Pol Espargaro led Marc Marquez in Friday practice ahead of the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring but both experienced problems on an eventful day in Germany. The first session was run in dry conditions before intermittent rain played havoc with the second, allowing Espargaro's FP1 time to stay unbeaten.
Marquez was the first to hit trouble with a crash at the waterfall corner late in the morning session. The championship leader lost the front end of his Suter at the right-hander and slid for several yards down the track. Fortunately he escaped unhurt with the only damage being done to his motorcycle and he was fit to ride in FP2.
It was then that Espargaro encountered difficulty, again at the waterfall, as his Kalex started to slow with a mechanical problem. The descent in the road allowed him to crawl to the Sachsen curve but the no.40 couldn't make it up the incline which brought the riders to the final corner. As a result, Espargaro was forced to push his bike uphill to the pitlane, leaving him breathless when he finally returned to the garage.
Behind the top two, Bradley Smith showed Tech 3's best form of the season so far to go third quickest, a third of a second back, just ahead of Mika Kallio on the Marc VDS Kalex. Alex de Angelis was fifth fastest with title contenders Andrea Iannone and Thomas Luthi sixth and seventh while Dominique Aegerter all-but-matched his compatriot in eighth.
Yuki Takahashi showed signs of turning the corner after a desperate start to the season with the ninth fastest time with Simone Corsi completing the top ten. Scott Redding could only manage eleventh in an incredibly tight session with Gino Rea down in 27th, despite being only two seconds off the lead.
eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland: Combined Friday Practice Times
| Pos | Rider | Constructor | Team | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Pol Espargaro |
Kalex | Pons 40 HP Tuenti | 1:25.179 |
| 2 | Marc Marquez |
Suter | Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol | +0.048 |
| 3 |  Bradley Smith |
Tech 3 | Tech 3 Racing | +0.333 |
| 4 |  Mika Kallio |
Kalex | Marc VDS Racing Team | +0.427 |
| 5 |  Alex De Angelis |
FTR | NGM Mobile Forward Racing | +0.604 |
| 6 |  Andrea Iannone |
Speed Up | Speed Master | +0.605 |
| 7 |  Thomas Luthi |
Suter | Interwetten-Paddock | +0.725 |
| 8 | Dominique Aegerter |
Suter | Technomag-CIP | +0.735 |
| 9 |  Yuki Takahashi |
FTR | NGM Mobile Forward Racing | +0.815 |
| 10 | Simone Corsi |
FTR | Came IodaRacing Project | +0.831 |
| 11 | Scott Redding |
Kalex | Marc VDS Racing Team | +0.838 |
| 12 |  Johann Zarco |
Motobi | JIR Moto2 | +0.840 |
| 13 | R. Krummenacher |
Suter | GP Team Switzerland | +0.864 |
| 14 | Claudio Corti |
Kalex | Italtrans Racing Team | +1.006 |
| 15 |  Xavier Simeon |
Tech 3 | Tech 3 Racing | +1.053 |
| 16 | Esteve Rabat |
Kalex | Pons 40 HP Tuenti | +1.066 |
| 17 | Toni Elias |
Suter | Mapfre Aspar Team | +1.068 |
| 18 |  Anthony West |
Moriwaki | QMMF Racing Team | +1.146 |
| 19 | Roberto Rolfo |
Suter | Technomag-CIP | +1.159 |
| 20 | Julian Simon |
FTR | Blusens Avintia | +1.210 |
| 21 | Nicolas Terol |
Suter | Mapfre Aspar Team | +1.231 |
| 22 |  Ratthapark Wilairot |
Suter | Thai Honda Gresini Moto2 | +1.379 |
| 23 |  Max Neukirchner |
Kalex | Kiefer Racing | +1.385 |
| 24 | Ricard Cardus |
AJR | Arguiñano Racing Team | +1.560 |
| 25 | Takaaki Nakagami |
Kalex | Italtrans Racing Team | +1.770 |
| 26 | Axel Pons |
Kalex | Pons 40 HP Tuenti | +1.947 |
| 27 | Gino Rea |
Suter | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | +2.138 |
| 28 | Markus Reiterberger |
MZ-RE Honda | Cresto Guide MZ Racing | +2.234 |
| 29 | Damian Cudlin |
Bimota | Desguaces La Torre SAG | +3.171 |
| 30 |  Eric Granado |
Motobi | JIR Moto2 | +3.316 |
| 31 | Kevin Wahr (WC) |
IAMT | Kiefer Racing | +3.462 |
| 32 | Marco Colandrea |
FTR | SAG Team | +3.824 |
| 33 | Alessandro Andreozzi |
Speed Up | S/Master Speed Up | +4.659 |
| 34 | Elena Rosell |
Moriwaki | QMMF Racing Team | +5.593 |
