Maverick Vinales got the better of COTA favourite Marc Marquez during a phantom qualifying session at the end o💞f Friday practice in Austin, which also saw Monster Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi complete the top three.

Vinales began the day in second place, just 0.078s behind Honda's six-time win๊ner Marquez,✅ then turned the tables by 0.044s when riders put new soft rubber at the end of FP2.

"I thin⛎k today it was very important to work on the basic set-up, because in Argentina we misunderstood some things. I think we worked quite well here today. I tried to be very competitive, especially on the first laps, but we still have to improve," said Vinales, who couldn't replicate his front-row qualifying during the Termas de Rio Hondo race.

"We have to be more precise in the first laps and I need a little bit more grip, especially on the rear, because I still didn't feel that I'm at my best. It's iಌmporta✤nt to be at the top today, because I think tomorrow it's going to rain, and we need to start at the front.

"The track ಞis very bumpy.😼 It was funny, when I was pushing I made a big lateral slide, but honestly I was lucky I didn't make a big highside.

"But𓄧 anyway normally in the bumpy tracks I'm there. Like Silverstone where it's bump๊y I didn't suffer so much. I'm not afraid for sure!

"The good thing of the trac✱k is that there are fast and slow sections. So if you go fast here it looks like you can go fast everywhere. I like this track a lot. Without the bumps it would be incredible. But like this it's okay for me, I can still ride. Turn 18 for me is the most dangerous. It's very easy to make a highside there with all the bumps.

"Now I would like to improve the slow corners🅘, especially the exit. Still we didn't set-up with the electronic so I'm quite happy because we are competitive but s🎉till we need to improve.

"For me, I always feel good in fast corners. I can carry a lot of speed and that's very good. But alsoཧ I think we are braking better than in Argentina. I do a lot of lap time under braking, so also it's important to have good brakes to improve in the race aꩵnd overtake.

"So for sure one of my main𒆙 focus for tomorrow is the braking are✤a and electronic on the exit of slow corners."

The late time attacks were given extra importance due to the thℱreat of rain on Saturday morning, which would mean the ten riders that are heading straight for Qualifying 2 have already been decided.

"For sure, I'm expecting to be fast in qualifying [whatever the weather]," Vi👍nales said.  "In Valencia I finished at the top in the wet. It's true that I also crashed, but I was one of th𒁃e fastest on the track. I have a good feeling, and when you have a good feeling it doesn‘t matter what the conditions are like."

But Vinales admits it'll be a tough task to e👍nd Marquez's unbeat💮en COTA run on Sunday.

"It's going to be so difficult to beat him here. He is very fast here but for sure it's never easy so I'm goiဣng to push at my best to briಞng the bike at the maximum. If we can take out the best of the bike I think we can be there."

Having struggled in the early ไstages of the previous races, after a fast qualifying, Vinales practiced overtaking other riders on Friday.

"Yeah here I ride with people and seems to be a little bit easier to overtake. I'm using very tight lines. [This is a wide track]𒈔 so I can prepare the overtake better than Qatar. Qatar is just one line. Here you💮 can use different lines. It's easier."

Rossi was also pleased to h♈ave a provisional place in Qualifying 2, but warne🅠d he has 'some problems' with his race pace.

"Today wasn't so bad, especially the third position is very good. I did a good lap, and this is very important in order to stay in the top-10. We have some problems with th﷽e pace, I'm not fantastic on the race tyre. We have to work on the balan🅰ce of the bike, but for a first day it's quite positive," said the Italian, a distant second to Marquez in Argentina.

"The weather forecast for tomorrow is grim, but we're hoping it's wrong. M🦩aybe the weather𓂃 will be good tomorrow, but if it rains we will all start from zero again. We'll need to try to understand the conditions and we need to find a good setting for the wet, but anyway we hope to have a dry race on Sunday."