After an early mistake in the early stages of the Austrian Grand Prix Sprint Race Francesco Bagnaia lost P1 to Jorge Martin. Martin however, made a mistake running wide into turn two whihc allow Bagnaia to make the pass and pull away from the field. The win moves Bagnaia to level point in the championship race with both Bagnaia and Martin holding 250 points. Tomorrow’s Grand Prix will determine if a new championship leader will take the reigns.
After the race Bagnaia said, “I enjoyed a lot the battle today as, while doing so, I managed to lap in 1:28.7 which was two tenths faster than last year’s pole position time. This is incredible: I knew it was important to lead from the start and Jorge (Martín) tried everything to stay ahead. I tried to overtake him but then he ended up wide. As soon as it happened, I checked the gap and I saw that he was 0.3secs behind, meaning he hadn’t lost one second, so I was sure he would likely end up receiving the long-lap penalty. Then it was all about managing the gap at the front. All in all, it was a fantastic win and I now have plenty of data for tomorrow’s full race. It still won’t be easy, but right now I’m very satisfied”.
Jorge Martin finishes a Hard Fought P2 in the Sprint
Despite a good start Martin had to fight to keep his podium slot. Marc Marquez put the pressure on Martin until Marquez crashed out of the race which allowed martin to regain P2 and keep the championship race manageable. He said, “Today, it was harder than usual to start because of my hand. Even though I was strong and competitive, I was able to fight for the victory. In the end, I’m a bit disappointed with the result, but tomorrow I will have another chance in the race. I received a penalty, which is fair because it is what’s written in the regulations, even though it might be reviewed because I lost time, gave up the position, and then had to take the long lap. Anyway, I did my best, and now it’s time to rest a bit before I start thinking about the race”.
Aleix Espargaro rounded out the top 3 finishing third for Aprilia Racing.
Full Sprint Race Results