MotoGP: Saturday action in Buriram concludes with a familiar duo on top – but plenty of stories continue to build ahead of race action.
Day 1 is in the books at the Buriram Test and it’s 2025 runner-up Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) who tops the timesheets with a 1:29.262 in Thailand. Hot on his heels despite two crashes it’s reigning World Champion Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team), 0.129 in arrears, with Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) just taking third as he edged out Aprilia Racing’s Marco Bezzecchi by just 0.011. It was a tight fight for that P3 as Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) lurked only another 0.005 back too.
Here’s what we saw on Saturday – on the timesheets and beyond.
BK8 GRESINI RACING MOTOGP, PERTAMINA ENDURO VR46 RACING TEAM, DUCATI LENOVO TEAM
Alex Marquez continued working out which aero package he prefers, and took that P1. His full-time teammate in the box, Fermin Aldeguer, is out injured and replaced by Michele Pirro, with the Italian completing the running 3.3s off Marquez but putting in some valuable track time.
After the highs of Sepang, Marc Marquez didn’t have it all his own way on Day 1 at Buriram. Two crashes for the reigning World Champion saw the first half of his day spent in the gravel or in the box. The first one was a fast one at the final corner as he was braking on the kerbs whilst the second was a small get-off at the final turn, but rider ok. He also got back out there and finished the day in P2 on the combined times in somewhat classic style #93 bounce back.
Teammate Francesco Bagnaia was P10 but continued his positive pre-season form and was seen smiling throughout the day in the box. In the red corner there was more debate about the 2025 aero vs the 2024 package as well as different variations of the 2025 one itself. There’s now one day to decide…
From the blue of Gresini to the fluorescent yellow of the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducatis. Di Giannantonio was up inside the top three for the majority of the day whilst Franco Morbidelli left it late to replicate what he showed in Sepang and pull off a leapfrog. The #21 jumped up the order into the top three in the closing 20 minutes, taking the chequered flag in third. Ninth at the conclusion of day one for ‘Diggia’ but with both riders strong throughout testing, there’re exciting times ahead for VR46..
APRILIA RACING & TRACKHOUSE MOTOGP TEAM
Aprilia’s pre-season has been the highlight of many within the MotoGP paddock and day one was no exception. Bezzecchi was a solid fourth whilst teammate Jorge Martin, despite being 13th at the end of it all, was less than four tenths off the #72 despite riding the RS-GP at Buriram for the first time. Bezzecchi had a small crash on his way back to the pits but was perfectly OK. They had the latest spec of rear aero which was featured at Sepang as well as some new air ducts – but with a slightly different objective: to channel air to go around the riders legs.
Like in Bezzecchi and Martin’s garage, Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) also had the latest spec of rear aero on his RS-GP. The 2025 Australian GP winner put in a fast run at the end of the day too, moving up into the top three originally before concluding the day in sixth. Teammate Ai Ogura likes Buriram, the place of his debut in MotoGP last year and thus his best result of the season but did struggle to match the #25. Ogura back-to-back tested the rear aero with the one seen in Valencia last season, confirming which direction he wants to go in. 15th at the flag, expect the Japanese star to make bigger moves on the final day tomorrow.
CASTROL HONDA LCR, HONDA HRC CASTROL & PRO HONDA LCR
Leading Honda’s charge, a mighty effort from Zarco saw the Frenchman climb up the order to fifth with a flying lap putting him just 0.205s away from Alex Marquez in P1. It wasn’t all smooth for Zarco – literally – though, as he said he struggled with consistent control of the bike as it evolved from one lap to another.
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Elsewhere, teammate Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) continued to adapt to his new MotoGP environment and said it’s all about the fast corners. A challenging day in the soaring heat, he was 20th at the end of it all but expect his time to drop significantly if all goes well on day two; he stated he has homework to do and plans to watch other riders’ lines.
Despite only having one bike available after a technical issue, Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) was right in the thick of it once again, backing up Zarco’s pace and confirming Honda’s progress. He clinched seventh on the timesheets and confirmed that for him and teammate Luca Marini, there’ll be some aero-related items to try on day two before getting into the Grand Prix weekend. Marini was P12.
RED BULL KTM TECH3 & RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING
KTM’s charge on Saturday was led by Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) in eighth place. He was using the latest aero seen for the first time at Sepang, seemingly smaller than their previous incarnation. Teammate Enea Bastianini followed the same method of working as his teammate but struggled to match his pace as yet, finishing in P16.
There were small improvements made by Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) as he finished 11th at the end of play on day one, stating that his day went “great”. He also used the smaller aero from Sepang but teammate Pedro Acosta left it until later in the day to make the switch to it. The #37 was the third-best KTM though and after the highs of Sepang where he was fourth and the best in orange, he finished day one in 14th – work to do for The Shark.
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA MOTOGP & PRIMA PRAMAC YAMAHA MOTOGP TEAM
The adaptation period is very much continuing at Yamaha as they seek to find their way forwards with the V4. Fresh from a quick trip to Adelaide to welcome the Australian city onto MotoGP’s calendar from 2027, Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) was the best of the Yamahas in 17th and just over a second adrift of Alex Marquez’s top time. Teammate Toprak Razgatlioglu had a modified handlebar as well as a tweaked seat unit. Like in Sepang, there were no stegosaurus wings on the rear of the YZR-M1 due to height restrictions. Ergonomics are vital for ‘El Turco’, the tallest rider on the grid; the triple WorldSBK Champion was 21st on the opening day.
Unfortunately for Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), it was not a day one to remember. He wasn’t impressed with the performance of the bike out on track, showing his anger in the box as well as a clear signal to the bike itself. ‘El Diablo’ also had chassis variations to try as well as the latest swingarm at his disposal. On the other side of his box, Alex Rins was behind the 2021 World Champion but was less than a tenth of a second away; the Spaniard had a different chassis available to him that wasn’t seen on his teammate’s side but both had the latest spec aero. They finished the day in 18th and 19th respectively with just one more day remaining to get the bike in the best of shape possible.
There’s another whole day of track action to come before pre-season concludes, but the countdown is very much on now. Join us for Sunday from Buriram as the final test day gets underway – half an hour earlier than first scheduled from 9:30am (UTC+7) local time!
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