MotoGP Qatar: Sunday Guide, pre-event statistics

The last time grid positions were determined by combined free practice times was in Portugal in 2010, when torrential rain canceled all qualifying sessions for all three classes.

Maverick Viñales will start from pole for the first time in MotoGP, he is currently the only rider to have achieved pole in all three current classes, Moto3, Moto2 and MotoGP. He could also become the second youngest rider of all time, after Mike Hailwood (Norton & MV Agusta), to have won in the premier class on different bikes.

Andrea Iannone will start from the front row in Qatar, the best grid position ever for a Suzuki rider at Losail.

Marc Marquez will start with the third fastest time, the grid thus sees three different manufacturers on the front row. Honda hasn't won in Qatar since 2014, when Marquez won the race.

Johann Zarco will start from the second row. It is the best grid position in the MotoGP class for a rookie in the opening race of the year since 2008, when Jorge Lorenzo took pole and James Toseland qualified in second place.

For the first time the first four riders on the grid raced in Moto2.

Andrea Dovizioso, second in the last two years in Qatar, is the best Ducati rider on the grid, fifth place.

Scott Redding will start from the second row, his second best result after the third time at the 2016 TT Assen.

Dani Pedrosa, making his twelfth appearance at Losail in the MotoGP class, will start from the third row. The Spaniard has scored points in all 11 previous editions.

Jonas Folger, who will start from eighth on the grid, is the only one of the four rookies in this year's MotoGP class to have already won in Qatar in one of the smaller classes, Moto2 in 2015.

Valentino Rossi, tenth on the grid, won in Qatar two years ago, after qualifying in eighth position.

Jorge Lorenzo, twelfth on the grid and last year's winner of the Qatar GP, missed out on the first or second row for the first time in Losail.