11:29
PB from Bagnaia but only 16th on a 1:40.306.
Alex Marquez, 2025 MotoGP Portuguese Grand Prix. Credit: Gold and Goose.
© Gold & Goose
2025 Portuguese MotoGP: Friday Practice reaction LIVE UPDATES
Live coverage of the Practice session at the 2025 Portuguese MotoGP from Portimao, the penultimate round of 2025.
The MotoGP season enters its final phase this weekend at the 2025 Portuguese MotoGP begins the final European double-header of the year.
Practice is due to start this afternoon at 15:00 local time.
With the title wrapped up long ago and even second in the standings having been secured by Alex Marquez (who was fastest in FP1 this morning) in Malaysia, the main points battle now is for third place.
Marco Bezzecchi currently leads that battle from Francesco Bagnaia, but Pedro Acosta's recent form has propelled him into contention, too, and the Spanish rider is now only 31 points adrift of third.
Portimao has also been a strong track for Acosta in the past, with two Moto3 wins there in 2021, a Moto2 win 2023, and a podium in only his second MotoGP start last year. The Spaniard was ninth-fastest in FP1.
Bezzecchi, on the other hand, has only one podium at Portimao, that coming in the 2023 MotoGP race, but we know the Aprilia is strong at the Portuguese track, proven by Maverick Vinales' Sprint win here in 2024. Bezzecchi ended FP1 in second place.
Francesco Bagnaia is a two-time winner in Portimao, those coming in the second 2021 race and in 2023, when he also won the Sprint. The Italian, though, could only manage 17th in FP1 this morning.
Bagnaia, of course, has a new teammate for this weekend, as 2025 WorldSBK runner-up Nicolo Bulega joins the Ducati Lenovo Team in place of the injured Marc Marquez. Bulega tested at Jerez last week, and this weekend will mark his 100th grand prix start.
Bulega ended his first MotoGP session ahead of Bagnaia in 14th, and less than a second slower than Marquez.
07 Nov 2025
11:27
Morbidelli now up to third, still almost 0.4s behind Marquez, though.
Now Miller up to fifth.
Bulega now faster than Bagnaia in P17 on a 1:40.435.
11:25
Bulega not looking especially comfortable, or at least not flowing like we're used to seeing him with the Panigale, which is probably to be expected at this stage. But he's just put in his best lap of the session and is now only 0.001s behind Bagnaia.
Marini has also improved to go third - fresh mediums front and rear for the Italian.
11:22
Huge moment for Chantra on the start straight, huge wheelie over the crest out of the last turn. Fortunately was able to get it back under control.
11:19
Rain flags being waved now. 12 minutes on the clock and that could be about that if conditions worsen too much.
11:17
Fernandez has been taken to the medical centre after that turn one crash.
11:15
Crash for Raul Fernandez at turn one. Quite a big one, bike got to the air fence and almost came back to him. Fortunately he didn't connect with the bike after falling from it and he's been able to get himself behind the wall down at turn one, but he's clearly a bit shaken from it and needed some assistance from the marshals to get his gloves off.
11:12
Mir has jumped up to sixth and Bezzecchi to seventh, while Espargaro is now 10th. The whole top-10 now in the 1:39s.
11:10
Marini just pops up to P6 there and gets into the 1:39s. Quartararo currently the last of the riders in the 1:39s in P7.
Aldeguer, meanwhile, has got up to third to make it a Gresini 1-3 with Zarco between himself and Marquez.
Morbidelli and Acosta up there in fourth and fifth, as well.
Di Giannantonio and Mir currently rounding out the top-10.
11:04
Pol Espargaro back out after his earlier crash, jumps up from 22nd to 15th with his latest lap, just ahead of his teammate Enea Bastianini.
11:02
Not a great start for Bagnaia. he's ahead of his rookie teammate, but only just - Bagnaia currently 16th, 1.5s off Marquez at the top, while Bulega is 17th and 1.9s off Marquez.
10:58
Zarco had briefly been fastest but Marquez now down to a 1:39.145.
10:56
Bulega, by the way, currently 21st just over 10 minutes into his first MotoGP session on a 1:41.932.
His best race lap in the two long races at Portimao in WorldSBK this year was a 1:39.756, just for reference on his own personal records around here.
10:54
Everyone out there on a medium-compound rear tyre this morning, but some mix on front tyres. Alex Marquez, for example, on the soft, Acosta on the medium.
Zarco, in third and also in the 1:39s now, also on the soft.
10:52
Alex Marquez and Pedro Acosta into the 1:39s now, Marquez almost two-tenths ahead of Acosta.
10:52
We mentioned a new seat unit for Pol Espargaro, well he's just dumped his RC16 in braking for turn three. He seems fine, but some damage to his bike.
10:51
To be fair, last year's best FP1 time was a 1:40.4 from Marc Marquez, but track temperatures were 10C down on where they are this morning.
10:50
Early benchmark set by Pedro Acosta, but in the 1:40s for now with 40 minutes still on the clock. At least a second or two to be trimmed off that by the end of the session, you'd imagine.
10:49
Some new bits about on track this morning, with a new seat unit for Pol Espargaro as he continues to replace Maverick Vinales.
Luca Marini also with a different seat unit - not entirely new, Takaaki Nakagami used it in Japan, but something new for Marini himself this morning.
10:46
FP1 start
Pit lane is open in Portimao and FP1 is underway.
10:40
Conditions
The good news for Bulega is that conditions are fairly decent this morning. Dry weather, 20C of air temperature and 27C of track temperature at the moment, with five minutes remaining before FP1 starts.
10:39
Bulega debut
With no Marc Marquez this weekend, and with Alex Marquez having wrapped up the silver medal for 2025, the eyes are on Nicolo Buelga this morning to see what the only rider to have been able to challenge Toprak Razgatlioglu over the past two years can do on a MotoGP bike.
Quite hard to have many expectations for Bulega given he's had only one test and we don't have lap times from it, but for reference Andrea Iannone - when he filled in at VR46 for Fabio Di Giannantonio last year in Malaysia - finished eighth in FP1, but 1.856 seconds off the pace set by Pecco Bagnaia in that session.
10:31
Moto2 FP1 is just winding down now in Portimao. Aron Canet ends that fastest from Jake Dixon and Senna Agius.
Points leader Diogo Moreira finishes fifth-fastest, while long-time championship leader Manuel Gonzalez finishes the morning eighth.
10:28
Welcome to live coverage of today's MotoGP practices from Portimao where FP1 will be getting underway in just over 15 minutes at 10:45 local time.
