Marco Bezzecchi
Sylvain Guintoli and Neil Hodgson joined forces in their praise for Johann Zarco following the LCR Honda man’s ‘phenomenal’ riding during the pre-qualifying practice session at the French Grand Prix.
After his fairytale win in heavy rain conditions at the French Grand Prix last year, Johann Zarco has made the first step in retaining his title as the King of Le Mans by asserting himself as the fastest man in MotoGP’s Friday afternoon practice session.
In a highly competitive pre-qualifying shootout, the top ten were separated by less than three-tenths, with two different pairs of riders setting the exact same lap times during their best efforts.
Johann Zarco books himself a spot in Q2 with the fastest time in practice at Le Mans… Will Marc Marquez manage to make it through Q1? 👀
Zarco’s benchmark in the afternoon succeeded his impressive lap times from FP1, which was headed by factory Honda rider Luca Marini.
Despite Zarco topping the timing sheets for the second time this season, after outpacing the field on Friday afternoon in Brazil, the biggest surprise was arguably Marc Marquez’s omission from the top ten in practice.
The factory Ducati star was unable to get a lap in during the latter stages of the session due to teammate Francesco Bagnaia suffering from an off. The Italian, on the other hand, was able to book himself a spot in Q2 after setting the third fastest time of the afternoon.
Sylvain Guintoli and Neil Hodgson left amazed at Johann Zarco during French GP practice
During TNT Sports’ coverage of pre-qualifying practice at the French Grand Prix, Neil Hodgson and Sylvain Guintoli were left in disbelief after Zarco claimed the top spot of the timing sheets at his home race weekend.
The 35-year-old initially staked his claim for the top spot with around 15 minutes remaining in the session. He went nearly half a second clear of his rivals before Honda stablemate Joan Mir pounced, but the Spaniard didn’t last long at the top.
During his final flying laps, Gavin Emmett saw Zarco’s desire from the commentary box, telling Hodgson and Guintoli, “Zarco was pushing really hard there, wasn’t he?
“He just dived his way into [turn 13], followed by Diogo Moreira, who can always pull a lap out. Zarco goes top, and the crowd responds in cheers.”
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Bad weather is forecast all weekend at Le Mans
Hodgson then replied, “I’ll tell you what, Zarco looks phenomenal,” before his colleague and Zarco’s compatriot, Guintoli, added, “He looks so good.
“He’s right on the edge, but he looks so relaxed on the bike. It looks like he’s doing everything, he’s absolutely on the limit.”
Hodgson ended his praise of the LCR rider with, “The bike looks like it’s glued to the track. I thought that watching him into [turn] one, it just doesn’t look super nervous.”
Zarco will now have the chance to secure his first pole position in the premier class since his Pramac days in 2022. He pulled off a miracle with his home heroics at Le Mans in 2025, and he’s already showing that he’s capable of doing again this year.
- READ MORE: Johann Zarco names three 2026 title favourites if Marc Marquez’s shoulder injury derails his season
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