After an incredible performance in qualifying and back to full fitness. The world champion Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) pounced on title rival Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) after Martin ran wide and gifted victory to Bagnaia.
After today’s sprint race, The Martinator only has a 4pts advantage to the Bologna bullet as we head into tomorrow’s 27 lap Grand Prix. Can Martin get to the front and stop Pecco from taking glory in front of his partisan crowd? Can we see Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) take his performance to the next level and beat his title rivals like he did at Silverstone?
When the conditions are clear and with plenty of grip, it’s clear to see the Ducati GP24s are another level to the rest of the field. A common sight of Pecco, Martin and Bastianini at the front some distance clear of the rest of the pack.
Winner last time out in Misano, Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing) stated he was happy with 4th place after the race and job done recognizing the GP24s have a pace that his Gresini Ducati GP23 simply can’t get near to. Marquez finished the race over 5 seconds behind the front 3.
A special mention to Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team) for riding the wheels off that Yamaha today. We no longer see the frustrated Fabio anymore, we see a more measured and ruthless Fabio proving that if given the bike, Fabio will deliver. Fabio is a world champion for a reason and Yamaha know it!
The level of effort that is going into the factory M1 is monumental. Yamaha now more determined than ever to fight their way back to the top. What they promised Fabio when he signed his new contract, they are clearly starting to deliver on. As soon as the new Yamaha V4 is on track, we can be sure Fabio will take the fight to Ducati.
Image credit @Michelin_Sport on X
AS IT HAPPENED
Martin and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had the start of their dreams as Martin blasted into the lead from the off. Binder started from 4th on the grid and up into 2nd up the inside of Pecco into turn 1.
In the early stages, Binder dropped back through the pack and eventually finished in 6th place behind next season’s teammate and rookie of the year Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3).
It was very much game on for the 2 riders at the top of the championship, as Martin lead from the front and Pecco hunted down the Spaniard.
At the half race distance, Pecco got his reward for the pressure put onto Martin as Martin ran wide. A gift to Pecco and an opportunity he was never going to miss.
One mistake was all it took and Pecco Bagnaia with the roar of the Italian crowd crossed the line to take the sprint victory. If Pecco takes victory tomorrow, he will sit atop of the standings as we head to Indonesia next weekend.
There wasn’t much to mention from this sprint race and it wasn’t the most exciting to be honest. All of the overtaking was done within the first few laps and revealed the top 4 riders at the front. Fabio finished in the top 10 which was brilliant for Yamaha and Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) battled his way to finish 13th after starting at the back of the grid.
Pecco Bagnaia was in a league of is own today, as he comfortably wins the Austrian GP – it’s his third consecutive win at the Red Bull Ring.
Image Credit: MotoGP on X
Pecco Bagnaia has taken a stunning victory today at the Austrian GP today, in the weekend that has seen him re-take the lead in the championship standings. He started 2nd on the grid, took the lead on lap 2 after an exciting battle with his closest championship rival, Jorge Martin, and then never looked back.
Whilst it wasn’t the most thrilling race, or the action-packed weekend we have historically seen at the Red Bull Ring, you cannot deny the stunning performance from Bagnaia today. His ride was utterly flawless whilst, all weekend, others were making mistakes around him. He kept his cool and showed why he is such a brilliant champion after being perfect for every moment of the race.
Jorge Martin, despite starting on pole and leading the first lap, couldn’t bring home the win today. He simply wasn’t able to keep Bagnaia behind him, nor could he close the gap for the lead. It was an undoubtedly frustrating day who felt he could win this race. He leaves Austria having lost 8 points to Bagnaia in the title fight too.
Enea Bastianini brought home a double podium for Ducati today, ending the day in 3rd. It was a very quiet race for the Italian, who sat in 3rd from lights out all the way to the chequered flag without facing any real challenge. Today is his sixth podium of the year and good momentum after double win in Silverstone last time out.
Marc Marquez just missed out on the podium today, coming home in 4th. Most of the on-track action came from the Gresini rider today – he had a ride height device issue whilst sitting on the grid and, as they went to the first corner, he had contact with Franco Morbidelli which left him back down in 10th. He fought hard and gave the Austrian fans lots of entertainment as he came past two KTM riders, two Aprilia riders, a VR46 rider and his own brother on the second Gresini bike. Given his performance today, he may be left thinking about what might have been if his race start had been a clean one.
One of the victims of Marquez’s pressure was KTM rider Jack Miller, who crashed out when the Spaniard was hutning him down. The bike slipped out from under him at the chicane of turn 2, on lap 11.
It was an equally tough weekend for fan-favourite, rookie Pedro Acosta. He has faced a difficult weekend after crashing three times on Friday and then struggling to be on the pace. He simply wasn’t able to set the tarmac on fire today in his normal way, and ended the day in 13th.
David Alonso (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team) with a long lap penalty (LLP) charged his way back through the pack to take victory here in Austria. It was a superb comeback after taking his first ever LLP and punished the rest of the field. Alonso celebrated and showed us the dance moves to match his riding skills in the LLP loop.
It will take something monumental now for the rest of the season for any rider to stop Alonso winning the championship this season. 71pts adrift to Alonso in the championship, Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) had a perfect Saturday but a nightmare Sunday starting from the back of the grid for the race. Ortola fought hard though to finish 9th and clearly would of had a chance at victory today had Ortola started from pole.
David Munoz (BOE Motorsports) after a manic battle snatched 2nd place away from Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) on the line who finished in 3rd. It was a great race today in the Styrian mountains!
AS IT HAPPENED
Ortola was nowhere to be seen at the front of the grid as the riders got underway in the overcast conditions. Joel Kelso (BOE Motorsport) with a great start and into the lead on the first lap as Alonso was up and attacking Holgado for 2nd after starting 6th on the grid.
Alonso and Holgado diced with each other and was enough for Munoz to dive by and up into 2nd. At the end of lap 1 it was both BOE Motorsports riders leading the way in Austria.
Lap 2 and a lead group started to develop in the race with 6 riders at the front. Alonso and Piqueras took their long lap penalties and re-joined the race in 10th and 11th places. Across the line and to start lap 3, Munoz with the slip stream looked at the inside line for turn 1, but Kelso full of confidence defended the move last on the brakes.
Championship leader Alonso now up into 8th place and had a mountain to climb 3.5seconds back to the leaders. Holgado seemed to be relaxed at this point in 3rd, keeping pace with the squabbling BOE Motorsport teammates ahead of him.
As Ryusei Yamanaka (MT Helmets – MSI) had a scare almost losing the front, Alonso went by up into 6th. Pole sitter and race winner last time out at Silverstone, Ortola set the fastest lap of the race at the quarter race distance. Ortola still keen to get on with business despite the nightmare start.
Lap 7 and into turn 1 Kelso was late on the brakes and held onto the lead but Holgado’s patience had left him staring at the back of Munoz’ wheel. Holgado went by Munoz up into 2nd into turn 1 and was now gunning for Kelso. As a track limits warning was issued for Kelso, Holgado into the last sector of the lap blasted up the inside of Kelso into the lead of the race.
As we approached the half way race distance, the 3 way fight for the win became a 7 way fight for the win with newly promoted to Moto2 Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) catching and dispatching Kelso up to 3rd.
11 laps to go, Holgado lead to Munoz 2nd and Veijer in 3rd. Kelso, Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Alonso and Angel Piqueras (Leopard Racing) were all still with a shout of taking victory at this point. Veijer continued his charge and up into 2nd going by Munoz,
Lap 11 of 20 and Veijer down the hill into turn 9 hit the front of the Grand Prix for the first time. Rueda shoulder barged his way by Kelso which shoved Kelso to the back of the lead group.
Turn 9 seemed to be a favourite spot for everyone as Veijer went by Holgado to retake the lead of the race. Every rider in the lead group were fighting and dicing with each other in an epic battle in Spielberg.
Alonso even with a long lap penalty was back now up into 2nd as Munoz and Piqueras fought with each other through turn 1.
Into the last quarter of the race, pole sitter Ortola fought his way back up to 9th after starting in the pit lane. Veijer lead from Alonso in 2nd and Munoz in 3rd. Holgado and Piqueras went by Munoz as the lead group order was ever changing. Down the hill into turn 9 Alonso went by Veijer to take the lead of the race for the first time.
Into the last few laps and Alonso lead the field through turn 6 as Munoz and Holgado were on the back of Alonso’s wheel. A couple of tenths separated Holgado to Veijer and Piqueras behind. The lead group shrunk to 5 at this point all still in contention to take the win in the last couple of laps.
THE LAST LAP
Championship leader Alonso took us across the line to start the final lap. Both Munoz and Holgado bombed into turn 1 with Munoz coming off worse and ran wide re-joining into 4th place.
Piqueras now up into 3rd and looked to go up to 2nd by Holgado but unable to make it stick in the early part of the lap. Dropping down through turn 6 it was still Alonso leading from Holgado fending off Piqueras in 3rd.
Munoz out of nowhere rubbed shoulders and barged by Piqueras into 3rd. Across the line Alonso held on to take victory and Munoz snatched 2nd place away from Holgado who took 3rd.
Pecco Bagnaia has taken a flawless Sprint Race win at the Red Bull Ring today. This puts him level on points with Jorge Martin, but gifts him the lead in the title race thanks to count back.
Image Credit: MotoGP on X
Today was Pecco Bagnaia’s third Sprint Race win of the season, as he took the gold medal at the Spielberg race track. He took the lead in to the first corner of the race and managed to hold on despite an early challenge from pole sitter, Jorge Martin.
He spoke after the race about his “need to be calm”, which proved crucial as his nearest rivals all made mistakes around him.
If you use the shortcut you have to lose 1 second when rejoining the circuit🧐
The first mistake came from pole sitter Martin – whilst temporarily in the lead, he had a huge moment when under pressure form Bagnaia. He went off the track but was then slapped with a long-lap penalty for not losing enough time when he rejoined the circuit.
Next was Marc Marquez who looked set for a podium finish before crashing out at turn 3 on lap 10. At the point in the race, he was 2nd and chasing down Bagnaia but the front of his bike washed out as he pushed his Gresini bike a little too hard.
His brother, Alex Marquez, also faced a similar fate today as he crashed out on the first corner of the first lap. Whilst he was able to rejoin the field, he finished the day down in 20th.
And just like that the silver medal slipped away from @marcmarquez93‘s hands! ❌
Ultimately, the final podium position was taken by a thrilled Aleix Espargaro who managed to keep his nose clean and capitalise on the mistakes infront of him. He celebrated like it was a race win as the soon-to-be-retired Aprilia rider soaks up his final season as a MotoGP rider.
Behind him, there were a number of great battles between Enea Bastianini, Jack Miller, Franco Morbiedlli and Brad Binder who eventually came home in 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th respectively. It was a solid recovery ride for Miller who has a huge wobble off the start line and nearly went down in the opening moments of the race.
The final point was taken by Pol Espargaro, who finished in 9th. The Spaniard is here as a wildcard for KTM to test some new parts for them – he will be undeniably thrilled with a points finish.
Top Ten
Image Credit: MotoGP on X
Championship Standings
Despite being level on points, Bagnaia has stolen the lead in the standings from Martin, thanks to 6 his race wins, versus Martin’s 2 wins.
Fresh off his promotion into Moto2 for next season and in the form of his life. Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) took pole position today in the Syrian mountains! The 3rd pole position of the season for Ortola and will be eager to catch David Alonso (CFMOTO Aspar Team) in the championship in the second half of the season.
It was a 6th front row start of the season for Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) in 3rd and Aussie Joel Kelso (BOE Motorsports) qualified in 2nd. Championship leader Alonso starts from 6th on the grid in tomorrow’s race.
AS IT HAPPENED
Qualifying 1
Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) and Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia) were some of the big names in Q1 in the glorious Austrian sunshine.
Scott Ogden (MLav Racing) took a tumble early on in the session at turn 2 and quickly got back up to his feet in frustration. As sector 1 waved yellow flags, the first batch of riders crossed the line with Furusato sat at the top of the timings.
After the first few spins on the circuit, the top 4 with half of the session remaining headed through to Q2 were Furusato, Fernandez, Nicola Carraro (MTA Team) and Vicente Perez (MLav Racing).
3mins left of the session and all of the riders headed back out of the pits for their final attempts. As per usual in Moto3, the riders all slowly made their way out of the pits and picked who to follow on the lap.
Riders nearly pushed each other onto the grass in their final flying lap, but only 1 change in the top 4 as Furusato topped the session with a 1:40.882. The top 4 headed through to Q2 were Furusato, Fernandez, Tatsuki Suzuki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) and Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse).
Qualifying 2
The battle for pole position was on in the Styrian mountains and after the first batch of laps tumbled through, Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) sat a the top for a moment briefly before Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) marched to the top of the timings. We were still waiting on championship leader David Alonso (CFMOTO Aspar Team) to post a time at this point.
Alonso crossed the line and went up onto the front row after the first run into 3rd. Holgado sat on provisional pole with 7mins still left of the session.
Back out for the 2nd runs and Kelso blasted his way up to provisional pole just as Rueda crashed at turn 10. Rueda quickly got back on his KTM Ajo machine and back into the action. Veijer went up to 2nd with all to play for now as the final seconds ticked away in the session.
Into the last attempts at pole and with a slipstream to the line Ortola jumped up into pole as Kelso went down at turn 2. No final pole attempt for Kelso as Alonso went through but only qualified in 6th place. As David Munoz (BOE Motorsports) crossed the line into 9th, Ortola celebrated another pole position. A great qualifying session for the MT Helmets – MSI rider.
After successive championship titles with Ducati, reigning champion Alvaro Bautista seemed untouchable at one point. Everyone remembers the absolutely insane dual between Alvaro and Toprak at Portimao at the end of last season. For me, it was the best race I’ve ever seen and I’ve been watching motorcycle racing for the best part of two decades, through the glorious Valentino Rossi battles with everyone in sight. Toprak gave everything in that race and still came away second best, Bautista onboard the factory Ducati, ultimately prevailing for a second world championship title.
Toprak Razgatlioglu Picture courtesy of ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
Fast forward to a new season and a highly motivated Toprak, with a point to prove. Toprak may not come across as a rider with a chip on his shoulder, or appear outwardly angry, at least his demeanour seems to be that of the complete professional. However, it wasn’t that long ago where a test with the MotoGP factory Yamaha team didn’t prove to be as impressive as many thought. Certainly Monster Energy Yamaha Team Manager, Massimo Meragalli was very diplomatic when asked about the lap times Toprak had set. Toprak himself, had been open about his desire to move into the MotoGP paddock and no doubt felt disappointed a move never transpired for the 2024 season.
Signing a contract with the Rokit BMW Motorrad Factory team for 2024, many thought the move would be a disaster given the form of the BMW team, with both then factory riders Scott Redding, and Michael Vd Mark struggling to reach consistent form. Toprak’s manager and close friend, Kenan Sofuoglu hinted at the nature of these dismissive comments when being interviewed by Eurosport commentator, James Toseland on the grid for the WorldSSP race on Sunday.
If extra motivation was required, Toprak certainly didn’t look like he needed it over the Misano round. With a first triple win for BMW and a first triple for Toprak since the Indonesian round in 2022, Ducati are now very well aware they’re in a dog fight.
Toprak Razgatlioglu Picture courtesy of ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
Race 2 saw rookie Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), get an impressive launch off the line securing the hole shot into turn 1. Toprak however, ended up down in 5th. Never one to get ruffled, you always felt the outcome of the race was still well within the grasp of Toprak.
Hunting down Bulega lap by lap, Toprak was beginning to ramp up the pressure, up to 2nd, Toprak was putting in blisteringly fast laps, a fastest lap of 1:33.3 saw him slash the gap to the young Italian ahead. Towards the halfway point of the race Toprak had caught and passed Bulega and didn’t slow down. With 7 laps remaining, Toprak held a lead of 3.5s to Bulega.
The final lap saw Toprak with an unassailable lead of 5s, doing a stoppie across the finish line perfectly summing up what we all love about watching Toprak race. A flawless weekend for Toprak and a marker laid down. If there was any further doubt about his achievement you only had to look further down the field for the rest of the BMW’s. Scott Redding (Bonovo Action BMW) 12th, Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) 18th, and Michael Vd Mark (Rokit Motorrad BMW) with a DNF.
Toprak Razgatlioglu Picture courtesy of ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
In his post race interview, Toprak said that he was “relaxed and enjoying the bike“, however, saying that chatter was affecting him in the final two corners and improvements could still be made. Toprak leads the championship with 179 points, 21 points clear of Bulega in 2nd, something not been done by a BMW rider for 12 years. Up next, Donington Park, and a favourite track for Toprak, no doubt a rather scary thought for the rest of the field given his recent dominance.
When pressed about the future of Toprak and whether or not he will stay in WorldSBK, Kenan Sofuoglu hinted at a potential move to MotoGP, telling James Toseland “it will happen sooner, rather than later.”
Francesco Bagnaia wins the Catalan GP ahead of championship leader Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez. Yesterday’s birthday boy Pedro Acosta crashed out when fighting for the lead of the race.
All riders started the race on the medium tyres on the front and rear except for Acosta, M. Marquez and Jack Miller who made the decision to run a medium front tyre and a soft rear tyre. Rear tyre degradation was a large factor in races earlier in the day so the choice for a soft rear was an unexpected one.
Bagnaia had a great start from the front row, but Brad Binder also started well and was making moves around the outside of the track to gain some places. Alex Rins ran wide and accidentally took the long lap loop and fell to the rear of the field.
Acosta and Bagnaia started to break away from the rest of the field but further behind them, Martin made a huge lunge to get past Binder for third place to attempt to catch up with the leaders.
Miller ran deep at turn one on lap two and lost a spot to Raul Fernandez. Acosta kept close to the rear of Bagnaia and looked at making a move at turn ten but wasn’t able to make the move. Acosta continued to stay on the back of Bagnaia’s bike but struggled to find a way past on lap two.
On the third lap, Acosta made the move at turn ten but ran wide so that Bagnaia was able to cut back. At the same corner, Miller crashed.
Martin caught up the leading two riders and passed his countryman Acosta into turn 10 and on lap five, Binder also looked at making the same move on the rookie but was unable to do so. Martin made an impressive move to get past Bagnaia to lead the race.
On lap six, Augusto Fernandez crashed at turn ten.
Again, the front two started to break away from the rest of the field and Acosta set the fastest lap.
Aleix Espargaro, yesterday’s sprint winner, made his way past Binder on lap 11 across the start finish straight and R. Fernandez barged his way past the South African rider at turn one too.
After setting some fast laps, Acosta crashed out the race at turn 10. The champagne was on hold for the rookie rider as he looked to take his first win in MotoGP.
Marquez was able to pass Binder on lap twelve at turn seven as he continued his charge up the field after starting in fourteenth place.
Enea Bastianini received a long lap penalty for taking a short cut at turn two and then he received a double long lap penalty for not taking the initial penalty. He did not take the double long lap penalty and then received a 32 second penalty which was applied at the end of the race.
Martin continued to lead the race, but Bagnaia started to close the gap to the leader. The Italian rider made the move to take the lead on lap 19 at turn 5. Pecco slammed on the brakes to not allow Martin back through. The leading pair had over an eight second lead over the third-place rider Espargaro.
But Espargaro didn’t hold third position for much longer as M. Marquez made the move on him down the start finish straight on the following lap.
The final laps of the race were drama free which allowed Pecco to cross the line in first place ahead of fellow Ducati riders Martin and M. Marquez. After yesterday’s heroics, Aleix Espargaro was only able to manage fourth place ahead of Fabio Di Giannantonio. Raul Fernandez finished the race in sixth place ahead of Alex Marquez, Brad Binder, Fabio Quartararo and Miguel Olivera.
Feature Image Credit : Motorsport Images/Gold and Goose
After qualifying on pole position a day after announcing his retirement, Aleix Espargaro stood on the top step of the podium at the Catalan GP after three riders crashed out of the lead. He was joined on the podium by Marc Marquez who started the race in fourteenth and birthday boy Pedro Acosta.
Pecco Bagnaia had a brilliant start from the middle of the front row and was able to take the lead into turn one. Acosta strongarmed his way into second place and Brad Binder found a gap in the track to get through the first turn in third place. Raul Fernandez also joined in the party by getting past Binder a few corners later. Jack Miller made a move on Miguel Olivera at turn ten.
By the end of the first lap, M. Marquez had made it to eighth place after his poor qualifying effort earlier in the morning.
Acosta attacked Bagnaia on the brakes into turn one on the second lap to take the lead but the Italian pulled off a risky move into turn five to get bast the Spaniard. The battle continued into the following lap where Acosta made the same move at turn one to retake the lead. Fernandez and Binder were also able to get past in the next three corners. The factory Ducati rider lost three places in four corners.
Contact occurred between Acosta and Fernandez and this allowed Binder to get past the GASGAS Tech3 rider but not Fernandez who was now leading a MotoGP race for the first time in his career.
Acosta regained second position after making what was becoming his trademark move at the first corner but the gap to leader Fernandez continued to grow as he set the fastest lap.
On the fifth lap, Acosta went slightly deep in turn four but it didn’t affect his position and Bagnaia received a track limits warning. Race leader Fernandez crashed out of the lead at turn ten after carrying too much speed in the corner. This allowed Acosta to take the race lead.
Binder got past Acosta on the start finish straight to take the lead of the race and started to break away from the chasing pack. Franco Morbidelli received a long lap penalty for irresponsible riding on the sixth lap.
Bagnaia capitalised on lap six to take second place from Acosta after the Spaniard ran wide.
The classic Acosta move into turn one happened again on lap seven as he made the move back through on Bagnaia and M. Marquez made a similar move to get past championship leader Jorge Martin for fifth. Bagnaia made an aggressive move into turn three to take second place back.
Binder crashed out of the lead at turn five which allowed Bagnaia to take the race lead.
Espargaro made his way past Acosta at the start of lap eight and the younger rider did have a look at getting past once more bit couldn’t find a way.
Johann Zarco crashed following contact with Alex Marquez at the back of the field.
There were a few laps of calm before the madness resumed on the final lap where M. Marquez made the move that Acosta had been making on everyone else to take third place.
The third crash from the lead happened when Bagnaia crashed at turn five, allowing Espargaro to take over the front of the race with less than a lap to go.
No other riders went down before the chequered flag waved and after dropping down at the start of the race, Aleix Espargaro was able to clamber his way back through the field to win the race.
Championship leader Jorge Martin finished the sprint race in fourth place ahead of Enea Bastianini, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Jack Miller, Maverick Vinales, Marco Bezzechi and Fabio Quartararo, who rounded out the top ten.
Feature Image Credit: Motorsport Images/Gold and Goose
2024 MotoGP Catalunya, Barcelona – Sprint Race Results
Le Man is a circuit full of history and prestige. Today, it delivered a stunning race as we watch a phenomenal season unfold in front of us.
Jorge Martin will be leaving France with both a medal and a trophy, after claiming a double victory in Le Mans. He has taken a stunning win which showcased both his speed and his intelligence. At the start of the race, he slotted in behind Pecco Bagnaia and stayed close on his tail, letting Bagnaia dictate the pace whilst he calculated and weighed up his options, before making the move on lap 21.
Despite leading for those 21 laps today, Bagnaia ended up settling for 3rd. He was also bested by Marc Marquez on the very final lap of the race, as he recreated yesterday’s amazing result with another 2nd place today – the perfect gift for Gresini’s 1,000th race. However, it was a much trickier race than yesterday’s sprint for Marquez as he fought his way through the grid and found himself involved in numerous battles with the likes of Enea Bastianini, Maverick Vinales and Fabio DiGiannantonio.
Pedro Acosta, the only rookie on the grid this year, has ended his points scoring run with a DNF today. He made an aggressive move when fighting for 3rd place with Aleix Espargaro and DiGiannantonio – three into one at turn 8 was never going to end well!
It was a promising day for home hero Fabio Quartararo – he has been much more on the pace throughout this weekend but sadly crashed out halfway through the race. He and the crowd alike were visibly disappointed but there are plenty of promising signs to take away from today.
Image Credit: MotoGP
AS IT HAPPENED
Compared to yesterday’s sprint race, today’s feature race started under slightly cooler conditions, with the wind picking up. But it could have been worse – We were predicted rain today, but that thankfully didn’t appear.
As the lights went out, Pecco Bagnaia was quick to jump to the front of the grid, having started in 2nd. It was another good start for Marc Marquez, but not quite as impressive as yesterday – today, he gained 5 places in the opening corners, leaping up to 8th.
It was a difficult start for both Marco Bezzecchi and Maverick Vinales. Bezzecchi’s front tire jumped up on the start line and left him vulnerable to the rest of the grid who swallowed him, leaving him in 9th – 4 places down on his starting position. Vinales went deep into turn 1 and was forced to go very wide. He journeyed in to the run off area and rejoined the field in 5th, losing 2 places.
So as the grid finished the first lap, it was Bagnaia leading from Jorge Martin and Aleix Espargaro. Fabio DiGiannantonio was in 4th, with Vinales in 5th. The top ten was rounded out by Pedro Acosta, Enea Bastianini, Marc Marquez, Marco Bezzecchi and home hero Fabio Quartararo respectively.
Bagnaia was eager to try and put some clean air between himself and Martin but the Prima Pramac rider just wouldn’t let the Ducati escape. He was happy to sit in behind the reigning championship and allow him to dictate the peace whilst he calculated the right time to make a move.
On lap 3, we had our first crasher, with Pedro Acosta going down at turn 8. He was fighting with Espargaro and DiGiannantonio for 3rd but Acosta was just too aggressive in to the corner. As he went down, his back wheel was hit by DiGiannantonio who, somehow, impressively kept his bike upright! This is the first race of the season where the rookie has failed to score points.
The following lap, Bezzecchi’s horrible day came to an end as he crashed at turn 6. He was trying to get the cut back on Bastianini, who he was fighting with for 7th place.
A few laps later, Marquez was making moves on Vinales as they fight for 5th. Vinales made his bike as wide as possible as he defends and manages to keep hold of the position. Meanwhile, DiGIannantoni is continuing to fight with Espargaro for 3rd – he is clearly desperate to make a move. He eventually gets past at the La Chapelle corner on lap 8, the following lap.
At this point in the race, the top riders were all battling in pairs, with Bagnaia and Martin fighting for 1st, DiGiannantonio fighting for 3rd as well as Vinales and Marquez battling for 5th. These battles continue until lap 10, and that allows Bastianini, in 7th, to catch up and join the fight. By lap 11, just 2 seconds covered the top 7 riders.
On the same lap, Espargaro goes wide at Garage Vert whilst fighting with Vinales. This sees him gifting 4th place to his Aprilia team mate, only for Marquez to quickly rob him of 5th place as well.
The following lap sees Bastianini making a very late move on Espargaro and pushing him completely off the track. Bastianini is gifted 6th as a result, but he is quickly slapped with a long lap penalty for cutting turn 9 as he recovers from the battle.
At the halfway point of the race, it felt like things were starting to settle down. Martin was still in 2nd but stuck close to the rear tire of Bagnaia in 1st. There was then a 0.9 second gap to DiGiannantonio in 3rd and Vinales in 4th. Marquez was 0.3 seconds behind in 5th, with Bastianini in 6th. Home hero, Fabio Quartararo was having a solid race so far in 7th, just ahead of Espargaro, Miguel Oliveira and Franco Morbidelli in 8th, 9th and 10th respectively.
The calm doesn’t last for long as, on lap 17, it was heartbreak for the French crowd as Quartararo crashes out at turn 9 on lap 17.
Image Credit: MotoGP
Meanwhile, Marquez makes a move on DiGiannantonio for 3rd. DiGiannantonio just refuses to give up the place and gives us a masterclass in brave defending. The continued battle almost gives Vinales the opportunity to take 4th from Marquez. This close battle continues for a few laps and, eventually, Marquez makes a move for 3rd place that sticks. As DiGiannantonio tries to make the cut back, he goes too wide and lets Vinales up to 4th. The Gresini rider is then forced to rejoin in 5th but, unfortunately, the stewards decided that he didn’t lose enough time when rejoining the field and was handed a long lap penalty.
With Marquez now released into some free air, he starts chasing down the leading pair who are 2 seconds down the road. Martin is closer than he has ever been in the race so far and looking like he is ready to set up a move, with just a handful of laps remaining.
At the start of lap 20, Martin makes his first move on Bagnaia but the reigning champion is quick to cut back and regain the place. The following lap is when Martin makes exactly the same move, again at turn 2, but this time makes the move stick and firmly shuts the door on Bagnaia. This fighting means that the gap to Marquez has now been cut in half, and he is just over a second behind them and catching them at a rapid pace.
As the laps continue to tick down, there is nothing between the leading group with Martin now leading from Bagnaia and Marquez.
None of the riders seem comfortable on their soft rear tires but it’s Marquez who seems to be handling these best. He is continuing to close on Bagnaia and on the final lap, with just four corners remaining, he eventually makes his move. With some stunning late breaking, he throws his Gresini up the inside of Bagnaia and manages to make the apex perfectly at turn 7 and 8. This gives Martin some breathing room at the front as Martin sets up defensive moves in the final corners, blocking Bagnaia before he can even think about making a move.
As they cross the line, Martin celebrates a stunning and well-calculated victory with a smash of his bike’s screen. Marquez is equally as thrilled with is performance and celebrates like it was a win.
FULL RESULTS
Image Credit: MotoGP on Twitter
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Martin has been able to extend his championship lead with today’s win – he was leading by 28 points but this has now increased to an impressive 38 points as he continues to enjoy a brilliant start to his season.
Bagnaia returns to 2nd in the standings but now has Marquez hot on his heels, as both riders leapfrog Bastianini.
Sergio Garcia takes a commanding win in Le Mans along with the Moto2 Championship lead ahead of MT Helmets teammate Ai Ogura, completing a one-two for the newest team on the grid. They were joined by Alonso Lopez on the podium to complete the top three. Pole sitter Aron Canet could only manage sixth place.
After starting in third place, Garcia got the best start of the riders on the front row and was leading by the time the pack went into turn one. He started gapping the rest of the field as soon as he got the clear air.
Joe Roberts got through on Canet at La Chappelle to take second place. The chase to catch Garcia was now on.
Lopez snuck past Manuel Gonzales, who also made a good start, to take third place and after falling down the grid Canet set the fastest lap on lap two.
On lap four, both Barry Baltus and David Munoz crashed at turn fourteen and turn six respectively. Both riders were okay following their crashes.
Canet continued to set fast laps and beat the race lap record set by Pedro Acosta on lap five. The Spaniard was catching up to the back of the chasing pack, but may have used up more tyre than he might have intended to.
The gap between Garcia in first and Roberts in second was hovering between 0.8 to 1 second, depending on where on the track the time was taken. Roberts was in a comfortable rhythm behind the Spaniard.
Zonta vd Goorbergh went down at turn eight on lap six causing a yellow flag and Gonzales crashed at the final corner from fifth place.
On the following lap, Canet pulled an impressive move to get past Roberts and Lopez was also able to sneak through past the American too. Lopez ran slightly wide so Roberts could get past him. This battle allowed Garcia to extend his lead over the group by half a second.
A few laps later on lap 10, Lopez pushed Roberts wide and made the move stick for third place.
Fermin Aldeguer had a quiet race up until lap 13 when he and Albert Arenas went side by side for a few corners until the Folladore Speed Up rider made the move stick.
Garcia extended his lead over second place rider to just over two seconds.
Roberts couldn’t capitalise on setting the fastest lap as Ogura passed him three laps later into turn thirteen. The Japanese rider qualified in seventeenth place and was able to carve his way through the field.
Lopez caught up to the back of Canet on lap 20 and got past but on the following lap made a mistake and a group of riders caught up.
On the final lap, Garcia had a 3.2 second lead over Lopez and was almost certain to win the race, providing that he did not make any significant mistakes.
Ogura made his way past Canet for third place and then Roberts was attacking the Spaniard into Garage Vert and was able to make the move stick. Ogura continued his fight up the field by taking second place from Lopez but they were fighting around the middle of the circuit but there was no way through for the Spaniard thanks to Roberts.
Roberts got past Lopez at turn 13 and they touched but Lopez was able to make his way back through.
Sergio Garcia crossed the line with a 3.1s lead over Ai Ogura and Alonso Lopez. Joe Roberts lost the championship lead but finished a respectable fourth ahead of Somkiat Chantra, Aron Canet and Fermin Aldeguer. Tony Arbolino could only manage an eighth place finish ahead of Albert Arenas and Izan Guevara rounded out the top ten.
Feature image credit : Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
