Miguel Oliveira continues his top form following Barcelona win.

The Portuguese rider improved on his FP1 result, after remaining near the top for the majority of the second session. 

Taking P2 in both sessions is Fabio Quartararo; after the wardrobe malfunction caused a dip in his title lead, the Frenchman will be looking to strengthen the gap once again come Sunday. Fellow Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP rider Maverick Viñales ends Day 1 in third on the combined timesheets, so both Yamaha men look strong heading into Saturday’s sessions.

Close behind in 4^th place is Alex Rins, following the Top 3 by just 0.054s. The Suzuki ECSTAR man is another rider looking for redemption this weekend, after crashing out in Mugello and then missing the Catalunya weekend due to injury. Rins’ teammate Joan Mir finishes Friday in 16^th.

In Free Practice 1, it was Marc Marquez who lead the class, and while the Repsol Honda Team rider ended Day 1 in 12^th overall, he has hinted at a return of the Old Marc, as Sachsenring proves to have fewer physical limitations for the Spaniard. We’ll just have to wait and see if the Old Marc returns on Sunday as well.

Pol Espargaro takes the Honda top spot in P5, after consistent results in both sessions. Just 0.023s behind is Takaaki Nakagami, another consistent rider so far this weekend. Fellow LCR Honda rider Alex Marquez had a positive Day 1 also, finishing just 0.002s behind his brother in a strong P13. With all four Honda men having a decent opening day in Germany, how many of them will we see in the mix come Sunday?

Barcelona podium-placers Johann Zarco and Jack Miller end Day 1 inside of the Top 10 in 8^th and 9^th, respectively. Zarco will be looking for the best result possible on Race Day, in order to further close the gap to Quartararo in the title fight. Franco Morbidelli closes out the Top 10, as teammate Valentino Rossi sits back in 21^st place.

Danilo Petrucci once again shows promise in P11, and will be one to watch in Qualifying later today. Teammate Iker Lecuona finished in P17 on the timesheets.

Jorge Martin looks to be gradually returning to form, with a solid 14^th position at the end of Friday, as Brad Binder follows closely in 15^th – just 0.028s behind.

The Avintia duo have work to do this weekend, as Luca Marini sits just ahead of Enea Bastianini in 18^th, with the Esponsorama rider in 19^th place.

While Lorenzo Savadori rounds out the Top 20, just ahead of Rossi, it’s Franceso Bagnaia who rounds out the grid in P22. After ending Free Practice 1 in 11^th place, the Italian is said to have focused on adapting the Desmo to the circuit in the second session, forgoing focus on lap times.

As Sachsenring starts how Catalunya ended, the entire MotoGP grid ends Friday covered by just 1.5 seconds. As we gear up for Qualifying later today, can Oliveira stay on top?

MotoGP Q1 starts at 14:10 Local Time (GMT +2).

Feature Image: MotoGP.com