Advantage Martin after Bagnaia blunder
Hopes of a hat-trick of MotoGP titles for Francesco Bagnaia are on thin ice after a costly fall in the Malaysian Sprint and Jorge Martin made him pay.
With Martin dominating the 10-lap affair and Bagnaia crashing out, the championship momentum has shifted significantly to the Pramac rider.
Bagnaia sat second across the first three laps of the Malaysian MotoGP Sprint, but
It was Bagnaia’s fifth fall in a race this year, and possibly the one that could decide the title.
Victory allowed Martin to extend his championship lead to 29 points, meaning Bagnaia must beat the Pramac rider or finish no lower than second if the #89 wins Sunday’s Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix to keep the title fight alive.
“Thanks Malaysia, it has been an amazing weekend so far
It started very well but it was a difficult race. Doing 57s was record pace and Pecco (Bagnaia) and Marc were very close.
“After Pecco fell I controlled the gap, but Marc was catching, so I had to stay very precise and focused.
“It was very easy to make a mistake, so I kept my head down.
“But today my focus is with Valencia and sending prayers to everyone.”
A thrilling fight was in store as Martin took the lead over Bagnaia after the rivals had a tight side by side drag race off the line.
The Pramac championship leader led the first two laps before the decisive moment arrived at the third trip through the tight right-handed Turn 9.
Bagnaia in pursuit of keeping in touch with Martin lost the front and slid off the track.
The damage sustained by the Desmosedici GP24 from the fall was too much for the reigning champion, who had his head in his hands as he was forced to retire.
It released Martin with a 1s advantage over Marc Marquez, who could not get close enough to challenge the #89.
Martin cruised to the chequered flag and knew he was on the edge of glory as he gave it a huge fist pump as he crossed the line.
Enea Bastianini completed the podium ahead of Alex Marquez, while Fabio Quartararo put in an impressive ride to put the uncompetitive Yamaha into the top five for just the second time this year.
Australia’s Jack Miller was eighth, one place behind KTM teammate Brad Binder.
However, the Australian had to get a track limits warning and use all of his experience to keep Pedro Acosta at bay in an exciting battle.
The race started with a minute’s silence for the tragic Valencia floods.
The 2024 Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix will begin at 18.00 AEDT tomorrow evening.
Image: Gold and Goose
2024 Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix Sprint results
| Pos | Rider | Nat | Team |
| 1 | Jorge Martin | SPA | Pramac Ducati (GP24) |
| 2 | Marc Marquez | SPA | Gresini Ducati (GP23) |
| 3 | Enea Bastianini | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP24) |
| 4 | Alex Marquez | SPA | Gresini Ducati (GP23) |
| 5 | Fabio Quartararo | FRA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) |
| 6 | Franco Morbidelli | ITA | Pramac Ducati (GP24) |
| 7 | Brad Binder | RSA | Red Bull KTM (RC16) |
| 8 | Jack Miller | AUS | Red Bull KTM (RC16) |
| 9 | Pedro Acosta | SPA | Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (RC16) |
| 10 | Marco Bezzecchi | ITA | VR46 Ducati (GP23) |
| 11 | Alex Rins | SPA | Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) |
| 12 | Aleix Espargaro | SPA | Aprilia Factory (RS-GP24) |
| 13 | Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 (RC16) |
| 14 | Maverick Viñales | SPA | Aprilia Factory (RS-GP24) |
| 15 | Luca Marini | ITA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) |
| 16 | Joan Mir | SPA | Repsol Honda (RC213V) |
| 17 | Takaaki Nakagami | JPN | LCR Honda (RC213V) |
| 18 | Raul Fernandez | SPA | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP24) |
| 19 | Andrea Iannone | ITA | VR46 Ducati (GP23) |
| 20 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Trackhouse Aprilia (RS-GP24) |
| Johann Zarco | FRA | LCR Honda (RC213V) | |
| Francesco Bagnaia | ITA | Ducati Lenovo (GP24) |
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