Alex Marquez is joined in the Repsol Honda Team garage by Stefan Bradl for the Czech GP weekend as Marc Marquez recovers from injury, the pair gathering good data on the opening day.

The Czech GP marks the start of the 2020 MotoGP World Championship’s first demanding triple-header, but there was no hesitation as the Repsol Honda Team busily got to work. Although conditions weren’t as hot as the previous two races, rising temperatures throughout the day saw the grip levels continue to change on the Czech track.

With Brno among his favourite circuits on the calendar, Alex Marquez was eager to head out and try his Honda RC213V around the 5.4-kilometre-long track. Times were as close as ever in Free Practice 1, the Moto2 World Champion ending the first session in 18th and just 1.2 seconds off LCR Honda’s Takaaki Nakagami who was fastest. Alex suffered an electronics issue early in Free Practice 2, the rookie quickly making his way back to the garage and back out on circuit. Less than half a second split Alex from a top ten finish as the flag came out, the rookie setting a best time of 1’57.688 on Friday.

Stefan Bradl’s Friday was all about adaption after having last ridden a MotoGP bike during the Sepang Shakedown test in early February. The German rider spent the day reacquainting himself with the Honda RC213V and getting to work with the Repsol Honda Team. Improvements with each exit saw the HRC test rider keep pace with the MotoGP regulars and improve by an impressive 0.769s in the second session. Continued improvements and pushing towards the points scoring positions remain Bradl’s goal for the weekend.

Nakagami continued to shine after his result in Jerez, the LCR Honda rider topping Free Practice 1 and ending Free Practice 2 half a second from the top spot. Ninth on the combined times saw him as the leading Honda once more.

Action resumes at 08:55 Local Time on Saturday morning with FP3.

Alex Marquez

16th 1'57.688

“Nice to be back out on the bike and at a circuit I like a lot. It was a good first day aside from the small issue in Free Practice 2, but honestly it did not hurt us too much. The grip was not perfect and there were a lot of crashes, especially in the lower classes so hopefully this improves for tomorrow. I felt really good today, but I still need to work on my one lap pace, the feeling for tomorrow is good and we are building out rhythm. Let’s see what the circuit is like and what is possible.”

Stefan Bradl

22nd 1'58.424

“Today was about getting the feeling again. No matter how long you have been riding for, when you come back to a MotoGP bike after a break and you accelerate down the straight, the power always seems surprising. It has been six months since I was on this bike, so it took some time to adjust the mind to these speeds and managing everything, this is quite normal. But we are going well, and we are making improvements with each lap. I’m ready for tomorrow and looking forward to it after a positive first day – so far so good.”

MotoGP 2020
Practice Round 4   Czech Republic

Czech GP Combined Free Practice Classification

Dry
Humidity
33%
Track Temp
44°C
Air Temp
30°C
Pos. Rider Num Nation Team Constructor Time/Gap
Location Information

The world’s most famous riders have taken part in GP events in Brno since 1930, where up until 1982 they would race through the villages and western parts of the city on a road track named after the first Czechoslovak President – T.G. Masaryk.The only venue that has hosted more… read more.

Length 5.403 kilometres / 3.357 miles
Width 15 metres
Left corners 6
Right corners 8
Longest straight 0.636 kilometres / 0.395 miles
Constructed 1987
Modified 1996

Automotodrom Brno, Brno, Czech Republic - View in Google Maps

www.automotodrombrno.cz

Records

Pole Position 1m54.596s (169.7 Km km/h) Marc Marquez (Honda, 2016)
Race Lap 1m 56.027s (167.6 km/h) Dani Pedrosa (Honda, 2014)
Race Time 41m07.728s (166.6 km/h) Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati, 2018)
2020 Race Winner Brad Binder (KTM)