Mugello MotoGP: Hernandez tops damp opening practice

Few riders ventured out in the difficult conditions early in the session, but Hernandez was among those circulating on wet tyres, setting the pace at the halfway mark with a time of 2m00.349s.

But the times plunged in the final 15 or so minutes as the track began to dry, with all the best times being set on Michelin's new-for-2016 intermediate rubber.

Scott Redding took the top spot away from Hernandez when he ventured out on intermediates to set a 1m58.878s, which he quickly improved to a 1m57.891s before being pipped by Cal Crutchlow on a 1m57.869s.

But Hernandez retook control when he emerged from the pits in the final five minutes, lowering Crutchlow's benchmark by over two seconds before ending the session on a 1m54.199s.

Pramac Ducati rider Redding went second-quickest, 0.774s off the pace and four tenths up on the LCR Honda of Crutchlow in third.

Bradley Smith (Tech 3 Yamaha) made it three British riders in the top five by taking fourth place ahead of Ducati wildcard Michele Pirro and the Suzuki of Maverick Vinales.

It was a quiet session for the established stars, with Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez and Andrea Dovizioso not setting laptimes.

Rossi did, however, still make good use of the session, coming into the pits at the end of each of his laps and stopping at the far end to perform practice starts.

Practice times:

Pos	Rider	Team	Bike	Time	Gap
1	Yonny Hernandez	Aspar Racing Team	Ducati Desmosedici GP14	1:54.199
2	Scott Redding	Pramac Racing	Ducati Desmosedici GP15	1:54.973	+0.774
3	Cal Crutchlow	Team LCR	Honda RC213V	1:55.334	+1.135
4	Bradley Smith	Tech 3	Yamaha YZR-M1	1:55.659	+1.460
5	Michele Pirro	Ducati Team	Ducati Desmosedici GP16	1:56.411	+2.212
6	Maverick Viñales	Team Suzuki MotoGP	Suzuki GSX-RR	1:56.966	+2.767
7	Eugene Laverty	Aspar Racing Team	Ducati Desmosedici GP14	1:58.757	+4.558
8	Alvaro Bautista	Aprilia Racing Team	Aprilia RS-GP	1:59.101	+4.902
9	Andrea Iannone	Ducati Team	Ducati Desmosedici GP16	1:59.808	+5.609
10	Tito Rabat	Marc VDS Racing	Honda RC213V	2:00.742	+6.543
11	Loris Baz	Avintia Racing	Ducati Desmosedici GP14	2:01.163	+6.964
12	Hector Barbera	Avintia Racing	Ducati Desmosedici GP14	2:01.800	+7.601
13	Danilo Petrucci	Pramac Racing	Ducati Desmosedici GP15	2:03:899	+9.700
14	Dani Pedrosa	Repsol Honda Team	Honda RC213V	2:04:748	+10.549