Jorge Martin, riding for Pramac Ducati, secured a crucial victory in the Thailand sprint race, putting a dent in Pecco Bagnaia’s championship lead. This win marked Martin’s fourth consecutive sprint race triumph and his seventh of the season, as last week’s race in Australia was cancelled due to inclement weather. Despite a seemingly mediocre start from pole position, Martin managed to maintain his lead, fending off Luca Marini of VR46 Ducati. His early lead allowed him to dictate the pace of the race to his advantage.
In contrast, Bagnaia, starting from sixth place, struggled to make a rapid start. He faced difficulties on the run to Turn 1, getting squeezed on the outside, and had to contend with the Marquez brothers, Marc and Alex, moving past him. A daring, opportunistic manoeuvre from Martin’s teammate, Johann Zarco, at Turn 7 cost Bagnaia another position, but he successfully defended against Fabio Quartararo’s Yamaha challenge.
Meanwhile, Martin continued to build a considerable lead, with the real battle unfolding for the second position. Luca Marini held the second spot, with Brad Binder emerging as his primary rival. Binder executed a brilliant move at Turn 3, manoeuvring around the outside of Aleix Espargaro before expertly cutting inside to secure the overtake.
However, dealing with Marini proved to be more challenging for Binder. After a daring move on the sixth lap ended with Binder running wide and Marini reclaiming the position, it took an aggressive move on the final corner of the next lap to complete the pass, with Espargaro closing in. Marini remained in close pursuit of Binder over the next laps but had to eventually concede defeat. Binder’s pace remained impressively consistent, closing the gap to Martin to less than a second at the chequered flag.
Marc Marquez showcased a strong performance for Honda, securing a hard-fought fourth place. Espargaro’s error while attempting to pass Marini allowed Marquez to capitalise. The Honda rider managed to pull alongside Espargaro at Turn 3 and pressured him outside on the corner exit. Despite Espargaro’s countermove, Marquez maintained the duel.
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In the dying stages of the sprint, Aleix executed a super move on Marquez to retake fourth however the Ant of Cervera had other plans. As they approached the final corner of the final lao, the same location where Marquez had previously overtaken Marco Bezzecchi, the six-time premier class champion executed a similar move on Espargaro, relegating him to fifth place.
Bagnaia considered an overtaking manoeuvre on Bezzecchi but ultimately decided against it. Despite starting from ninth place, he gained two positions in one go when Alex Marquez faced pressure from Zarco. Yet Bagnaia’s recovery ride was limited. While his strong pace towards the end of the sprint is a positive sign, his lead over Martin has dwindled to 18 points, making the championship fight increasingly intense.
Alex Marquez and Zarco rounded out the top nine, with KTM’s Jack Miller narrowly holding off Quartararo for the tenth position. Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro’s teammate, Maverick Vinales, struggled at Turn 3 during the opening lap, falling to the back. He eventually climbed to 13th before a long-lap penalty for repeated track limit violations dropped him to 18th at the finish.
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LCR Honda’s Takaaki Nakagami, the sole representative of his team due to Alex Rins’ absence following surgery for a hernia in his previously fractured right leg, endured a lonely race, finishing 15 seconds behind the pack after a crash at the final corner. Augusto Fernandez of Tech3 Gas Gas also crashed at the same corner, concluding his race. Last week’s maiden podium finisher, Fabio Di Giannantonio of Gresini Ducati, retired due to an apparent mechanical issue, marking him among the list of retirements.
