Alex Marquez topped the timesheets in Jerez while his brother Marc finished fourth and admitted his current pace only allows him to survive, not compete.
The session began with a shock for Ducati as Francesco Bagnaia crashed his GP26 on the opening lap, writing off his bike for the session despite walking away unharmed. Fabio Di Giannantonio set the early pace with a 1:36.5, outpacing Alex Marquez and the Honda duo of Johann Zarco and Luca Marini. Aprilia showed strong pace through Bezzecchi, Fernandez and Ogura in positions five to seven, having run at the back in FP1.
Marc Marquez started eighth with a 1:37.2, well off Fabio Quartararo’s track record of 1:35.610 set in 2025. KTM struggled early, with Enea Bastianini down in 15th after fifteen minutes before Pedro Alberti’s 1:37.0 lifted him to fourth. Bagnaia returned on his second bike after twenty minutes and climbed to eighth, ahead of Fernandez.
By halfway, Marc had cut his gap to Di Giannantonio to just 0.298 seconds. Quartararo remained the top Yamaha rider but trailed the Italian by 0.690 seconds, leaving him twelfth. Toprak Razgatlioglu struggled on his M1 debut, losing 1.3 seconds to start twentieth, ahead of rookie Diogo Moreira.
The second half began with Jorge Martin crashing in the final lap while running four points behind Bezzecchi in the standings, losing valuable time. Johann Zarco was among the first to switch to a soft rear tyre, climbing to third with his LCR-Honda as Joan Mir followed in fourth. Di Giannantonio improved with nineteen minutes left, setting the benchmark at 1:36.267.
For more on this story, see Alex Marquez leads Jerez practice with 1:36.267 lap as Acosta falls to 15th.
The top ten heading into the final Q2 shootout were Di Giannantonio, Alex Marquez, Zarco, Mir, Marc Marquez, Marini, Acosta, Aldeguer, Bezzecchi and Bagnaia.
Marc Marquez elaborated on his position after qualifying fourth, acknowledging the day was acceptable but nothing more. He framed his outlook around survival rather than competitiveness, a striking admission from a rider who has dominated the sport for over a decade.
The contrast between the brothers was stark: Alex led the session while Marc conceded his limitations. This dynamic highlights the shifting hierarchy within the Marquez family and raises questions about the eight-time champion’s ability to adapt to the evolving Ducati package.
Why did Marc Marquez describe his performance as merely acceptable?
He stated he currently has only the potential to survive rather than compete for front positions, reflecting his assessment of his pace relative to the field.
How did the brothers Marquez perform relative to each other in qualifying?
Alex Marquez topped the timesheets while Marc finished fourth, highlighting a reversal in their usual qualifying hierarchy.
