SEPANG: Ducati rider Andrea Dovizioso set the pace during wet Malaysian MotoGP practice on Friday as world title hopeful Marc Marquez twice went off the track.
Italy’s Dovizioso, who faces an uphill battle to stop Marquez winning his second straight world championship, clocked 2min 00.671sec, while Marquez was 0.279 slower in fifth on the overall standings.
Honda rider Marquez leads Dovizioso by 33 points and he can clinch the world title with a race to spare by finishing first or second at Sepang, where his sole victory was in 2014.
Friday’s best times were all set in the morning session, when the track was damp after a brief shower, while the afternoon run was soaking wet.
Ducati’s Alvaro Bautista of Spain rode his machine to the second fastest time, posting 2:00.742, while Yamaha rider Johann Zarco of France was third fastest.
Spain’s Maverick Vinales on a Yamaha was fourth quickest but Italian great Valentino Rossi, who is fourth in the standings with 188 points, was 12th on the timesheets.
British Honda rider Cal Crutchlow was sixth, Czech rider Karel Abraham on a Ducati seventh, and Spain’s Hector Barbera, also on a Ducati was eighth.
A total of 50 points are still up for grabs in Malaysia and in the season’s final race in Valencia on November 12. -- AFP