Bagnaia back in charge after stunning ride and Martin crash

Francesco Bagnaia is back in the lead of the thrilling MotoGP title race heading to Australia after a champion’s ride from 13th to first and Jorge Martin crashed at Indonesia.

With Bagnaia starting from 13th and Martin flying to first off the line, it appeared the Pramac Ducati rider would hold a 16-point lead at Phillip Island.

But the equation was flipped upside down when Martin crashed on his own from the lead and the #1 Ducati charged to the top.

Thanks to the stunning performance, Bagnaia now enjoys an 18-point lead over Martin ahead of the Australian Grand Prix.

He was the first rider to win a dry Grand Prix from outside the front four rows since Marco Melandri’s 2006 Turkish victory from 14th. 

Just 0.4s covered the top three as Bagnaia led Maverick Vinales and Fabio Quartararo across the line.

Australia’s Jack Miller started 10th and got to as high as fourth, but dropped to seventh by the end.

“I think we were deserving a race like this,” Bagnaia said.

“I did the maximum I could and then when I saw Martin go off I said to myself ‘take care of the tyres and lets see’.

“That was the correct theory because in the last 10 laps I had very good pace.

“I am very, very happy.”

Martin got a start for the ages, flying from sixth on the second row into the lead before turn one.

No one could compete with the staggering start from the Pramac Ducati rocket ship with Vinales slotting into second ahead of Quartararo with pole man Luca Marini in fourth.

Aleix Espargaro paid the price for running wide and was swallowed up by the pack, while Bagnaia made some important early moves to charge from 13th to sixth on the opening lap.

The #1 Ducati was looking racey, battling with Brad Binder as Miller was not far behind in eighth.

The reigning champion was lucky to avoid some carnage right in front of him as Binder and Marini tangled.

The South African was on the inside but made heavy contact with Marini, who was sent to the ground as the KTM carried on and eventually received a long lap penalty.

Another rider to fall was Pol Espagaro who did it all on his own.

There was no stopping Bagnaia as he snatched third from Quartararo. The factory Yamaha soon slipped to sixth moments later after the Frenchman made a costly mistake.

Meanwhile Martin was doing everything he needed, building his advantage to Vinales to close to 2s.

On lap eight Marc Marquez’s tough weekend ended with a second racing crash in as many days, this occasion taking place at turn 13.

Miller was on the move and took sixth from Olivera after a brief battle.

The #88 was soon plummeting down the order as a result of contact with Binder, who received a second long lap penalty for another aggressive move.

Although Oliveira stayed on the bike, he dropped out of the points picture after touring the gravel.

Augusto Fernandez and Joan Mir both fell in quick succession as the heat started to take its toll

All was going swimmingly for Martin, who enjoyed a 3s lead until the race-changing moment on lap 13.

The Pramac Ducati rider, who had a soft front tyre, dumped it all by himself at turn 11 and the dejected rider’s hands on head told the story.

Suddenly Bagnaia could not believe his luck and he was just a second behind Vinales in the battle for the lead.

To make matters worse for Pramac Ducati, Martin’s teammate Johann Zarco did the exact same thing.

Meanwhile Miller was on the charge, getting past Espargaro to get fourth as the Aprilia struggled on the softer rear tyre and slumped outside the top five.

As riders came within 10 laps of the chequered flag, Bagnaia was closing in on Vinales, with the gap quickly coming down to half a second.

By lap 20 Bagnaia chose his moment to pounce, diving down the inside of Vinales at the heavy braking right hander and the Aprilia rider had no response.

Vinales soon had to turn his attention to former teammate Quartararo as the Yamaha came into the picture.

Miller’s time in the top four did not last long after both Fabio Di Gianntonio, Binder and Bezzecchi got by.

As the chequered flag neared, Vinales and Quartararo started to chip away at Bagnaia’s lead, setting up a tense finale with 0.7s covering the leading trio.

But the leader was untroubled to the chequered as he had something in reserve and the Aprilia and Yamaha were embroiled in their own scrap for second.

Quartararo had a look but could not make a move on Vinales as 0.4s covered the leading trio.

Bagnaia’s ride for the ages means he enjoys a 18-point lead heading to next weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.

Photo by Gold and Goose / LAT Images

2023 MotoGP World Championship

1 Francesco Bagnaia 346 points

2 Jorge Martin -18

3 Marco Bezzecchi -63

2023 Indonesian Grand Prix results

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