Marc Marquez wins Indonesian GP sprint to retake championship lead

Marc Marquez won the Indonesian MotoGP Grand Prix sprint and retook the championship lead, moving four points ahead of Jorge Martin before Sunday’s Grand Prix. Fabio Quartararo finished ninth. Marquez’s victory on a Ducati came after Raul Fernandez and Marco Bezzecchi crashed, and Martin’s race was then disrupted. The sprint had looked set to favour Aprilia.

The race was thrown into turmoil at the first braking point, with four riders side by side: the three men from the front row, Fernandez, Bezzecchi and Di Giannantonio, along with Marquez. A slight move by the Spaniard, with Fabio Di Giannantonio on the inside, prompted Marco Bezzecchi to make a sharp handlebar movement. The Italian’s bike then struck that of Raul Fernandez, who had taken pole position and was on the outside. Both Aprilias, one factory bike and the other from the Trackhouse team, were eliminated.

Jorge Martin moved into the lead by slipping inside at the first corner. Marquez followed as Martin appeared to pull away over the laps. But a braking mistake with two laps remaining let Ai Ogura and Fabio Di Giannantonio through, costing Martin valuable championship points. He eventually finished fourth after two difficult moments in the race. Alex Marquez completed the top five ahead of Pedro Acosta, who lost ground after being given a long lap for exceeding track limits. Quartararo took the sprint’s final point.