Michael Laverty reckons Marc Marquez has won the Balaton Park Sprint Race at the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix after holding off Pedro Acosta in a tense start.
Marquez He turned his second pole position into his third Sprint Race win of the year on Saturday. Acosta By just 0.053 seconds at the end of Q2. But with a small margin separating them during qualifying, Acosta had no response in the sprint.
KTM rider Acosta crossed the finish line 1.548 behind Ducati’s Ace Marquez, who is now the favorite to win Sunday’s race. Hungarian GP Going into the weekend, the odds are slimming down. Marquez is yet to win a Grand Prix this season, with a best finish of P4.
Marc Marquez dominates the Balaton Park Sprint 💪 But who was the rider of the race?
Michael Laverty thinks Marc Marquez surprised Pedro Acosta with early pace at the Balaton Park sprint.
Acosta was so fast that he was almost upset to qualify. Marquez scores pole for the Hungarian GP. He opened the door in Q2 after a late mistake from his Spanish compatriot. Marquez won’t return the favor in the Sprint, winning without a challenger beyond Lap 1.
Read more: Marc Marquez won the Balaton Park Sprint, dominating Pedro Acosta
A tidy start allowed Marquez Acosta to take the lead in turn 1, and the KTM star was unable to pass on the first lap despite braking several times. Márquez then put Acosta to the sword and immediately left the KTM rider running in his own race in P2.
Laverty I don’t think Acosta planned for Márquez to push the Ducati GP26 hard at the Balaton Park Sprint, because that’s not how the reigning MotoGP champion ran this year. However, Marquez has upped the ante, and Acosta must now adapt on Sunday.
“He can step it up, shift into another gear,” Laverty said. TNT Sports 2 (06/05, 14:37). “I don’t think there’s any doubt that Pedro’s chances have been lowered (and) raised.”
But the way he started on lap 1 we haven’t seen him on a GP26 Ducati in a while. It normally takes a few rounds. But he was ready to step out of the lights, and (shows Acosta) a clean pair of heels. Amazing.
I think (Acosta) was waiting for him to settle into a more comfortable rhythm in the early rounds, but Mark dropped the hammer. And since we expected Mark to take a round or two to dispel the rumors – he didn’t today, he went down like a cursed cat.
“So Pedro was caught napping a bit. But he knows what to do tomorrow for 26 (laps). If the lights go out, he’ll be ready to go out swinging.”
Marquez only returned from injury at last week’s Italian Grand Prix, so he played down his chances ahead of the Hungarian GP weekend. as well as, With 10 laps to go to Mugello, Marquez “give upBecause he didn’t feel his shoulder was ready because of the muscle he lost when he was injured.
But Balaton Park is a parking lot compared to the majestic and challenging Mugello nestled in the Tuscan hills. Therefore, after suffering from a nerve problem at the beginning of this season, Marquez’s lack of muscle in the shoulder is not an obstacle in the Hungarian GP as in Italy.
Pulling away from Acosta as soon as he saw the opportunity allowed Marquez to manipulate Michael’s tires as he wished rather than play the first part of the race cautiously. So, there was plenty of incentive for Marquez to be aggressive early on for a change.
Receive competition news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
