MotoGP Indonesian GP: Marc Marquez wins sprint to take points lead as Aprilias hit trouble
· Yahoo Sports
Marc Marquez took a surprise victory in the dramatic Indonesian Grand Prix sprint race, hitting the front of the MotoGP world championship standings for the first time in 2026.
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Jorge Martin only managed fourth on Saturday despite leading most of the race, while fellow Aprilias Raul Fernandez - who started from pole - and Marco Bezzecchi crashed at the first corner.
At Mandalika's Turn 1, it was truly a case of 'four into one doesn't go' but ultimately a racing incident. Knowing they faced a speed deficit to the Aprilias, the Ducatis understood they needed to get their noses ahead at the first corner.
But it wasn't just the factory bike of Marquez who got away well enough to get inside the Aprilias. Fabio Di Giannantonio on the VR46 bike pulled inside the lot of them, grabbing the best position into the opening right-hander.
Next in the line-up under braking was Bezzecchi, with Fernandez on the extreme outside. While there was no contact with the Ducatis, Bezzecchi was off the ideal line and slightly wrong-footed by the two Bologna bikes on his inside. He lost his factory Aprilia all on his own, tagging Fernandez's Trackhouse bike as he went down.
But there was no investigation given the lack of contact or foul play.
Jorge Martin, Aprilia Racing Team
Jorge Martin, Aprilia Racing TeamDi Giannantonio lost time through the first corner despite going into it in the best spot, which put Martin into a surprise early lead aboard an Aprilia that hadn't quite been ticking as well for him as the Fernandez and Bezzecchi bikes had.
The man to emerge from the first turn right behind him was none other than his title rival Marquez, who started the race two points behind Martin and was supposed to be in damage limitation mode at Mandalika.
Read Also: 'Losing 10 or 12 points would not be bad' for Ducati at Indonesian GPMartin appeared to take the race by the scruff of the neck when he set fastest lap on lap four to stretch out a 1.4s lead.
But that wasn't the end of the drama, as the Aprilia appeared to let Marquez through into the lead on lap nine. The most likely explanation for this was a tyre pressure warning on Martin's dashboard.
Once he had settled back into his groove, Martin looked like he might be lining up a late attack on Marquez. But when he ran wide on the penultimate lap, it was clear Marc had the race in the bag.
The mistake cost Martin further points as he dropped behind Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) and Di Giannantonio, who spent most of the race shadowing the Japanese rider.
Alex Marquez finished fifth for Gresini Ducati, with Pedro Acosta coming home sixth after a long lap penalty for exceeding track limits. The latter had run with Ogura and Di Giannantonio until that point.
Last year's winner Fermin Aldeguer was seventh, with Francesco Bagnaia and Fabio Quartararo rounding out the points-scorers.
MotoGP Indonesian GP sprint race results
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