KEY MOMENTSPedro Acosta fastest in red-flagged FP1Marc Marquez has terrifying crashPractice resumes at 8pm GMTMarco Bezzecchi and Aprilia lead the championshipMichelin’s standard tyre casing returns at COTA

The 2026 MotoGP season continues with round three at the United States Grand Prix, taking place at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. 

Aprilia and Marco Bezzecchi arrive in America off the back of another dominant victory last time out in Brazil, with the latter leading the riders’ standings ahead of team-mate Jorge Martin. 

Aprilia and Bezzecchi have won the last four consecutive grands prix, with the Italian rider just three laps away from beating the all-time laps led record currently held by Jorge Lorenzo set in 2015. 

Jorge Martin will be looking to build on his first podium with Aprilia in Brazil, as he continues to grow in confidence on the RS-GP. 

All eyes will be on Marc Marquez and Ducati to try to quash Aprilia’s dominance, with the seven-time world champion returning to one of his strongest circuits. 

Marquez has won seven times at COTA in his MotoGP career, and was close to an eighth last year before he crashed out of the lead. Ducati has had a tough start to the 2026 season, but a return to the standard Michelin rear tyre construction is set to benefit the Italian marque. 

KTM looks set for a tough weekend, with Pedro Acosta admitting after Brazil that the RC16 is struggling for top speed right now, and is wary of how that will impact his performance at COTA. 

Tech3 KTM’s Maverick Vinales may also not see out the US Grand Prix weekend as he continues to battle the effects of the left shoulder injury he suffered in a crash in Germany last July. 

2026 Unites States MotoGP Friday schedule

FP1 – 3:45pm-4:30pm GMT

Practice – 8pm-9pm GMT