Marquez fastest in wet opening practice

However, with the rain coming down with force after the Moto3™ session, it wasn’t long before the red flags came out with just under 38 minutes of the session remaining. Track conditions were – correctly – deemed to be too dangerous by Race Direction, with Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Maverick Vinales (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) having huge moments at Turn 13.

After a half hour or so delay, the riders headed back out for some vital wet weather running, with the rain set to stay for the whole weekend. By the checkered flag, Ducati Team’s Andrea Dovizioso was P4 on the timesheets, 0.412 back from Marquez, with Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) getting his final Grand Prix race weekend off to a solid start – P5 for the three-time World Champion.

Marc Marquez

“Honestly, it was a difficult day because not only were there wet conditions with a lot of water, but also because it was very cold. When there’s so much water on track, it’s a kind of lottery, and the only thing you can do is try not to crash. This situation made things more complicated, but luckily the track here in Valencia has very good drainage and very good grip all things considered, and this allowed us to actually ride today. That said, I felt very good on the bike and was able to feel the limit and be fast, which is very important. It looks like the weather will be a bit better tomorrow, only to worsen again on Sunday, so we need to be ready for whatever condition we may find if we wish to fight for the podium."