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Johann Zarco quickest at Grand Prix of Brazil practice as Marco Bezzecchi and Raul Fernandez forced into Q1 after rain-hit session
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Published 20/03/2026 at 22:15 GMT
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Castrol Honda's Johann Zarco was quickest in the practice session at the Grand Prix of Brazil on Friday afternoon, with current world champion Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo) the second fastest. However, Aprilia's Marco Bezzecchi may struggle this weekend after falling well outside the top 10, meaning he will have to take part in Qualifying 1 as he prepares for Saturday's sprint and Sunday's race.
'He lost it' - Quartararo spins out during practice start at Grand Prix of Brazil
Video credit: TNT Sports
Johann Zarco (Castrol Honda) was quickest during Friday practice at the Grand Prix of Brazil, while Aprilia duo Marco Bezzecchi and Raul Fernandez will have to take part in Qualifying 1.
The weather throughout Friday affected both practice and free practice before it, with riders regularly tumbling in slippery conditions that did not appear to consistently suit either wet tyres or slicks.
That means for both qualifying sessions on Saturday, as well as the sprint race, riders could be faced with quick decisions to switch between types of tyres to optimise their chances of success.
The inclement conditions saw practice moved back to 4pm Brazilian time, or 7pm UK time, and there could be further alterations to the race schedule should the weather threaten to produce difficult racing conditions.
For the practice session in the afternoon, riders were quick to get out onto the track in order to get a time logged, and also, for some, it was their first experience of the circuit on slick tyres.
With the Grand Prix of Brazil track a new addition to the calendar, teams and riders need all the data that they can get to work out the best approach to the competition.
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'Pecco almost fell off the side of the bike' - Early drama for former world champion in Brazil
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Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) suffered an early spill, while Zarco was one of the fastest early on, as was world champion Ducati Lenovo’s Marc Marquez, who appeared to be in better physical condition than at the season-opening weekend in Thailand.
There was some unexpected but welcome success from former World Superbikes champion Toprak Razgatlioglu, who rode his unfancied Pramac Yamaha to third spot in the overall standings, with Zarco quickest and Marquez second.
When the rain hit midway through the session, some of the most in-form riders were unexpectedly caught out, and Bezzecchi (20th) and Trackhouse’s Fernandez (21st) will have to compete in Q1 and hope to battle their way into the second qualifying session if they hope to give themselves a good chance at points for the sprint on Saturday and then Sunday’s full-length race.
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With a few minutes remaining, the weather cleared up again and Bezzecchi returned to the track in vain as the wet track gave him little to work with. Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina VR46 Ducati) also suffered a miserable time as he ran out of petrol despite being instructed to go into the pits.
Home favourite Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) also had an early spin on part of the track dubbed "crash corner" by TNT Sports pundit Neil Hodgson.
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'This is going to be like crash corner' - Moreira crashes in Brazil Practice
Video credit: TNT Sports
Aprilia had some success with former world champion Jorge Martin in fourth, while Pedro Acosta claimed fifth quickest for Red Bull KTM. Alex Marquez was sixth in his BK8 Gresini, with Fabio Quartararo (Monster Yamaha) seventh and Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini) eighth.
Ducati's other rider, Francesco Bagnaia, secured ninth spot to get into Q2 directly and hint at some improvement in his form, and Ai Ogura of Trackhouse took the last remaining top-10 spot.
Stream every race of the 2026 Brazil Grand Prix live on TNT Sports and discovery+
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