WORLD champion Marc Marquez was the fastest man in the third MotoGP practice session as strong winds caused havoc at Phillip Island.

The Spaniard steered his factory Honda to a 1min 29.714 second lap, despite sliding off at Turn 4 earlier in the session.

Maverick Vinales on the Yamaha was second, 0.042 seconds behind and just ahead of Aussie Jack Miller’s Ducati.

But a gusting wind kept times down and Andrea Iannone’s time from Friday afternoon on his Suzuki remains the fastest overall.

Most riders were unable to improve their Friday times with many up to a second slower on the 4.45km circuit.

Hafizh Syahrin was taken to the medical centre after a tumbling crash off his Yamaha and into the gravel at Turn 1.

Jordi Torres (Ducati) and Bradley Smith (KTM) also went down as riders struggled with the conditions.

Valentino Rossi, who was also pushed off track at Turn 4 by the wind, remained in the top 10 that make up Qualifying 2 session later today.

Brit Cal Crutchlow was officially ruled out of the race after breaking his ankle during a Turn 1 crash on Friday. It is now feared that the Honda rider may miss the rest of the season.

In Moto2 practice, Australian Remy Gardner improved after yesterday’s nasty crash and was 12th fastest, 0.866 seconds behind pacesetter German Marcel Schrotter.