Fastest, then in the gravel at Turn 1
Marc Marquez put his Ducati on top of the Saturday timesheet at the Red Bull Ring. A few minutes later he was sliding through the gravel at Turn 1.
The reigning champion set a 1:29.663 in the closing stages of final practice, then lost the front on the way into the first corner and went down. It happened late in the session, which matters: his crew had little time to put that bike back together before qualifying.
Jorge Martin ended up 0.202s adrift on the Aprilia. Pedro Acosta was third for KTM at 0.226s, Fermin Aldeguer fourth on the Gresini GP25, Pecco Bagnaia fifth.
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Rain overnight, an empty pit lane, then sunshine
Rain fell on Spielberg during the night and the track was still patchy when the half-hour session opened. Almost nobody went out. Moto3 and Moto2 had already run in the wet, and only at the very end of the Moto2 outing did anyone risk slicks.
The sun did the rest. Times tumbled once a dry line appeared, though the field stayed well off Friday’s pace. Acosta had gone round in 1:28.381 on Friday afternoon. The best Saturday lap was more than a second slower, and Martin’s outright circuit record of 1:27.748 from 2024 was never in any danger.
Bagnaia’s fifth place reads better than his weekend has been. He was 18th on Friday and missed the Q2 cut for the fifth event running, so his Saturday started in Q1 again.
Level on points, separated by wins
Marquez arrived in Austria on top of the championship for the first time this season, after a clean sweep at Misano last weekend. He and Martin sit on identical points. Five grand prix victories to one is what splits them.
Marco Bezzecchi is the man who lost most in Italy, crashing out of the lead and dropping 33 points off the top. He was 15th in Saturday practice, down among the Hondas.
Two riders are missing at round 15 of 22. Maverick Vinales sits out a fourth consecutive event with shoulder problems, Pol Espargaro again standing in at Tech3. Joan Mir is absent after pulling out of the Misano race saying he had no energy on the bike; medical checks in Barcelona found altered parameters in his blood that require further investigation, and Honda test rider Takaaki Nakagami has taken the seat.
The Sprint runs at 15:00 local time.
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