Bo Bendsneyder has started the Qatar Grand Prix very well. The Dutch rider of NTS RW Racing GP closed the first day with the seventh fastest time: 1.59.089. Jesko Raffin had slightly more problems at the Losail International Circuit near Doha. The Swiss finished the day in 26th place with his time from the first practice session: 2.00.181.
Bendsneyder was in good shape, especially in the second training session. He opened the session with the third time (1.59.315) and improved that time later on. That improvement was initially good for third place as well, but a number of other riders were just a little faster in the final minute than the Dutchman, who was satisfied with seventh.
In the two tests that preceded the first racing weekend of the new season, Jesko Raffin missed a few costly sessions. This had consequences for the free practice sessions in Qatar, as the Swiss started a little behind. He could not improve his fastest time from the first practice in the evening session, although he came very close with 2.00.183.
Results FP2:
| Pos | Rider | Team | Fastest lap |
| 1 | Joe ROBERTS | American Racing | 1’58.421 |
| 2 | Marco BEZZECCHI | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’58.669 |
| 3 | Luca MARINI | SKY Racing Team VR46 | 1’58.759 |
| 4 | Tetsuta NAGASHIMA | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’58.921 |
| 5 | Xavi VIERGE | Petronas Sprinta Racing | 1’59.059 |
| 6 | Augusto FERNANDEZ | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’59.074 |
| 7 | Bo BENDSNEYDER | NTS RW Racing GP | 1’59.089 |
| 8 | Enea BASTIANINI | Italtrans Racing Team | 1’59.114 |
| 9 | Nicolo BULEGA | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | 1’59.136 |
| 10 | Jorge MARTIN | Red Bull KTM Ajo | 1’59.148 |
| 11 | Jorge NAVARRO | Beta Tools Speed Up | 1’59.189 |
| 12 | Marcel SCHROTTER | Liqui Moly Intact GP | 1’59.198 |
| 13 | Lorenzo BALDASSARRI | Flexbox HP 40 | 1’59.237 |
| 14 | Aron CANET | Aspar Team | 1’59.278 |
| 15 | Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO | Beta Tools Speed Up | 1’59.284 |
| 16 | Somkiat CHANTRA | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | 1’59.290 |
| 17 | Remy GARDNER | Onexox TKKR SAG Team | 1’59.434 |
| 18 | Edgar PONS | Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 | 1’59.486 |
| 19 | Sam LOWES | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 1’59.561 |
| 20 | Jake DIXON | Petronas Sprinta Racing | 1’59.641 |
| 21 | Marcos RAMIREZ | American Racing | 1’59.709 |
| 22 | Simone CORSI | MV Agusta Forward Racing | 1’59.839 |
| 23 | Hector GARZO | Flexbox HP 40 | 2’00.020 |
| 24 | Stefano MANZI | MV Agusta Forward Racing | 2’00.160 |
| 25 | Jesko RAFFIN | NTS RW Racing GP | 2’00.183 |
| 26 | Thomas LUTHI | Liqui Moly Intact GP | 2’00.262 |
| 27 | Hafizh SYAHRIN | Aspar Team | 2’00.396 |
| 28 | Lorenzo DALLA PORTA | Italtrans Racing Team | 2’00.804 |
| 29 | Andi Farid IZDIHAR | IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia | 2’01.265 |
| 30 | Kasma Daniel KASMAUDIN | Onexox TKKR SAG Team | 2’02.886 |
Source: motogp.com, rwracinggp.com
