Marc Marquez finished fastest in Friday Practice at the 2026 Malaysian Grand Prix, posting a benchmark time of 1m57.000s to lead Alex Marquez and Ai Ogura at the chequered flag. Action commenced at the Sepang International Circuit as green lights showed at the end of the pit lane at 08:00, with ambient air temperatures measuring 34 degrees Celsius and track asphalt temperatures recorded at 48 degrees Celsius. The timed running determined direct passage into Qualifying 2. It followed the morning opening free practice session, which Marc Marquez also topped, and where Jorge Martin was passed fit to continue the race weekend, unlike Raul Fernandez.
Riders began the outing evaluating differing tyre selections. Marc Marquez initially circulated with a soft front tyre and a medium rear tyre, whereas Marco Bezzecchi ran on soft tyres at both ends. Fabio Di Giannantonio recorded the earliest leading times on a pair of soft tyres, running ahead of Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco, who were also fitted with soft compounds front and rear. At 08:07, Martin suffered a major scare on track. Following that close moment, Martin decided to end his running for the day, although he remained eligible to contest the rest of the race weekend.
Earlier, at 08:15, Marc Marquez had rejoined the circuit with a fresh soft rear tyre fitted. At 08:18, Marquez suffered a crash at Turn 15, losing the front under braking into the final corner while 0.057s adrift of Di Giannantonio's time. Marquez escaped without consequences from the incident and returned to the track at 08:25 following the slide. Past one third of the session, competitors focused on race pace. The soft tyre showed a notable drop in performance during that phase, with Bezzecchi lapping in the 1m59.5s bracket.
Riders prepared for time attacks later in the hour. At 08:40, Pedro Acosta and Diogo Moreira headed out on fresh soft tyres front and rear, with Acosta launching a flying effort while Moreira tracked directly in the exhausts of the KTM rider. Marc Marquez soon climbed to the top of the timesheets with a lap of 1m57.000s, leaving Moreira second by 0.913s. Acosta then moved to second, 0.380s behind Marquez, while Enea Bastianini went third, 0.545s adrift. Further improvements followed: Bezzecchi set the third fastest lap, 0.475s off Marquez, with Ogura slotting into fifth and Di Giannantonio posting the fourth fastest time.
Following the first run of time attacks, Alex Marquez advanced to second, while Joan Mir recorded the seventh fastest time. Franco Morbidelli subsequently moved up to eighth, temporarily leaving Francesco Bagnaia eleventh and outside the top 10. The closing stages brought several falls across the circuit. Bastianini crashed at Turn 2, and Zarco fell at the Turn 7-8 double right-hander right as Ogura improved to third, 0.167s behind Marc Marquez.
At 08:58, Bagnaia crashed at Turn 1, confirming that he will have to pass through Qualifying 1 tomorrow. Marc Marquez maintained the leading spot as the chequered flag flew, heading Alex Marquez and Ogura in the final standings. Bezzecchi concluded Friday Practice in sixth, while Maverick Viñales and Mir both secured top-10 finishes to earn entry into Qualifying 2.
Sources: GP Malesia 2026, Prove: Marc Marquez precede Alex e Ogura, 6° Bezzecchi.
