Jorge Martin Triumphs in Thrilling 2024 San Marino MotoGP Sprint, Extends Championship Lead Over Bagnaia

2024 San Marino MotoGP: Jorge Martin surprises Francesco Bagnaia to win Misano sprint

Points leader increases his championship lead

Jorge Martin shocked Francesco Bagnaia by rising from a fourth-place start to dominate every lap of the MotoGP San Marino Grand Prix sprint, thereby increasing his lead in the championship.

Pramac rider Martin faced a challenging qualifying session, resulting in a frustrating fourth-place start on the grid.

The Spaniard executed a perfect start, taking the lead into the first turn of the initial lap. He withstood early challenges from Bagnaia and ultimately crossed the finish line 1.495 seconds ahead.

Martin's lead in the championship has grown to 26 points.

Franco Morbidelli secured a podium finish in a MotoGP race for the first time since 2021, successfully fending off a last-lap challenge from Enea Bastianini to claim third place on his Pramac Ducati.

Marc Marquez managed to climb up to fifth place despite beginning the race in

The pace shown by Martin and Bagnaia during Friday’s long run indicated that they would be the top contenders in Saturday’s sprint.

Starting from fourth position on the grid, Martin overtook Bagnaia at Turn 1 and managed to build a half-second lead by the end of the first lap.

The distance between them stayed consistent during the initial half of the 13-lap sprint, with Bagnaia maintaining a clear view of his main competitor for the title.

As the race progressed, Martin started to wear down Bagnaia's determination and eventually defeated him by nearly 1.5 seconds, securing his first sprint victory since July's race in Germany.

At the beginning of the race, Morbidelli stayed close to the frontrunners but eventually fell behind by more than a second.

Starting from eighth place in the qualifiers, Enea Bastianini made a strong comeback, challenging Morbidelli for the last position on the podium.

Ducati's factory racer Bastianini made an aggressive move on Morbidelli at Turn 8 during the final lap, but overcooked it, letting the Pramac GP24 slip past and secure the podium finish.

Marc Marquez executed a daring maneuver on Tech3 newcomer Pedro Acosta at Turn 13 during the final lap, seizing fifth place from the GASGAS competitor.

With that maneuver, Marquez secured his position in third place in the standings, though he is tied with Bastianini at 234 points, both trailing Martin by 77 points.

Brad Binder secured the seventh position, finishing ahead of Jack Miller from the factory KTM team, while Fabio Quartararo of Yamaha claimed the ninth spot to earn the last point.

Alex Marquez missed out on scoring points by 0.337 seconds, finishing 10th on the other Gresini Ducati. Meanwhile, no Aprilia bikes made it into the top 10 during the sprint, with Maverick Vinales being the highest-placed RS-GP rider in 11th.

Johann Zarco was the highest-placed Honda rider for LCR, finishing in 13th position.

Following his strong performance in qualifying that secured him a front-row start, Marco Bezzecchi's race quickly turned disastrous as he fell to eighth place right from the first lap.

He would be forced to exit the race on the fifth lap at Turn 2. During the second lap, Fabio Di Giannantonio, his VR46 Ducati team-mate, experienced a fall at Turn 14. Although Di Giannantonio managed to get back on the track, he eventually retired from the race after pitting later on.

Honda's wildcard racer, Stefan Bradl, also withdrew from the race.

Complete results from the 2024 MotoGP San Marino Grand Prix sprint.

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