05:24
The last qualifying run begins, with many riders manoeuvring for a tow.
Marc Marquez, 2024 Thai MotoGP
2024 Thai MotoGP: Sprint as it happened
Updates from Saturday’s sprint in Thailand as it happened.
With just three rounds to go, Jorge Martin takes a 20-point title lead over reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia into Saturday at the Thai MotoGP.
Momentum is very much with Martin, who beat Bagnaia in both Phillip Island races and took a clean sweep of Pole Position, Sprint and Grand Prix victories at Buriram last year.
But both title contenders will need to watch out for the likes of last weekend’s Phillip Island winner Marc Marquez, who was twice victorious at Buriram for Honda.
KTM fought for victory with Brad Binder one year ago, when Marco Bezzecchi and Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo were also in the top five.
Due to the heat and stress on the tyres, Buriram is among the venues where Michelin selects its stiffer construction rears.
Francesco Bagnaia starts on pole ahead of Enea Bastianini and Jorge Martin, who crashed in Q2.
After a dry Friday, there is a risk of thunderstorms on Saturday and Sunday.
The sprint starts at 9am UK time.
05:22
Midway through Qualifying 1 and the order is:
Bagnaia, Martin, Bezzecchi, M.Marquez, Bastianini, Acosta, A.Marquez, Morbidelli, Vinales, Quartararo, Zarco.
(di Giannantonio yet to set a lap).
05:20
Bagnaia improves again, but Martin is now just 0.054s behind him.
05:19
Martin also has a moment, while Bagnaia sets the early marker with a 1m 29.331s.
05:18
Francesco Bagnaia is riding alone but Martin has team-mate Franco Morbidelli, Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta behind him for the first run.
But Marquez has a moment at Turn 3 and drops to the tail of the group.
05:17
Most riders are on the hard front and medium rear tyres, with Marco Bezzecchi and Alex Marquez starting on soft fronts.
05:15
Qualifying 2 begins! Reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia is among the first out of pit lane. The Italian has been on the back foot a little so far this weekend relative to Martin, but can he strike back in qualifying?
05:08
Qualifying 2 line-up:
Fabio Quartararo and Fabio di Giannantonio join the top ten from Friday...
Marc MARQUEZ
Jorge MARTIN
Enea BASTIANINI
Francesco BAGNAIA
Maverick VIÑALES
Franco MORBIDELLI
Pedro ACOSTA
Alex MARQUEZ
Marco BEZZECCHI
Johann ZARCO
05:07
Quartararo fights back again to go fastest, a brilliant effort by the Frenchman who was clearly pushing his M1 to the absolute limit.
di Giannantonio also advances to Qualifying 2.
But Brad Binder is first to lose out on a transfer place and will start 13th, followed by A.Espargaro, Miller, A.Fernandez, Rins, Nakagami, Mir, R.Fernandez, Marini and Savadori.
05:04
Quartararo briefly breaks back into the top 2, but di Giannantonio then goes fastest to push him back to 3rd.
05:02
Replays show that Quartararo made a big front end save before running wide.
05:02
Quartararo, just 0.008s slower than di Giannantonio, runs wide and has to scrap that lap.
Brad Binder is throwing his KTM mercilessly around the track, and goes fastest!
05:00
Tyre swaps are done and riders are on their out-laps for the final Qualifying 1 run.
04:57
But not for long, Fabio di Giannantonio, competing in his final Saturday of the season, before surgery, takes P1 as riders peel into the pits for a tyre change.
04:56
Fabio Quartararo is on the attack! Wearing his venom helmet, the Frenchman puts Yamaha fastest with 9mins to go.
04:54
Brad Binder and Fabio Quartararo take the early transfer places, with Jack Miller and Joan Mir just behind.
04:48
Qualifying 1 line-up:
Brad BINDER
Franco MORBIDELLI
Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO
Luca MARINI
Maverick VIÑALES
Johann ZARCO
Raul FERNANDEZ
Joan MIR
Alex RINS
Augusto FERNANDEZ
Aleix ESPARGARO
Lorenzo SAVADORI
04:41
Chequered flag. Marc Marquez stays fastest in final practice ahead of Franco Morbidelli, Francesco Bagnaia and Jorge Martin.
Qualifying 1 next.
04:39
Franco Morbidelli is now into second place. Most riders, including Marc Marquez, are finishing the session with the hard front and medium rear tyre.
Joan Mir and Aleix Espargaro are on the soft front, Binder and Mir the hard rear.
04:38
Acosta, riding with stretched ligaments in his shoulder from Australia, hangs on to his bucking KTM, but then has to do a double-take of the front brake to get the pads to bite on the disc.
04:35
If this session is anything to go by, there's looks to be divide between Marquez, Bagnaia and Martin at the front and the rest, now led by the KTMs of Pedro Acosta and Miller.
Bastianini is only 10th, +0.683s.
04:34
Just as I write that Jack Miller moves up to fourth!
But that's perhaps not a surprise as Miller's race pace on Friday was decent, it was only the time attacks that left him outside the top 10.
04:32
While the tyres are now past their best in terms of one-off lap times, it's the rate of degradation riders and teams will be focusing on as they put more and more laps on the rubber this morning.
04:24
Halfway through final practice - top 10: Marc Marquez, Bagnaia, Martin, Bezzecchi, di Giannantonio, A.Fernandez, A.Marquez, Bastianini, Nakagami, Quartararo.
