Surprises aplenty in the last 5 mins of MotoGP Q2 👀 | 2025 Japanese GP

Pedro Acosta getting himself into what he hopes will be a battle for his second successive pole position. He's lost 10 minutes of this Q2 session, which is cruel. Cruel in the extreme for Acosta. He was looking so, so strong. He'd have been confident of being in the Huntford pole position, no question. Having topped the leaderboard in FP2, second quickest yesterday. And look at this from Alex, looking to continue this trend of riders coming out of Q1 and then dazzling in Q2. Alex at the moment on course four pole position. This looks like he could be finding himself on the front row here. This is awesome by Alex. Yeah, the sector where Bagnaia wasn't necessarily as strong as the others was that first sector. And you can see Alex Marquez has already lost the advantage he carried into sector two. Mark Marquez we're now looking at from the overhead shot begins his flying lap. Of course, Mark Marquez only had one pole position in the last five Grand Prix weekends. It hasn't really hurt his victory chances too much as it of late. As far as Mark's concerned, a winning machine in 2025. 25 wins to be absolutely precise as Alex. Crikey! That's not the way or the angle that you're supposed to have that Ducati pointed down on the brakes into the 90 degree corner. That shot there just encapsulating just how on the limit, how on the ragged edge Alex is pushing for a lap time here in Motegi. What a shot that was. That Ducati was snaking left and then right. Up to P4 goes Alex. That clearly would have cost him time. Fair play to him. Not quite sure how he got that Ducati stopped into 11. We've got all sorts of red sectors on our timing screens. Everyone through the first sector is setting red sectors. Mark Marquez we're looking at quick through the second sector. So is Ralph Fernandez. So is the 2020 World Champion. As Joan Mir looks to return Honda to the front row of the grid. Ralph Fernandez has only ever had two front row starts in his minor GP career. Look at it. Could be better. Could be a pole position. There are some steaming hot laps coming here late on here at NQ2. Every rider pretty much on our screens in the comedy boxes has got red sectors next to their name. Look at it on your screens right now. Fernandez, Morbidelli, Mark, Mir all on course for pole position. We're going to follow Fernandez over the line first. Can he put it in P1? Second goes Fernandez. Morbidelli briefly into P1. Mark then immediately takes away pole position with a 1.43.043. And Joan Mir, Joan Mir with some Metegi magic puts the factory Honda on provisional pole position. Well, what are we watching? Can you believe your eyes? Joan Mir on pole position potentially here on the factory Honda. He's got an abysmal qualifying record in MotoGP. 115 MotoGP starts. The 2020 champion has never been on pole position. But this is Q2 and the Q is for Quattroro. Here comes the Yamaha star now. We're in the Grand Prix of Japan and the Japanese factories. Well, they are putting up some fight, aren't they here on home turf. We have a factory Honda on pole position. We could potentially have a Japanese by 1.2 here in Metegi. Alex Marquez goes up in 2.4 place, which has been an excellent rescue job from Q1. Luca Marino now up in 2.4. Two factory Hondas in the top four at the moment. You know what, Joan Mir, it's going to take something to push me off the front row at least. The rider who's suffering here is Banyaya. He didn't improve on his second run or hasn't yet. He's now back down to 6th. Here comes Quattroro then on the factory Yamaha and he goes onto the front row of the grid in 3rd place. Two Japanese bikes are now on the front row of the grid. Now this would be a massive shock. This would be a humongous shock if Mir is going to take this pole position. Betseke has lost a whole bunch of time in the third sector. Banyaya is on the charge as well. Mir too is looking to find potentially a 1.42 here. We have never had a 1.42 lap around this mobility resort Metegi. We could be on course for history. It could be delivered by Mir. He powers the Honda out of the final corner. Honda, the power of dreams. Is it going to be a dream home pole position here for Mir? Over the line he comes. It's not an improvement, but Banyaya at the moment. Let's just check in through the third sector. Oh, Banyaya. Banyaya surely at the moment is going to deliver our first ever 1.42. Hard on the brakes. He goes in now on the factory Ducati into turn 11. Just three corners left then for Banyaya. Look at Acosta. What a story this could be as far as Acosta is concerned. We'll follow Banyaya now through the final corner. Surely this is going to be provisional pole. 30 seconds of this unbelievable Q2 session remaining here in Metegi. Banyaya at the line. He has delivered a blockbuster lap time. It's the first ever 1.42 lap here at the Grand Prix of Japan. A 1.42.911. What did they say? Form is temporary. Class is permanent. And that was pure class from Banyaya. Banzai from Banyaya in this Q2 session. A 10th clear of Mir. I think Mir is going to hang on to this front row of the grid start here because Acosta's lost time. Acosta 10th at the moment. This could still rescue him a place on the front two rows of the grid. A session of what might have been for the 37 who has to settle for fourth at best. That's some job. That's some ride by Acosta because he'd have been a bit hot under the collar. He just had to keep himself cool. A case of what might have been you feel as far as Acosta and KTM are concerned because without that early technical issue, there's no doubt about it. He would have been in that hunt for pole position. We pick up then Mark who's in danger actually being pushed off the front row here because brother Alex on his final flying lap has once again very, very rapid in that first sector. I think Alex might just be losing this. He might just have taken the best out of that Michelin soft rear tyre at the moment estimated P5. Banyaya, Mir, Mark at the moment is going to be your front row. Well, we thought Friday was pretty amazing here. We called it Freaky Friday. There was so much going on here in the Grand Prix of Japan. Well, Saturday morning so far has been even better, maybe even more dramatic as we're looking at Pekka Banyaya of course for just his second pole position of the season. Juan Mir in front of all of the Honda hierarchy. What a moment this could be for HRC in their home Grand Prix slotting on the front row in their backyard. Well, that will equal for Mir his best qualifying MotoGP. You have to go back three and a half years to the 2022 Portuguese Grand Prix at Portimao for the last time he qualified as high as second on the grid. Marini goes seventh on the second of the factory Hondas. Alex Marquez closes the session in eighth place but it is a second pole and pole number 26 in MotoGP. Is Banyaya back? Well, we've got further evidence that the answer might be yes. It went horribly wrong for Aprilia and Marco Bettecchi, fastest on Friday here in Japan. Well, they really suffered in that Q2 session. Bez from P1 on Friday to ninth on the grid for the sprint and the Grand Prix here in Motegi.