The first MotoGP session of 2021 started off with a Yamaha on top of the timesheets in Qatar.

Franco Morbidelli clocked in the fastest time in FP1 with Aprilia rider Aleix Espargaro and Ducati’s Jack Miller close behind.

MotoGP kicked off in the capital city of Doha in Qatar just before the sun started to set.

The session started with a crash from Johann Zarco, who made a mistake on his first timed lap on the Pramac Ducati machine.

Along with Zarco, Jack Miller, Pol Espargaro and Enea Bastianini also crashed during the practice session as temperatures started to drop.

Morbidelli sat on top of the timesheet for the majority of the session but plenty of riders were getting quicker towards the end of the session.

He posted a time of 1.54.921s and A. Espargaro posted a quick time to take his Aprilia less than a tenth from the top spot.

Miller started his Ducati career on a flyer, finishing the session in third place.

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Fabio Quartararo finished in fourth place with his new factory Yamaha team and reigning World Champion Joan Mir managed to secure fifth place in FP1.

Maverick Vinales finished the session in sixth place with the other Suzuki rider Alex Rins in seventh.

Pecco Bagnaia posted a quick time to put him in eighth place, Valentino Rossi finished ninth and KTM’s Miguel Oliveira rounded out the top 10.

Teammates Alex Marquez and Takaaki Nakagami were 11th and 12th.

Despite his crash, Zarco finished the session in 13th place. Stefan Bradl, who is stepping in for Marc Marquez, finished the session 14th ahead of Pol Espargaro in 15th place.

Brad Binder finished in 16th, followed by two rookies of Luca Marini and Enea Bastianini.

Danilo Petrucci was 19th, Jorge Martin in 20th, Lorenzo Salvadori in 21st and Iker Lecuona rounded out the grid.