2026 Austrian MotoGP, Red Bull Ring - Friday Practice Results

Pedro Acosta and Pol Espargaro form a home KTM one-two in opening practice for the 2026 Austrian MotoGP at Red Bull Ring.

Acosta put his RC16 on top of the standings for much of the session, as the only rider in the 1m 29s.

As in practice at Misano last weekend, Tech3 stand-in Espargaro grabbed a late tow from the #37 - and this time claimed a surprise second place, after an earlier tip-off.

Jorge Martin, tied on points with Marc Marquez but eager to understand if he requires arm pump surgery after last Sunday’s problems, pulled off track with a technical issue on his Aprilia in the early stages.

Martin returned to split Acosta and Marc Marquez at the sharp end of the timesheets at the halfway stage, which became third after Espargaro’s late lap.

Defending Austrian MotoGP winner Marc Marquez was fourth, followed by LCR’s Johann Zarco and Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi, who disastrously crashed from the lead on the opening lap at Misano.

Pecco Bagnaia's woes continued with just 18th. Ai Ogura was 19th on his MotoGP return.

Soft front and medium rear tyres were used for FP1, when riders usually save their preferred tyre options for later in the weekend.

Those are predicted to be the medium front and then soft (Sprint)/medium (GP) rear.

* Rookie

Official Red Bull Ring MotoGP Records:

Best lap: Jorge Martin, Ducati, 1m 27.748s (2024)

Fastest race lap: Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati, 1m 29.519s (2024)

Marc Marquez arrives at the Red Bull Ring on top of the world championship for the first time this season after completing a perfect double at Misano last weekend.

Ducati’s reigning world champion is tied on points with Jorge Martin, but officially ahead courtesy of his five grand prix wins this season to one for Martin.

Martin briefly passed Marquez in the Misano race, only to fade badly with arm pump problems, and could seek surgery if the issue recurs in Austria.

However, team-mate Marco Bezzecchi lost out the most at Misano, crashing from the lead and dropping 33 points from the top.

Martin and Bezzecchi will be seeking Aprilia’s first Red Bull Ring win, at a track dominated by Ducati in the past.

However, the RS-GP outperformed the Desmosedici on the special stiffer rear tyre construction at the start of this season, suggesting they could cause an upset this weekend.

Pedro Acosta, on the podium in Aragon and Misano, could be another contender, during his final Austrian appearance for the home KTM team.

Gresini riders Alex Marquez (Sprint) and Fermin Aldeguer (Grand Prix) also featured on the Red Bull Ring rostrum a year ago.

Tech3 KTM’s Maverick Vinales is missing his fourth event in a row, due to his shoulder injuries, and is again replaced by Pol Espargaro.

Joan Mir is also absent. The HRC rider retired early in last weekend’s Misano race due to extreme fatigue, saying: “I had no energy or power on the bike.”

Subsequent medical checks in Barcelona discovered ‘altered parameters in the blood’ which require further investigation.

Honda test rider Takaaki Nakagami is taking Mir’s place.

A private Pirelli/850cc test, the second of the year to feature race riders, will be held at the track on Monday.