Bold opening: Ai Ogura proves you don’t need to push the absolute limit to shape the storyline at Buriram, but the real drama lies in what remains uncertain.
In Buriram, factory Aprilia was the reference point, with Marco Bezzecchi delivering the fastest outright lap and also leading a near full-length Grand Prix simulation. Yet the standout narrative belonged to Trackhouse Aprilia’s Ai Ogura, who chose a longer sprint toward a shorter weekend goal by topping the broader field with a shorter Sprint simulation.
Ogura, the Japanese rider who previously turned heads as the best non-Ducati performer on debut at this circuit—placing fourth in the Sprint and fifth in the Grand Prix last year—posted an average of 1 minute 30.101 seconds over 12 laps. That pace edged out last year’s Sprint-winning average set by Marc Marquez in the Grand Prix, and it was just a touch quicker than the next-best long-run test time by Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia on day one at Buriram.
Alex Marquez followed with an average of 1m 30.444s, but he crashed on his eleventh lap. The Gresini rider, who finished runner-up to his brother in both races a year ago, quipped afterward that he’d have kept going for 20 laps if not for the early finish of his run.
Marc Marquez also experienced a crash, on lap seven of his long session, after a pace that had briefly been slightly faster than Ogura’s. The lingering question remains: how many laps was he truly planning to do?
Despite the results, Ogura remained grounded.
“Yesterday I would have said top 10 for the season opener,” he reflected after testing concluded. “Today I’d say top 7-6.” He cited notable improvements, especially in the entry phase through to the apex, and a more confident front tire feel.
On race pace simulations, he observed that three or four riders stood out as exceptionally fast, with others operating at a similar pace — and he counts himself among that group.
“The track suits me,” he added, “but we’ve also sharpened many areas, particularly the entry phase. Of course, we’ll look for more as the weekend unfolds.”
Even with Aprilia locking out the top two spots in the test, Ogura wasn’t ready to declare RS-GP superiority over Ducati. “Marc is incredibly fast, Pecco is fast, Franco, Diggia… everyone on a Ducati is fast,” he noted, “but that could also come down to the riders themselves. I don’t know.”
Jorge Martin, Bezzecchi’s teammate, ended the session eighth overall, while Raul Fernandez, Ogura’s teammate, was eleventh.
Commentary note: this story sits against a backdrop shaped by two decades in the paddock, including witnessing Rossi’s era pass and watching the Suzuki exit unfold, all while navigating Marc Marquez’s injury history. The evolving dynamics of teams, riders, and machinery at Buriram suggest a season still very much up for grabs, with the Thai opener promising plenty of controversy and debate among pundits and fans alike.
