- London's Frieze art fair goes potty for ceramics
- Southgate taking year out from coaching
- US, Europe stocks fall on US inflation data
- Zelensky meets Macron in Paris as part of European tour
- Hurricane Milton shreds Florida stadium roof
- UN probe accuses Israel of seeking to 'destroy' Gaza healthcare
- US consumer inflation eases to 2.4% in September
- England in sight of victory after Brook's triple hundred
- Juventus readmitted to ECA after failed Super League revolt
- World number 2 Alcaraz knocked out of Shanghai Masters by Machac
- Leaders of Egypt, Eritrea, Somalia meet amid regional tensions
- Klopp's Red Bull decision 'ruined life's work' say Dortmund fans
- Han Kang wins South Korea's first literature Nobel
- S. Korea's Nobel winner Han Kang a modest, thought-provoking writer
- Hurricane Milton tornadoes kill four in Florida amid rescue efforts
- The almost impossible job: Beating Rafael Nadal at the French Open
- New French government faces key test with budget plan
- Rescuers say Israeli strike on Gaza school kills 28
- Italy's ex-world champion gymnast Ferrari announces retirement
- Zelensky talks 'victory plan' in meeting with Starmer, Rutte
- South Korea's Han Kang wins literature Nobel
- Federer lauds retiring Nadal's 'incredible achievements'
- Ikea posts fall in annual sales after lowering prices
- Australia beat China 3-1 to resurrect World Cup campaign
- Stock markets diverge, oil gains after China rebounds
- Nadal defied injury woes in record-breaking career
- Nadal v Djokovic, French Open, 2006: Chapter One in epic rivalry
- World can't 'waste time' trading climate change blame: COP29 hosts
- Pakistan at 23-1 after Brook triple hundred takes England to 823-7
- Zelensky meets Starmer, Rutte on whirlwind tour of Europe
- South Korean same-sex couples make push for marriage equality
- Rafael Nadal calls time on epic tennis career
- Mumbai declares day of mourning for Indian industrialist Ratan Tata
- Philippines confronts China over South China Sea at ASEAN meet
- Kim Sei-young shoots 62 to take two-stroke lead at LPGA Shanghai
- The haircuts that help traumatised Ukrainian soldiers heal
- Sinner crushes Medvedev to set up potential Alcaraz Shanghai semi
- 7-Eleven owner restructures to fight takeover
- England's Harry Brook blasts triple century against Pakistan
- Chinese electric car companies cope with European tariffs
- Zelensky in London for whirlwind tour of Europe ahead of US vote
- Sri Lanka recovering faster than expected: World Bank
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as most markets track Wall St record
- Record-breaking Root, Brook both pass 200 as England pile up 658-3
- Football mourns Greek defender George Baldock's shock death at 31
- Uniqlo owner reports record annual earnings
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally as markets track Wall St record
- Indonesia biomass drive threatens key forests: report
- Home is far away for Madagascar in AFCON qualifying
- Two months on, Donbas soldiers begin to question Kursk offensive
Spain's Pol Espargaro sets pace at scorching Indonesian MotoGP
Repsol Honda's Pol Espargaro defied testing conditions to go fastest in opening practice on Friday for the first Indonesian Grand Prix in 25 years.
The 30-year-old Spaniard has never won a MotoGP race but fired a warning with his leading time of 1 min 33.499 at the new Mandalika circuit on the tropical island of Lombok.
Second in the first practice session for Sunday's race was Portugal's Miguel Oliveira on his KTM, just 0.044 secs off the pace, with Spain's six-time world champion Marc Marquez third.
The weather made it tough going for the racers, with temperatures approaching 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) at the track and damp, overcast conditions.
Italy's Enea Bastianini, who won the season-opening Qatar GP earlier this month, was eighth-fastest for Gresini Racing.
But it was a tough start for reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo, who could only manage 16th on his Yamaha and looks off the pace so far this season.
Motorbike-mad Indonesia hosted motorcycle grand prix in 1996 and 1997 near the capital Jakarta, but its ambitions of becoming a mainstay of the sport were torpedoed by the Asian financial crisis.
There were teething problems for Indonesia's return to world-class motorcycling, with the Mandalika track requiring substantial resurfacing for this week's action.
During testing in February, MotoGP riders complained that the circuit was dirty and breaking up in places.
The new MotoGP campaign boasts a record 21 races this season, ending on November 6 in Valencia.
Leading practice times:
1. Pol Espargaro (ESP/Honda) 1:33.499, 2. Miguel Oliveira (POR/KTM) at 0.044sec, 3. Marc Marquez (ESP/Honda) 0.079, 4. Franco Morbidelli (ITA/Yamaha) 0.382, 5. Johann Zarco (FRA/Ducati) 0.743, 6. Aleix Espargaro (ESP/Aprilia) 0.753, 7. Brad Binder (RSA/KTM) 0.776, 8. Enea Bastianini (ITA/Ducati) 0.828, 9. Francesco Bagnaia (ITA/Ducati) 0.858, 10. Joan Mir (ESP/Suzuki) 0.980.
Selected:
16. Fabio Quartararo (FRA/Yamaha) 1.294
Y.Aukaiv--AMWN