a notable lap of 1:30.285 while Suzuki riders Alex Rins and Joan Mir chased, and Miller found himself intermittently displaying strong acceleration on the Austrian circuit. The mood was tense as the final minutes distorted the times, with a wave of rapid laps from competitors signaling the close competition ahead of the session’s conclusion.
With ten minutes left in the session, Jorge Martín (Ducati Desmosedici GP22) moved into the lead with a 1:30.119, edging in front of Zarco and Miller. Miguel Oliveira on the KTM RC 16 delivered a powerful run that carried him through Turn 9 with significant speed, nearly taking the bike to the edge before recovering his line—an example of the precision and risk involved in the sprint to the top.
Moments later, Martín appeared poised to break the 1:29 barrier, setting a new standard that was soon matched by Zarco and Miller. The early top six positions formed quickly, and from Zarco through Bagnaia, the field confirmed a strong and balanced pace across multiple riders and teams.
Observations from the riders extended beyond machine performance. Marc Márquez, during his pre-event remarks, suggested a cautious approach to the season ahead, reflecting the broader context of the competition and the strategies employed by Honda. His comments found resonance within paddock chatter, underscoring the ongoing evaluation of the team’s competitive program as the weekend progressed.
Meanwhile, several others—Pol Espargaró, Joan Mir, Alex Márquez, and Raúl Fernández—made steady climbs and adjustments in their setups. Aleix Espargaró showed improvement over morning times but did not manage to reach the most competitive positions. KTM’s ongoing development faced its own set of challenges as teams balanced performance with reliability for the long run in the championship moments ahead.
In the Moto3 category, Italian rider Dennis Foggia (Honda) led the provisional classification at the end of the second free practice session at Spielberg’s Red Bull Ring, ahead of Turkish rider Deniz Öncü Pioneer (KTM) and British rider John McPhee (Husqvarna). The sky remained overcast, and while sunshine stayed away, the track condition improved enough to support faster runs during the second session, as most riders pressed to set personal bests as soon as the opportunity presented itself.
As the session concluded, a variety of riders traded fast laps, with Stefano Nepa (KTM) from Italy taking the early pace before Spaniards and others briefly surged ahead. Jaume Masia (KTM), Daniel Holgado (KTM), Ivan Ortola (KTM), Ayumu Sasaki (Husqvarna), Tatsuki Suzuki (Honda), and Dennis Foggia (Honda) also posted strong times, underscoring a competitive field in Moto3 and the challenges of mastering the Spielberg layout under changing conditions.