Yamahas top opening test day in Sepang

Still recovering from major surgery, Marc Marquez only ran half a day and did not try hard

Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) began the Sepang Test in an increasingly familiar position: first. The Frenchman was the first man into the 1:58s and his laptime remained largely unthreatened thereafter, although some rain in the afternoon did stop play for a while and limit track time. Teammate Franco Morbidelli was second overall on Day 1 and came the closest to deposing him, only 0.051 off, with Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) next up as the Spaniard completed the top three on Friday.

Reigning MotoGP World Champion Marc Marquez returned to his RC213V for the first time in 2020 alongside rookie team-mate Alex Marquez as the new MotoGP World Championship season commences with testing in Malaysia.

Proceedings started almost as soon as the track opened in Malaysia, the Repsol Honda Team working for 2020 from early in the day. Unfortunately rain just after lunch limited track time.

Eight-time World Champion Marc Marquez completed a total of 37 laps before stopping just ahead of the lunch break. Having had his right shoulder operated on during the winter and completing 250 hours of physiotherapy, Marc is focusing on the quality of laps rather than the quantity of laps around the 5.5-kilometer-long Sepang International Circuit. Lapping with a best time of 1’59.676, Marc ended the day within a second of the fastest time as he looks ahead to the remaining two days of the test.

With two days of running already under his belt at the Sepang Circuit, Moto2 World Champion Alex Marquez picked up where he left off and continued building his confidence aboard the Honda RC213V. It proved a busy first half of the day for the rookie who completed 38 laps and set a best time of 1’59.918.

Marc Marquez said, "It is really important to be back on the bike and I’m happy to be back but unfortunately I felt a little worse than I was expecting. I started with good energy in the first run but I had to calm myself down a little bit to make sure we can finish the day. I just tried to find my rhythm and work on what I needed to. The plan stays the same, 35 laps today, 45 laps tomorrow and see on the final day. The important thing is that the shoulder was stable and in the afternoon the pain wasn’t worse, step by step we just have to be patient."

Sepang Test Day One