Michelin and MotoGP have outlined contingency plans for the Argentinian Grand Prix following Saturday’s tire dramas, one of which would involve compulsory pit stops.

A rear tire failure on Scott Redding’s Pramac Ducati in fourth practice on Saturday prompted Michelin to withdraw the planned medium and hard compounds, and replace them with a harder version brought in on safety grounds.

Teams were due to get an extra half an hour of practice on Sunday morning to try the untested tire, but this was canceled as rain at Termas de Rio Hondo meant the slicks could not have been used.

The regular warm-up has now been extended from 20 to 30 minutes, after which the race procedure will vary subject to the weather.

If the current rain lasts all day or if both warm-up and the grand prix are both completely dry, the race will go ahead in its usual format over 25 laps but with the new tire mandatory if the track is dry.

Should the track begin wet but dry during the race, race officials will decide whether it should be red-flagged and restarted over a reduced distance of 10 laps using the original hard and medium tires.

If the warm-up is wet – as currently looks likely – but the track dries before the race, the original tires will be used but the grand prix will be reduced to 20 laps with a mandatory pit stop to change onto a bike with fresh tires between laps nine and 11.

Marc Marquez starts on pole for Honda, ahead of Yamaha duo Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo.