MotoGP opened proceedings in Buriram this Saturday, February 21, 2026, with a first day of testing marked by balance at the top of the table and several important storylines before the official start of the season. Alex Márquez finished as the fastest, but saw his brother Marc Márquez apply pressure even after two crashes.
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The 2025 runner-up clocked 1min29s262 and put BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP in front. Marc Márquez, current world champion for the Ducati Lenovo Team, was just 0s129 behind, despite spending part of the day between the gravel trap and the pits. Franco Morbidelli completed the top 3 with the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team, beating Marco Bezzecchi by just 0s011. Johann Zarco also appeared very close in the hunt.
Alex Márquez focused his work on comparing aerodynamic packages, seeking to define which configuration to use. On the other side of the garage, Michele Pirro replaced the injured Fermin Aldeguer and finished the day 3s3 off the leader, accumulating important laps.
Marc Márquez suffered two crashes in the final section of the circuit, one of them at high speed at the last corner. Even so, he returned to the track and showed recovery by finishing second. Francesco Bagnaia finished tenth, maintaining a pre-season considered positive by the team.
VR46 also had a good performance. Fabio Di Giannantonio featured among the leaders throughout the day, while Morbidelli secured third place in the final minutes. The team continues to demonstrate consistency in testing.
Aprilia Racing maintained its good pre-season momentum. Bezzecchi was fourth and Jorge Martín, in his first experience with the RS-GP in Buriram, was less than four tenths behind his teammate. The team used the latest rear aerodynamics specification and new air ducts. Raul Fernandez, from Trackhouse, also adopted the updated package and finished sixth. Ai Ogura was 15th after comparing different aero versions.
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Among the Hondas, Zarco led the brand in fifth, even reporting consistency difficulties. Joan Mir was seventh with only one bike available after a technical problem, confirming progress from the manufacturer. Luca Marini finished 12th. Diogo Moreira, still adapting to the category, finished 20th.
At KTM, Maverick Viñales was eighth with the new smaller aerodynamics. Brad Binder finished 11th and described the day as “great”. Pedro Acosta was 14th, while Enea Bastianini finished 16th.
Yamaha continues its process of adapting to the V4 engine. Jack Miller was the brand’s best in 17th. Toprak Razgatlioglu tested ergonomic changes and finished 21st. Fabio Quartararo showed dissatisfaction with the performance and finished 18th, just ahead of Alex Rins.
With only one more day of testing before the end of the pre-season, MotoGP enters the final stretch of preparation with tight battles and many technical decisions still open.
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