BAGNAIA BLITZES SPRINT, TIES POINTS, MILLER BACK IN TOP FIVE
The fight for the 2024 MotoGP world title is a dead heat after Francesco Bagnaia dominated the Spielberg Sprint as Australia’s Jack Miller made a welcome return to the top five.
After a wild opening lap with Jorge Martin, Bagnaia eventually cruised to a communing 3s win ahead of his Pramac title rival, while Miller came home fifth, his best result since Portugal, nine races ago.
Behind Bagnaia there was drama as a long lap penalty appeared to have cost Jorge Martin second place to Marc Marquez.
However, Marquez threw that away by crashing at the top of the hill, while his brother and Gresini teammate Alex Marquez also fell at the chicane.
It also promoted a delighted Aleix Espargaro to the podium.
Despite a slow start, Miller had a strong race, securing fifth at the start, which became fourth when the #93 fell.
Unfortunately the Aussie could not stop Bastianini from snatching fourth with two laps to go.
However, the fifth place arrives at an important time with Miller’s future up in the air after being dumped from KTM.
But the big news is that Bagnaia’s win means the reigning champion and Martin are currently tied on 250 points each.
The next chapter of the thrilling title race will be the 2024 Austrian Motorcycle Grand Prix is at 22.00 AEST Sunday night.
Image: Gold and Goose
Austrian Motorcycle Grand Prix Sprint results
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team |
| 1 | Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP24) |
| 2 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP24) |
| 3 | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Factory (RS-GP24) |
| 4 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP24) |
| 5 | Jack Miller | AUS | Red Bull KTM (RC16) |
| 6 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Pramac Ducati (GP24) |
| 7 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) |
| 8 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | VR46 Ducati (GP23) |
| 9 | Pol Espargaro | SPA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) |
| 10 | Pedro Acosta | SPA | Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (RC16) |
| 11 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Aprilia Factory (RS-GP24) |
| 12 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) |
| 13 | Miguel Oliveira | POR | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP24) |
| 14 | Raul Fernandez | SPA | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP24) |
| 15 | Johann Zarco | FRA | LCR Honda (RC213V) |
| 16 | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda (RC213V) |
| 17 | Luca Marini | ITA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) |
| 18 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Factory (RS-GP24) |
| 19 | Joan Mir | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) |
| 20 | Alex Marquez | SPA | Gresini Ducati (GP23) |
| Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (RC16) | |
| Alex Rins | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) | |
| Marc Marquez | SPA | Gresini Ducati (GP23) | |
| Stefan Bradl | GER | HRC Test Team (RC213V) |
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