Jack Miller gambled on slicks in a damp MotoGP qualifying to take a stunning maiden premier class pole, with weekend pacesetter Marc Marquez only sixth.
The light rain that affected the Moto2 and Moto3 qualifying sessions had long passed by the time the pole shootout for MotoGP got underway, though the track remained damp in certain parts.
The early laps were completed on wet tyres, with Marquez – who was 1.1 seconds clear of the field in the wet FP4 – setting the benchmark of 1:49.123s despite several moments at Turn 13.
Aprilia's Aleix Espargaro, who topped Q1, deposed him soon after, however, with a 1:48.783s, and looked to cement top spot with a follow-up effort of 1:48.509s.
With a visible dry line throughout much of the circuit, Marquez, LCR's Cal Crutchlow and Miller ventured out in the final six minutes with slicks, though only the Pramac rider stayed out on them.
On his penultimate lap, Miller was almost launched from his Pramac GP17 at Turn 10, but carried on for one more lap with his dry tyres.
Meanwhile, Dani Pedrosa shot to the top of the standings with a 1:47.330s. With no one else threatening the Honda rider, a 50th career pole looked certain.
However, Miller's transponder had stopped working and was unknowingly setting the timing screens alight.
The Australian took the chequered flag with a 1:47.153s to secure his first pole in MotoGP, with Pedrosa and Tech3's Johann Zarco completing the front row.
Tito Rabat was shuffled back to the head of the second row courtesy of his former team-mate's pole charge, with brief session leader Alex Rins fifth on the Suzuki, while Marquez will start off pole in Argentina for the first time in sixth.
Espargaro headed fellow Q1 graduate Andrea Dovizioso in seventh, with Yamaha duo Maverick Vinales and Valentino Rossi split by tenth-placed Cructhlow. Andrea Iannone rounded out the top 12.
Karel Abraham rubbed salt into the wounds of a struggling Jorge Lorenzo, the customer Ducati rider on a two-year-old GP16 forcing the factory man down to 14th.
Scott Redding threatened the Q2 places throughout the wet practices on Saturday, but came up short in qualifying and will start from 15th ahead of KTM's Pol Espargaro and Avintia rookier Xavier Simeon.
Pramac's Danilo Petrucci – who has been on the podium in two of the last three wet races – was a lowly 18th on the third factory GP18 on the grid, with Ducati stablemate Alvaro Bautista two tenths further adrift in 19th.
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