Marc Marquez has gotten a taste for it and now maybe he can start believing in it again. In the Grand Prix of San Marino and the Riviera di Rimini he went on to take his second consecutive victory (a feat he hadn’t achieved since 2021 and which he completed right here in Misano three years ago), recovering from ninth on the grid thanks to his sensitivity when a few drops of rain started to fall. A sensational strategic error by the world championship leader Jorge Martin then also brought him closer to the fight for the title, as he is now at -53.
Today the sky was grey above the circuit named after Marco Simoncelli, but it never rained all morning. The start of the race was also linear, with poleman Pecco Bagnaia taking the lead ahead of rival Jorge Martin, who on the second lap also attempted an attack on turn 2, risking a crash
Behind them, there was almost immediate contact at Turn 4 between Franco Morbidelli and Pedro Acosta, before both ended up on their wheels shortly thereafter at separate times. Their slides, however, left the two title contenders alone at the front and it looked like a great duel was in the offing.
A few drops of rain, which began to fall during the seventh lap, were enough to change everything. A condition that led Bagnaia and Martin to slow down the pace, allowing the rest of the group to catch up. And it was here that the sensational mistake of “Martinator” occurred, who tried to play a wild card by returning to the pits to get the bike with the rain tires. A gamble that was probably more within the capabilities of those who had to chase than of the world championship leader.
Among those who continued, Marc Marquez’s great sensitivity when it comes to riding with slicks on slippery surfaces came out and the Gresini Racing rider took the lead ahead of Bagnaia. The rain then dropped its intensity almost immediately and at that point it was clear how serious Martin’s mistake had been, forced to come in again to get the bike back on slicks, finding himself lapped and only in 15th position.
When the track started to dry again, Marquez and Bagnaia started to make a big difference, immediately digging a gap on the pursuers, who in the meantime were led by Enea Bastianini. For a few laps the reigning world champion even tried to keep up with the #93. Then, not being 100% physically fit, he probably also thought that 20 points were an important loot, which would have brought him back to just 7 points from Martin, so he was content to be a spectator to Marquez’s encore.
Completing the podium in the end was Bastianini himself, who thus allowed Ducati to become the brand with the most triples in the history of the top class, reaching 18. He also therefore closed the gap in the standings, even if 62 points seems a lot, also in light of the fact that the three preceding him always seem to have something more.
At the foot of the podium is Brad Binder, who in these conditions always manages to bring out his sensitivity with his KTM. Behind him, the top 5 is completed by Marco Bezzecchi, who once again was unable to get a good start from the front row, but at least fought tooth and nail until the end, taking fifth place from the other Ducati of Alex Marquez with a decisive overtaking at Carro a couple of laps from the end.
Fabio Quartararo also had a strong performance, just like in yesterday’s Sprint he managed to stay in the train with the KTMs. And these days it means you’ve been really fast if you’re riding a Yamaha. If yesterday he was behind the RC16s, today he also managed to get the satisfaction of outwitting Jack Miller in the finale.
Despite a sore shoulder, Fabio Di Giannantonio finished ninth with the second Ducati of Pertamina Enduro VR46, preceding the KTM wild card Pol Espargaro. Behind the Spaniard was the first of the Aprilias, which was the one with the Trackhouse colors entrusted to Miguel Oliveira. The two official riders, in fact, both came in to change bikes when Martin did and their race effectively ended there.
Points also went to the three Hondas of Johann Zarco, Takaaki Nakagami and Stefan Bradl, who were also the only survivors. After Joan Mir was forced to miss the entire weekend due to a violent attack of gastroenteritis, today Luca Marini also threw in the towel due to a flu-like condition.
#MotoGP #Marquez #doubles #Misano #Martin #mistake #Bagnaia #takes #advantage
