It's not often thaꦐt MotoGP champion Marc Marquez decides a situation is too risky, but the Repsol Honda star backed out of using slick tyres on a drying track in Argentina qualifying.

LCR Honda's Cal Crutchlow also pulled straight back in f﷽or wets, but Jack Miller stuck it out on slicks and – after some wild moments - was rewarded with a debut MotoGP pole position.

"I expected the grip was there [for slicks], but even as I was leaving the box when I touched the wet it was quite ris𝓀ky to have a crash. Then after passing [the fully wet] Turns 7-8 my head started to think, 'tomorrow is the race'," Marquez explained.

"Of course, pole position is important but tomorrow is the race and this year I'm trying to 🌠avoid the risk, avoid crashing.

"I'm still taking risks, b🐷ut if you crash in those conditions normally you get injured because you fly.

🤡"I saw the lap of Jack and it was like riding a bull! He took a lot of risk and got the pole, but anyway we went in anoth🐬er strategy."

After returning to the track, Marquez only had time for one lap before the chequered flag, and it was f💯ar from perfect.

"I missed the apex, went on the wet part and lost a lot of tꦬime. Anyway I'm happy because sixth place is not so bad. I expected to be even more far because I missed one corner, but we are there. Only one row in fronꦯt of us.

"We will see how the weather is tomorrow but 🌞the positive thing is that we were competitive in the dry conditions yesterday.

"And today in the w༺et we were very very competitive, especial💮ly in FP4."

Marquez - comfortably fastest in Free Pra⛎ctice 2, 3 and 4 - starts as the pre-rಞace favourite, but the changeable weather means he has plenty of question marks ahead of the grand prix .

"I think if it's wet [my main r𓆏ival] will be my team-mate Dani because he's really good to understand the track and understand the tyres. Also Zarco was very, very fast," he said.

"If it⛄'s dry, impossible to say. Crutchlow will be very fast again because he was fast✱ on Friday.

"But it will be very, ve🎶ry important to choose the tyres. In the wet I think everybody will go medium-medium. In the dry, I don’t know - especially the rear. With the soft I feel okay, with the medium also."

Pedrosa will start from s🍬econ𒆙d position and Zarco third.

Ducati'sꦰ Andrea Dovizioso, who beat Marquez in a close victory battle in Qatar, starts eighth.