Marc Marquez (1st) after the Bezzecchi clash: “I defended myself as best I could”

Ahead of the floodlit sprint race in Lusail, a fierce battle with the Aprilia riders was on the cards. Marc Marquez arrived in Qatar with a 44-point lead over Jorge Martin and a 67-point lead over Marco Bezzecchi. If the Ducati factory rider scored at least five points more than Martin in the sprint, he would have his first chance to clinch the title on Sunday. In qualifying, Marquez secured second on the grid alongside Bezzecchi, who claimed his sixth pole of the season. Martin, still weakened two weeks after breaking his wrist at Phillip Island, started from 11th on the grid.

Red flags following Aldeguer’s collision

Bezzecchi dominated the start. The Aprilia rider got away perfectly from the grid and cut off Marquez’s line at Turn 1. As a result, Marquez didn’t accelerate optimally out of the first corner, and his team-mate Francesco Bagnaia briefly snatched second place, only for Marquez to promptly reclaim the position ahead of the Italian. Bezzecchi made the most of these early battles and managed to build up a lead of a few bike lengths.

On lap 2 came the shock moment: Fermin Aldeguer entered the final corner far too fast and took out Francesco Bagnaia, who rolled several times in the gravel trap – red flags. Bagnaia was taken away by ambulance whilst conscious; Aldeguer received a double long-lap penalty.

Race highlight: Marquez versus Bezzecchi

At the restart – a ten-lap race with the same starting grid – Marquez turned the tables, getting off to a much better start than Bezzecchi and taking the lead from Turn 2. Bezzecchi dived inside at Turn 15 on lap 2, but was forced to take a wide line – Marquez countered immediately.

Halfway through the race, the duel escalated. Márquez braked a little too late going into Turn 1 and took a wider line, whilst Bezzecchi sensed the gap on the inside. As the world champion returned to the ideal line, contact ensued. Bezzecchi crashed, whilst Marquez stayed on his bike. The stewards ruled the incident a racing accident; Aprilia CEO Massimo Rivola acknowledged this with sarcastic applause. Marquez: “I was fully focused and defended myself as best I could.”

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Jorge Martin, riding furiously, seized the moment and briefly took the lead. “When I made contact in Turn 1, my airbag deployed,” explained Marquez. “That’s why Jorge attacked me – because it takes a while for everything to return to normal.” The 33-year-old regained the lead and won by just under a second ahead of Fabio Di Giannantonio, who had overtaken Martin on the final lap. “When I had a half-second gap, I tried to control the race.” His first thoughts after the race were for his team-mate: “We hope Pecco is all right, because it was a nasty crash.”

First chance to seal the title on Sunday

With his 25th sprint victory, Marquez extended his own record. He now leads the World Championship on 411 points, 49 points ahead of Martin. As only Portimão and Valencia remain on the calendar, each worth 37 points, he needs a 74-point lead after the Qatar GP. If Marquez wins on Sunday and Martin fails to score any points, the 33-year-old will be crowned MotoGP World Champion for the eighth time. Bezzecchi, trailing by 79 points, has only a theoretical chance – should Marquez finish at least second on Sunday, even that will be gone.