MotoGP-Sprint Silverstone 2026: Jorge Martin wins, Marc Marquez ninth

– The Aprilia festival continued at the British Grand Prix in Silverstone. Jorge Martin won the sprint confidently ahead of Ai Ogura (Trackhouse) and Marco Bezzecchi. Marc Marquez (Ducati) had major problems with rear tire grip and collected one world championship point.

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For the short race over 10 laps, everyone in the leading group chose the soft rear tire. At the start, Martin took the lead from pole position ahead of Ogura. Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46-Ducati) improved to third place.

For local hero Cal Crutchlow (LCR-Honda), the sprint lasted only four corners as he crashed at The Loop. However, the Brit did not give up immediately and continued at the back of the field. In lap 4, he parked his Honda in the pits.

At the end of the first lap, substitute rider Iker Lecuona (Gresini-Ducati) also crashed at Vale. The race stewards investigated whether Franco Morbidelli (VR46-Ducati) had caused Lecuona to fall, but there was no penalty.

Martin led after the first lap, while Ogura came under pressure from Di Giannantonio. Marc Marquez (Ducati) followed in fourth. Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse-Aprilia) did not have a good sprint.

In the early phase, the Spaniard had fallen back from second starting position to sixth and crashed in the fourth lap at The Loop. Flawlessly, Martin dictated the pace at the front of the field.

At race halfway, the former world champion’s lead was about seven tenths of a second over the duo Ogura and Di Giannantonio. Behind them, there was a three-way battle between the Marquez brothers and Bezzecchi.

In the fifth lap, Bezzecchi overtook Marc Marquez on the approach to Maggotts. One lap later, Marc Marquez also lost position to Alex Marquez (Gresini-Ducati) and was only sixth.

At the front, Ogura increased the pressure on Martin at race halfway. Di Giannantonio lost contact and was quickly caught by Bezzecchi. Four laps before the end of the race, he overtook in Copse and was the new third.

Sprint wins: Martin catches up with Marc Marquez again

Thus, the podium places were settled. Martin controlled the lead and won one and a half seconds ahead of Ogura. It was his 19th sprint win, equaling Marc Marquez’s record in this statistic again.

After Austin and Le Mans, it was Martin’s third sprint win this season. “We worked a lot during the summer break, and now all that work has finally paid off,” Martin says about his success.

“I am really, really happy. It was a difficult race today. I tried to be as fast as possible while managing everything at the same time. In the end, I had no rear tire left.”

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“I thought Ai would catch me, but in the end I was able to control the gap. Another sprint win is always great, and even more so after the summer break.”

In the world championship, Martin increased his lead over Ogura to 17 points (in the world championship standings). “The start was good, but it was still a difficult race,” says the Japanese rider. “How much the rear tire deteriorated was incredible.”

“I really wasn’t sure if I could even finish the race. But we still managed to get second place. There is still a lot of work ahead for tomorrow, so we keep working.”

Tears of joy for Bezzecchi over third place

Bezzecchi completed the Aprilia triple victory as third. After crossing the finish line, tears flowed from him. “It was a difficult time, as you can probably imagine,” says the Italian.

“That’s why it was very important to come back and have fun on the motorcycle again. We did a very good job. It’s difficult for me to say exactly what I feel right now.”

“But I just want to say a huge thank you to the entire team and to all the people who stood by me and worked hard with me. I am very happy.”

Marc Marquez still saves a world championship point

In the penultimate lap, Di Giannantonio lost fourth place to Alex Marquez. Marc Marquez also went backwards. In the penultimate lap, he was first overtaken by Pedro Acosta (KTM) and then by Joan Mir (Honda).

Thus, Acosta finished sixth and Mir seventh. Afterwards, Franco Morbidelli (VR46-Ducati) also passed Marc Marquez in the last lap, leaving the reigning world champion ninth with only one world championship point.

It was close, because in the last corner Diogo Moreira (LCR-Honda), Brad Binder (KTM), and Luca Marini (Honda) almost overtook Marc Marquez (for the result).

The Grand Prix over 20 laps starts on Sunday at 14:00 CEST (to the starting grid).

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