Ai Ogura clinches pole with a blazing lap through the heat
During Saturday’s Czech Grand Prix qualifying, Ai Ogura captured the front‑row by clocking a time that eclipsed all rivals, securing the Japanese rider’s first ever pole position on the grid.
Ogura’s lap outpaced fellow Aprilia teammates Fabio Di Giannantonio and Francesco Bagnaia by over two‑tenths of a second, placing him clearly on the front line for the race. The high temperatures—reaching almost 30 °C—made late‑session runs difficult, yet Ogura’s consistency turned the heat into an advantage.
Marco Bezzecchi, the current points leader, dodged the blistering conditions to finish fourth in his factory Aprilia, remaining in the mix for the season championship. Marc Marquez started second after a track‑limits issue forced a restart of his first lap, but Bagnaia out‑qualified him in the next round to claim second place in the session.
Qualifying grid and notable performances
In Q2, Diogo Moreira led early but could not improve his second launch, ultimately securing sixth place. Meanwhile, Raúl Fernández topped the third row, positioned between Pedro Acosta and Franco Morbidelli, even as an earlier appendicitis scare cast doubt on his fitness.
Jorge Martin of Aprilia failed to break into the top ten, extending his campaign outside the front half of the grid as he and Fermin Aldeguer started 10th together with Joan Mir behind.
Maverick Vinales, riding for Tech3, missed the Q2 cut‑off, placing 13th next to Alex Marquez, whose return from an earlier crash at Barcelona was still being assessed. The Yamaha squad finished the field with Fabio Quartararo completing the fifth row.
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