MotoGP in Spain

Marquez wins sprint, Martin leads the world championship again

Local hero Marc Marquez has ended a long dry spell.(Bild: AFP/APA/Pierre-Philippe MARCOU)

Local hero Marc Marquez has ended a dry spell of several years with a commanding start-finish victory in the MotoGP sprint at Aragon. The eight-time motorcycle world champion from Spain took a commanding victory on Saturday ahead of his Ducati colleague Jorge Martin, who regained the world championship lead, and KTM super talent Pedro Acosta, who completed a Spanish podium. For Marquez, it was his first success in a MotoGP World Championship race in 1,042 days (October 2021 in Misano).

In difficult grip conditions in the Spanish desert at Motorland Aragon, Marquez proved his class, triumphing for the first time ever in a sprint and on a Ducati, leaving the home fans cheering. The 31-year-old Spaniard crossed the finish line after eleven laps on the counter-clockwise left-handed circuit with a comfortable lead of three seconds over Martin, with Acosta almost seven seconds behind.

Jorge Martin(Bild: APA/ERWIN SCHERIAU)

"It feels incredibly good. It's been a great weekend so far. I've controlled everything, but the most important day is tomorrow," said an emotional Marquez, who cheered extensively with his supporters at the podium ceremony. This also makes Marquez the big favorite for the main race on Sunday (2 p.m.).

In qualifying a few hours earlier, Marquez had secured his eighth pole position overall in Aragon with a lead of eight tenths of a second. Acosta took second place on the front row of the grid for the first time. Spielberg winner Bagnaia finished third in qualifying, which was a considerable disadvantage on the dirty track next to the racing line. The Italian only finished ninth in the sprint and is now three points behind Martin in the championship standings.