A disaster for Ducati, a broken streak for Aprilia and a masterclass from Álex Márquez. The Spanish GP had it all.
The sun was shining in Jerez ahead as riders lined up on the grid, a stark contrast to the downpour that brought drama to Saturday’s sprint race. Marc Márquez was on pole and hoping to replicate his sprint win, whilst championship leader Marco Bezzecchi lined up on the second row with the hopes of extending his title lead.
There was a whole host of penalties ready to add an extra layer of difficulty for some riders too. Jorge Martín had a three-place grid penalty for riding slow online during practice. Joan Mir had a Double Long Lap handed to him for ignoring the black and orange flag in FP2. Toprak Razgatlıoğlu had to contend with a Long Lap penalty for his collision with Lorenzo Savadori in the sprint race.
With 25 laps in the Spanish sun, we were in for one mighty race in Jerez.
Race Start
As the lights went out, Marc Márquez was quick off the line and got the holeshot , but Bezzecchi had managed to jump into second and was hot on Márquez’s heels. However, the Aprilia attack was short-lived, as Álex Márquez slipped past Bezzecchi to snatch second place. As the pack made their way across the line to start the second lap, Álex made a lunge past his brother at Turn 6 and took the lead. Marc wasn’t letting him disappear up the road though, and followed in the Gresini’s slipstream ready to pounce if opportunity presented itself. As they made their way into Turn 11, disaster struck as Marc lost the front end of his Ducati and was sent flying out of the race in a huge crash. Thankfully he walked away unharmed, and the hopes of the Spanish crowd now rested with race leader Álex.
The battle for the top six started to heat up on lap five, with Pedro Acosta, Enea Bastianini, Raúl Fernández and Ai Ogura all scrapping. Acosta had suffered some early race damage which was now hampering him, and it wasn’t long before Bastianini and Fernández got past. His battle with Ogura lasted somewhat longer, but the inevitable pass eventually came. Things didn’t get any better for Acosta, as on lap eight Francesco Bagnaia made his own neat move on the KTM to claim 10th. Having come second in Saturday’s sprint, Bagnaia was pushing hard to try and echo the previous day’s successes.
Midfield Battles In The Middle Stint
Whilst Álex Márquez was pulling away from Bezzecchi at the front of the field by lap 10, things were starting to get interesting in the midfield. After finishing third in the sprint, Franco Morbidelli now found himself in 14th and trying to get past Fabio Quartararo. Despite Quartararo’s ongoing concerns with the Yamaha factory bike, the Frenchman managed to put up a decent defence against the VR46 rider and refused to give up his position.
On lap 13, the hearts of Bagnaia fans were shattered, as he pulled off the track with a technical issue. The frustration was clear to see – just as it looked like his luck was finally coming back, this was the last thing Bagnaia needed. A couple of laps later and there was some more midfield action brewing, with Ogura and Bastianini swapping places several times as they made their way around the track. Ogura finally made his move stick as they rounded the final corner, snatching seventh position back from the KTM rider.
Final Push
Back up front, Álex Márquez had extended his lead to a comfortable 2.2 seconds over Bezzecchi by lap 19. There was a constant switch between who was fastest on track, with Álex trying to extend his lead further and Bezzecchi trying to keep up. Third-place man Fabio Di Giannantonio, who had been quietly pursuing the leading pair, was now only one second behind the Aprilia. The promise of a late-stage battle for second would never materialise, as all three front runners started to settle into what looked like it would be the final result.
Further back, Johann Zarco had been having a solid race of his own, sitting fifth and looking to score some decent points. On lap 22, Fernández caught up to the Frenchman and was piling on the pressure, with Trackhouse teammate Ogura hot on their heels. It didn’t take long for them both to get past Zarco – the Honda’s tyres were fading fast, and it left him vulnerable to those behind. This opened the door for the two Trackhouse riders to challenge one another for fifth on the final lap. Ogura was all over the back of Fernández and managed to send his bike up the inside of his teammate in a firm but fair move to claim the fifth spot.
Chequered Flag
As the chequered flag waved, the Spanish crowd erupted as Álex Márquez crossed the line. The Gresini rider’s joy was on full display, soaking in the celebrations and waving to the fans as he took victory on home soil. Marco Bezzecchi managed to hang on to second, with Fabio Di Giannantonio taking the final podium spot. Jorge Martín came home fourth, whilst Ai Ogura kept a firm grip on fifth. Raúl Fernández, Johann Zarco, Enea Bastianini, Fermín Aldeguer and Pedro Acosta rounded out the top 10.
Bezzecchi retains his lead, but with 18 races to go, there’s still plenty of opportunity for things to get shaken up…and we can’t wait to see how this season unfolds.
Feature image courtesy of BK8 Gresini Racing