Overview
- Jorge Martin produced a 1:42.371 qualifying lap on Saturday to claim pole at Motegi and beat Marc Marquez by 0.110 seconds.
- Marc Marquez pushed hard early in Q2 but made late errors, including a run into the gravel, and will start second after a frustrated qualifying.
- Pedro Acosta secured the third spot on the front row after strong form all weekend and Marco Bezzecchi showed pace by topping final practice for Aprilia.
- Motegi’s full resurfacing left Michelin with no real-world data so organisers supplied a limited three-front/three-rear allocation that made early crashes and tyre use decisive in practice and qualifying.
- Takaaki Nakagami was ruled out after fracturing his collarbone in FP1, Maverick Vinales returned from shoulder surgery aiming merely to finish, and Martin now leads the championship by 12 points going into the Sprint and Sunday race.