The opening practices for the first MotoGP race in Brazil in over two decades turned into a damp squib on Friday after rain delayed the start of both sessions and then returned to send riders back into the pits.
Frenchman Johann Zarco on a Honda recorded the fastest time of the second session in 1min 21.257sec, 0.125sec ahead of world champion Marc Marquez on a Ducati. Turkish rookie Toprak Razgatlioglu was third fastest, 0.308sec behind Zarco.
The conditions, which curtailed the second session, caught out several of the early-season pacemakers. Aprilia's Marco Bezzecchi, who won the opening race in Thailand, could only record the 20th-best time despite staying out longer than any other rider, more than two seconds off the pace.
Raul Fernandez, who was third in Thailand for Trackhouse, was 21st – slowest among those who recorded a time.
With only the 10 fastest in practice going through directly to the 12-rider battle for pole, Bezzecchi and Fernandez will have to fight through the opening qualifying session on Saturday.
Rain had lashed down all week on Goiania in central Brazil, flooding the Autodromo Ayrton Senna and leaving the track smeared with mud. The morning session was delayed while the dirt was hosed off the surface.
It was still raining when the first practice started. Championship leader Pedro Acosta of KTM was fastest with a time of only 1min 26.688sec.
The second session was also put back. It started in the dry but the rain soon returned and as it intensified, leaving the surface too wet for slick tires but too dry for wets the riders returned to the pits to sit and watch the weather.