Marc Marquez eases to Aragon MotoGP sprint win
Marc Marquez led a Ducati 1-2 in the sprint at the Aragon Grand Prix
Reigning world champion Marc Marquez eased to victory in the MotoGP Aragon Grand Prix sprint, after passing polesitter Marco Bezzecchi on the opening lap.
Having been beaten to pole for the first time at Aragon as a Ducati rider, Marc Marquez made amends in the 11-lap sprint on Saturday afternoon.
Passing Aprilia’s polesitter Marco Bezzecchi at the start, Marquez led every lap of the sprint to score his first Saturday victory since the German Grand Prix.
It’s a result that has seen him shrink his championship deficit to Jorge Martin to 33 points and move into third in the standings.
Alex Marquez finished second on the Gresini Ducati to complete a 1-2 for the Italian manufacturer, as Bezzecchi slid to third.
Jorge Martin was a distant fifth, with his championship lead reduced to 29 points over Aprilia team-mate Bezzecchi.
The sweltering conditions led to a split in tyre strategy, as the Aprilias of Bezzecchi and Martin gambled on the soft rear, while the Marquez brothers went with the medium rear.
Bezzecchi got off the line well at the start and headed into the braking zone of Turn 1 leading.
But Marc Marquez scythed his way through with a block pass on the inside of the first corner, which allowed Alex Marquez to move into second.
The top three quickly pulled away from the chasing pack, though Marc Marquez had the measure of the two riders behind him.
His lead was up to 0.7s by the start of the fourth lap, with Marquez taking the chequered flag 1.140s clear of his younger brother Alex Marquez.
That marks his 20th sprint victory, making him the most successful rider in the half-distance Saturday races since the format was introduced in 2023.
Bezzecchi was unable to gain anything from his soft tyre choice, with the Italian almost a second down on Alex Marquez at the chequered flag.
Pedro Acosta took fourth from Martin on lap five when the Aprilia rider ran wide at the final corner.
Martin was unable to claw that place back, dropping 3.5s down on KTM’s Acosta.
Fermin Aldeguer fought through to sixth on the Gresini Ducati in his first race back since suffering an injury at the Dutch Grand Prix in June.
He headed LCR Honda’s Diogo Moreira, with Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse) eighth and Johann Zarco a heroic ninth on the sister LCR Honda on his return from injury.
Pecco Bagnaia faded out of the points in 11th, while Fabio Di Giannantonio’s title hopes took a knock after a crash on the second lap.
He is now 46 points down on Martin in fifth, while Ai Ogura’s absence means he is now 42 points adrift in the standings.
Honda’s Luca Marini crashed on the opening lap, while Fabio Quartararo dropped out on the fifth tour when his Yamaha expired on the back straight.
