Francesco Bagnaia won the MotoGP World Championship Tissot Sprint at the Red Bull Ring in Austria on Saturday. Riding the Michelin-equipped Lenovo Ducati Desmosedici, the two-time winner and defending champion won the 14-lap race by 4.673 seconds to move into a tie for the points standings.
Coming into the race, the points leader was George Martin on the Prima Pramac Racing Ducati.
Aleix Espargaro finished a solitary third in the Aprilia Racing RS-GP.
MotoGP points after the sprint race
Further, from Dorna’s press release:
The game is tied at: Bagnaia wins, Martin recovers to second and Marquez slips by Spielberg.
Glove off, a long lap and a slide out of the race: the Tissot Sprint in Austria puts us on level terms – Bagnaia returns as championship leader.
Saturday, August 17, 2024
Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) scored an impressive victory in the Tissot Spritz at the Motorrad Grand Prix von Osterreich, going gloves with Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) in the early stages before the #89 took the shortcut. Loss of enough time and then given a long lap penalty. A win for the reigning champion would keep him level on points, and Bagnaya is the reigning championship leader for the most Grand Prix wins in 2024. The platform is set to be unveiled on Sunday.
Behind, Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) beat the pole in the early stages before losing some ground and dropped from second as Martin served his long lap. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) avoided that drama, returning to third to complete the sprint podium as Martin recovered to second.
It was a sensational start to the Tissot sprint with a strong start from Bagnaia, with the reigning champion taking the holeshot and Martin attacking for the lead on the opening lap to turn 3. The #1 soon tried to respond at the end of lap 1, cutting off Martin in the final corner to regain the lead as the title rivals went elbow to elbow.
Bagnaia didn’t attack again in the first corner, but at turn 2, Martin was hot and headed wide for his perfect run – taking the shortcut through the chicane. He joined behind Bagnaya, but didn’t spend enough time with the mistake. The #89 was inspected by the FIM MotoGP™ stewards for the event and given a long lap.
He didn’t take it right away but he didn’t wait long, by this time he and Bagnaia had carved out some gap on the chasing Marc Marquez. As Martin headed into the long lap loop, Bagnaia remained in a solid lead ahead of the #93 and Martin emerged ahead of Aleix Espargaro.
Then on lap 10, there was yet another twist. In a certain position and for a strong second, Marc Marquez lost the lead at the entrance to turn 3. # 93 dropped to 23rd out of the points and soon retired to the pitlane, which brought a sad end. His Saturday.
No one could match Bagnaia’s pace in the final lap, with the Italian holding off Martin by four seconds – leveling them on points. Meanwhile, last place in the top three went the way of Aleix Espargaro, who secured a somewhat unexpected third after a drama-free Saturday.
Meanwhile, there was a fierce battle for the final spot in the top five, with a late charge by Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Innea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team), losing one place to Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM). Factory Racing) and Prima Pramac Racing’s Franco Morbidelli will battle behind him.
Bastianini crossed the line in fourth place, Miller completed the fifth after the Australian defended from Morbidelli to the line. Just 0.102s separated the two after the 14-lap dash, with Binder lurking in seventh place.
Marco Bezecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) moved up to P8, with wild card Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) having a very strong day at the office to take the final Sprint point in P9 – ahead of rookie Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3).
That’s it from Super Saturday, but Sunday was incredibly funny for what lies ahead in Spielberg. Come back for more MotoGP™ when the battle lines are drawn at 14:00 (UTC + 2) in Austria!
 took a stunning victory in the Tissot Sprint at the Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich, going gloves off){kind=link}