- April 28, 2024
The Jerez round of the MotoGP championship this weekend saw a massive crowd of Spanish fans, and two exciting races.
On Saturday, the Sprint race saw an unusually large number of crashes, primarily resulting from water seeping through the track surface (it had rained earlier in the day). After Marc Marquez (Ducati) crashed out of the lead, Jorge Martin (Ducati) went on to win the Sprint ahead of Pedro Acosta (GASGAS) and third place Dani Pedrosa (KTM). Pedrosa was elevated to third place when Fabio Quartararo was penalized eight seconds for a tire pressure infraction.
The full GP on Sunday turned out to be one of the best races ever. Marquez again showed great speed and caught the leader Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) after Bagnaia inherited the lead from a crashing Martin.
When Marquez reached the rear wheel of Bagnaia with just a few laps remaining, a classic battle ensued between the two champions. Twice, Marquez passed Bagnaia, who immediately cut under Marquez on the corner exit to re-take the lead. One of those cut-backs saw the two riders bump into each other, but they hardly lost any momentum.
The way Marquez approached the rear wheel of Bagnaia made it appear that he had superior pace near the end of the race, but Bagnaia had a surprise in store when he set the fastest lap in the race with just two laps remaining. He created a comfortable gap over Marquez that he held all the way to the checkered flag. Marco Bezzecchi (Ducati) placed third.
Despite his misfortune on Sunday, Martin continues to hold the championship points lead ahead of the next round at Le Mans.
For full results and points for Saturday’s Sprint race, visit the MotoGP site here.
For full results and points for Sunday’s MotoGP race, visit the MotoGP site here.
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