The first day of free practice at the Japanese Grand Prix ended with Johann Zarco in 11th and Jorge Martin in 15th position.
For the first time on Friday there was only one 1hr 15min session, in which it was crucial to try and get into the top ten and consequently into a hypothetical Q2 given the weather forecast for tomorrow.
A crash on the last lap without any consequences did not allow the Frenchman to set the time, he remained outside the top ten by a thousandth (1:44.798).
For the Spanish rider it was his first time on the Japanese track in the premier class, so team 89 focused on familiarising himself with the track, finishing with his best time of 1:45.009.
Jorge Martín
I like this new format, I like the idea of having longer sessions.
Today we focused on trying to get familiar with the track and tried to change something on the front.
Tomorrow hopefully it won’t rain we will try to get into Q2.
Johann Zarco
I had a very good start, it’s a track I like a lot and where I have many references.
It’s a shame about the crash on the last lap because I was going very fast and would have made a good time.
We have to hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow because otherwise it will be difficult to get into Q2.