MotoGP rookie Marc Marquez took just 14 laps to charge to the top of the first MotoGP free practice timesheets at Silverstone - a track on which he has only ridden in Moto2 and on a 125 in previous years. And if that wasn't impressive enough, he is only half a second off the pole position time set by Alvaro Bautista in tricky conditions last season.
The Repsol Honda man completed 15 laps of the Northamptonshire track and finished with a fastest of 2'03.816 to go two-tenths faster than Jorge Lorenzo while Britain's Cal Crutchlow was just nine one-thousandths further back but nearly four-tenths faster than Dani Pedrosa.
Marquez was into the 2'04 bracket on only lap eight and stayed there for five laps with a last of 2'04.012 before pitting to adjust some settings. He exited the pits and put in the fastest time of the session, then did a 2'03.821 for good measure as the chequered flag appeared.
Alvario Bautista is continuing his current rich run of form, ending in fifth place and only 0.024s behind his works stablemate while Valentino Rossi is down in in sixth place and the business end of nine-tenths off the pace.
Stefan Bradl hasn't had the best of starts on his LCR Honda, a second in arrears in seventh, while Nicky Hayden is the quickest of the Ducatis in eighth place, just ahead of Bradley Smith and his own team-mate Andrea Dovizioso.
Aleix Espargaro is, predictably, top CRT man in 11th and he has Hector Barbera and Randy De Puniet for company. Colin Edwards ended in 15th and Michael Laverty in 21st.
