Brno: MotoGP™ is back in business!

For most people, a tenth of a second isn't even the blink of an eye, but in MotoGP™ it can decide a lot. And in the myWorld Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich, even less that that covers the three riders on the front row of the grid, with Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP's Maverick Viñales set to start from pole. Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) kept him honest in second, with Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) completing the front row - just 0.087 off Viñales. The entire top 12 were covered by half a second, which is the closest we've witnessed since 2007.

In Q1 it was Brno podium finisher Johann Zarco (Esponsorama Racing) who came out on top and moved through, ahead of and alongside a jubilant Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) after the Italian had missed the cut in the morning. Somehow though, there was a maybe even bigger talking point in the session - with Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Team) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) getting into some serious beef. They both just missed the cut too and will start P13 and P14 respectively, next to each other on the grid...

Once Q2 kicked off though, it was all eyes on Viñales as he came flying out the blocks first, before Quartararo then took over at the summit by a tenth. Soon enough, however, there were red sectors flashing up all over the timing screens, with the field all bang on the money from the off. Miller went P3 before Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3), Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) then all exchanged the provisional third, but the Australian took it back as Viñales also truck back against Quartararo at the top.

That lap for the factory Yamaha rider got cancelled, however, and it was suddenly Quartararo back in the driving seat. Viñales wasn't done there though, and the Spaniard went even quicker to set a 1:23.694 to take over at the top again, this time hanging onto it. Pol Espargaro then shot up to P5, just two tenths adrift, with Mir going third again. Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) slotted into P6 at the end of the first runs, and Quartararo managed to closed the gap to Viñales as the dust settled – briefly – and some fresh rubber went in.

The lull in activity didn't last long, and the hills were soon alive with the sound of MotoGP™ machines once again. The times were about to get even quicker, too. ‘Top Gun’ Viñales improved his time to move the goalposts, with Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) then going P3 to make it a provisional Yamaha 1-2-3 in Austria. Dovizioso was about to remind everyone of his stellar pace at the Red Bull Ring though, the Italian taking P1 away from Viñales for provisional pole... but it still wasn't done.

2017 and 2019 race winner Dovizioso didn’t stay at the top for long. Viñales, following Mir, went back to the top of the timesheets to go over a tenth clear of the field as he bounces back in style from a tough race in Brno, and despite some red sectors for the likes of Dovizioso and Pol Espargaro, no one could quite manage to overhaul that lap. That makes Viñales the first premier class polesitter for Yamaha in Austria since Christian Sarron at the Salzburgring in 1988... not bad going at a traditionally tougher track for the Iwata marque!

Pol Espargaro's initial threat to Viñales became a provisional third, but Dovi – after getting shuffled down by the KTM rider and Quartararo – hit back to push 'Polyccio' back off the front row himself. Was anyone going to be able to get amongst it in the final few seconds? You bet.

It was a Pol Espargaro and Jack Miller last chance dash at the end, and the Spaniard couldn't improve but the Australian certainly did. It wasn't quite enough for pole but the number 43's final push split the Yamahas and sees Miller start second behind Viñales, with the 'holeshot device' primed, just ahead of Quartararo...

Dovizioso will head up Row 2 just after he announced he will be leaving Ducati at the end of the season, with the Italian veteran and two-time Austrian GP winner not losing a grain of focus as he prepares to push for a third victory. Pol Espargaro lines up fifth and is another, like Dovizioso, who seems to have some serious race pace... they will certainly be hoping they can bypass the likes of Viñales, Miller and Quartararo in the early stages. Joan Mir starts sixth after an impressive Q2 for the Spaniard, edging out Brno podium finisher Morbidelli.

The number 21 Yamaha heads up the third row ahead of Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar), with Czech GP poleman Zarco with more work to do on Sunday in Austria if he’s to grab a repeat podium finish. It’s ninth for the Frenchman, who finishes 0.044 ahead of Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu). Oliveira briefly owned a provisional front row place but will start 11th, just 0.489 from pole, with Q1 graduate Valentino Rossi ending Q2 in 12th... despite finishing only 0.545 off his teammate’s time. It is, after all, the closest top 12 in over a decade.

That's it from Saturday, with only half a second covering the Q2 field and even more stories down the order. Czech GP winner Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) will start 17th as the last KTM rider, with fellow rookie Iker Lecuona (Red Bull KTM Tech3) starting just ahead of him. Ahead of that, meanwhile, Row 5 is jam-packed with experience, speed and that small slice of beef with Petrucci and Aleix Espargaro joined by Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol).

Got your breath back yet? Viñales grabbed the bull by the horns on Saturday at the Red Bull Ring, but who will come out the fight on top on Sunday? And what will the skies look like as race day dawns? Find out if the Ducati dominance in Spielberg will come to an end at 14:00 local time (GMT+2)!

Maverick Viñales: "I'm really happy because the objective was the front row but suddenly I felt an incredible feeling with the bike, also in FP4 from this morning we've made a really big improvement, the team has done a really good job. We need to try to understand for tomorrow's race what will be the best tyre but the bike is working fantastic, very different to Brno. So I'm very happy and enthusiastic and we know on one lap we're very fast."

Remy Gardner (Onexox TKKR SAG Team) secured his second Grand Prix pole position thanks to a 1:28.681 in Moto2™ Q2 at the myWorld Austrian Grand Prix, setting a new lap record in the process. It’s the Australian’s first front row start since his 2019 Assen pole position, and he edged out Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) by just 0.036. Liqui Moly Intact GP’s Marcel Schrötter picks up his first front row since the 2019 German GP in P3, just 0.064 off the top despite coming through Q1.

The number 23 was the fastest in that Q1 session and moved through along with Joe Roberts (Tennor American Racing), Nicolo Bulega (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) to fight it out for pole, with the rain staying away too and promising a fight to the finish.

The Q2 session was slightly delayed due to technical issues, but once we got the 15-minute pole position scrap underway, it was Championship leader Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) on top as the riders came round to complete their first flying laps. Sky Racing Team VR46’s Marco Bezzecchi and Luca Marini soon changed that, before rookie sensation Aron Canet (Inde Aspar Team) took over on provisional pole.

With eight minutes to go Bastianini was back at the top, but Martin then beat Nagashima’s previous lap record by just 0.001 to claim provisional pole position at the team’s home race. Gardner then turned up the wick to snatch it back though, keeping it together to cross the line and take his second ever front row start - both of which have been poles. Ultimately, no one was able to challenge him despite a few red sectors, with 0.036 remaining the gap back to Martin and Schrötter looking back on form with P3, just 0.064 adrift.

Bastianini starts fourth and will be eyeing a hat-trick of wins when the Moto2™ riders attack the Red Bull Ring on Sunday, but the points leader has Canet for close company in P5. Sam Lowes (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) had to settle for P6 after topping almost every session until qualifying, but amazingly, just 0.037 splits Lowes in P6 to Bezzecchi in 10th, with P1 to P10 covered by just 0.250. Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) recovered from a heavy FP3 crash to head up Row 3 in P7, with Marini and Tom Lüthi (Liqui Moly Intact GP) slotting in ahead of 10th place Bezzecchi.

Roberts starts 11th after a solid Saturday, ahead of Augusto Fernandez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) in P12. Baldassarri took 13th ahead of Bulega, with Jake Dixon (Petronas Sprinta Racing) completing the fastest fifteen.

Former points leader Tetsuta Nagashima (Red Bull KTM Ajo) crashed out in the session, and he'll therefore face a fight back from P18 on the grid.

Who could bet on a winner from that tantalising grid? Martin and Lowes look like they could have the edge on Sunday, but when the lights go out, anything can happen. Will it be wet, will it be dry? Tune in at 12:20 local time (GMT+2) to find out who will take the Moto2™ glory in Austria.

Remy Gardner: "It's good to be back for the first time since Assen last year, it was a really good lap and I tried to do it on my own, until the fifth or sixth lap i was banging out laps trying to perfect everything. There was one decent one but coming out the last corner I had a big old slide and lost the drive to the line, I think I lost about a tenth, and then I was like alright... time to look for a draft. So I cut off a lap, saw Navarro coming, slotted in behind him and luckily he didn't shut the gas for the whole lap. I got a pretty good slipstream into Turn 1, 1-2 and 3-4, ultimately that really helped, and out of Turn 7 to Turn 9, I found a bit of speed there with the draft which I think helped the lap. It was a good lap and it feels good to be back!"

Red Bull KTM Ajo's Raul Fernandez has followed up his maiden pole taken in Brno with a perfect rinse and repeat at the Red Bull Ring at the myWorld Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich. It was close at the front though as the Spaniard heads up the grid by 0.011, with Championship leader Albert Arenas (Valresa Aspar Team) making it a 1-2 for KTM machinery as he took second. Arenas' key rival, John McPhee (Petronas Sprinta Racing), starts third but was only 0.029 off the top.

In Q1 in Austria, it was Riccardo Rossi (BOE Skull Rider Facile Energy) on top as the Italian deftly negotiated a gaggle of four all pushing to slipstream, including both Red Bull KTM Tech 3 riders, Ayumu Sasaki and Deniz Öncü, who also made it through. Jeremy Alcoba (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3) split the two Tech 3s to advance to Q2 as well and with that, the stage was set in the fight for the top 18 places on the grid.

Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) was the man in charge first, before he was deposed by Arenas - the Spaniard using the Italian's own slipstream - but at the end of a classic mad Moto3™ dash it was Fernandez who came out on top, seemingly out of nowehere. Arenas and McPhee are close, however, and Jaume Masia (Leopard Racing) in fourth is still within a tenth of pole as Moto3™ stays on brand as some of the closest racing on Earth.

Joining Masia on Row 2 are Vietti and Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse), who was in the group with both the number 13 and Arenas in Q2 in a fight that seemed more like a race at times. The third row is headed up by Gabriel Rodrigo (Kömmerling Gresini Moto3), with Friday's fastest, Tony Arbolino (Rivacold Snipers Team), just behind him in P8. Rossi, after his impressive Q1 form, takes a best ever qualifying position in ninth - beating his previous best by a whopping eight places. Öncü completes the top ten in his second best qualifying ever on the world stage.

Brno winner Dennis Foggia (Leopard Racing) joins Öncü on the fourth row in P11, with Andrea Migno (Sky Racing Team VR46) in 12th. Championship contender Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia) had a tougher Saturday as he lines up in 13th, and he'll be pushing from the off to get back on terms with Arenas and McPhee, and make sure he keeps his near faultless season intact. Filip Salač (Rivacold Snipers Team) and Niccolo Antonelli (SIC58 Squadra Corse) took P14 and P15, respectively.

Kaito Toba (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was the sole crasher of the session as he highsided at Turn 10, heading for the Medical Centre but judged fit thereafter.

That's it for Saturday, the grid is decided and it's an interesting one for race day - as is the weather forecast. How will it play out? Find out from 11:00 (GMT +2) as the lights go out for Moto3™.

Raul Fernandez: "Qualifying was incredible. Yesterday the feeling with the bike wasn't good, and this morning in the wet we didn't try the new settings, I tried it in qualifying. On the first exit I couldn't stop the bike, I don't know why, I couldn't brake. On the second it was a bit better, but then I don't know how I did this super good lap! Tomorrow we need to improve this aspect, but I'm really happy for me, my team, my family and tomorrow I hope we'll be fighting for the podium."

Quartararo takes yet another front row start as he looks to increase his points lead on Sunday

TAXI! Viñales gets a little help from Miller (L) and Lecuona (R)