Podcast: Could Hungary MotoGP start disaster have been avoided?

The 2026 MotoGP Hungarian Grand Prix was won by Marc Marquez, but it was the collision at the start of the race that stole the headlines.

Marc Marquez scored his first win of the 2026 season last Sunday at Balaton Park, just weeks after surgery on his right shoulder to correct an issue affecting his radial nerve.

The reigning world champion hadn’t stood on the top step of a grand prix podium since Misano last year, but took a 100th career victory across all classes from pole, having also won the sprint 24 hours earlier.

He had to fight for it, battling hard with KTM’s Pedro Acosta in a thrilling duel.

The win has ignited Marquez’s title hopes, with the Spaniard just 72 points back after Hungary having been nearly 100 down coming into the weekend.

That door has been slightly opened by the calamitous incident at the start of the Balaton Park race that saw Jorge Martin crash into Aprilia team-mate Marco Bezzecchi.

The collision also scooped up Trackhouse Aprilia’s Raul Fernandez, Gresini’s Fermin Aldeguer and VR46’s Fabio Di Giannantonio.

Martin has been handed with a double long lap penalty by the stewards, while Aprilia CEO Massimo Rivola laid the blame at the Spaniard’s door.

It follows a discussion with all Aprilia riders on rules of engagement a week ago at Mugello following an incident between Martin and Fernandez at Barcelona.

Aprilia will have to deal with the internal fallout from this, not least as the pressure of fighting for a MotoGP title builds.

While Rivola felt Martin had to be more cautious approaching Turn 1, it has raised discussions about the safety of starts in MotoGP, not least in the wake of the Barcelona incident with Johann Zarco.

Some riders have heightened calls to ban ride height devices, while others believe the low-grip resurfaced asphalt at Turn 1 played a role in the Martin crash.

Dre Harrison is joined by Lewis Duncan and Peter McLaren to discuss the events of the Hungarian Grand Prix and the headline Aprilia clash on the Crash MotoGP Podcast.

They also assess Marquez’s title prospects after his return to winning ways, as well as discussing the future of the Hungarian GP.