Andrea Dovizioso topped the opening MotoGP practice for the Grand Prix of Argentina on Friday as riders got to grips with the Autodromo Termas de Rio Hondo circuit.
The lack of track activity in the lead-up to the MotoGP weekend meant that much of the session was spent cleaning the circuit, with riders tentatively building up their pace as they grew more confident with the slippery surface.
Conditions did catch out Yamaha Tech 3 rider Pol Espargaro, who slid off mid-way through the session at Turn 7 before eventually finishing first practice in 17th place.
Jack Miller led with a few minutes remaining before a flurry of late lap times came in. Two-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez was the first to topple the Australian rider, but he was duly beaten by Ducati's Dovizioso late on.
A fastest lap of 1:43.684 saw Dovizioso hold on to P1 at the chequered flag, edging out Marquez by less than one-tenth of a second.
Yonny Hernandez finished the opening practice for his defacto home race in third ahead of Maverick Vinales and Aleix Espargaro, with Yamaha's Valentino Rossi following in sixth position.
Dani Pedrosa finished seventh ahead of Miller, while British duo Bradley Smith and Scott Redding rounded out the top 10. Defending champion and Qatar winner Jorge Lorenzo could only manage a lap for 12th, and Andrea Iannone also struggled en route to P18.
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