Marc Márquez puts on a show at Aragón as title fight heats up
- Christopher Conway
- 7 hours ago
- 4 min read
Written by Christopher Conway
MotoGP returned to action at Aragón with Marc Márquez putting together a dominant weekend to take victory in Sunday's Grand Prix. After winning Saturday's Sprint, Márquez backed it up with another impressive performance in the main race, fighting through an early challenge from Marco Bezzecchi before pulling clear in the closing stages.
Sprint Report
Marc Márquez wasted no time getting himself back to the top step at Aragón, taking a comfortable Sprint victory after starting from second on the grid.
Marco Bezzecchi had taken pole earlier in the day, but Márquez made his move immediately off the line, getting down the inside at Turn 1 to take the lead. His brother Álex followed him through, pushing Bezzecchi down to third.
From there, Marc began to pull away, with Álex settling into second and Bezzecchi keeping the pressure on behind. The Aprilia rider was unable to find a way past, leaving the two Márquez brothers to control the race at the front.
Pedro Acosta was also making progress in the opening laps, moving into the fight further down the order. The KTM rider eventually settled into fourth, with Jorge Martín following closely behind after starting further down the field.
Martín spent the early stages trying to work his way through the pack, eventually getting ahead of some of his rivals but unable to challenge for the podium. Acosta managed to hold on to fourth, giving KTM another strong Sprint result.
There was drama elsewhere on the grid, with Fabio Di Giannantonio and Luca Marini both crashing out of the Sprint. Fabio Quartararo also suffered a difficult afternoon, retiring his Yamaha after smoke began coming from the bike.
Francesco Bagnaia had another Sprint to forget, finishing outside the points in 11th, while Toprak Razgatlıoğlu crossed the line in 13th.
At the front, however, there was little drama for Márquez. The Ducati rider controlled the race from the opening lap and eventually crossed the line more than a second clear of Álex, taking his first Sprint victory at Aragón.
Álex completed another Márquez one-two, while Bezzecchi held on to third to give Aprilia a place on the podium.
With the Sprint done, attention now turns to Sunday's Grand Prix, where Bezzecchi will once again start from pole alongside the two Márquez brothers. If Saturday is anything to go by, we could be in for another interesting battle at MotorLand Aragón.
Race Report
Sunday's Grand Prix started with Márquez making another strong launch from the front row, taking the lead into Turn 1. Bezzecchi was not prepared to let him get away, however, fighting back immediately to reclaim first place.
Márquez then dropped behind Jorge Martín before responding later in the lap with a huge divebomb on the championship contender. The move saw Marc take the position back, while Martín dropped to fourth behind Pedro Acosta at the end of the opening lap.
Bezzecchi settled into the lead and looked comfortable at the front during the early stages, while Márquez remained within striking distance.
There was an interesting moment for Márquez through Turn 2, with his ride-height device lowering and the bike sparking as he went through the corner. Despite the moment, he stayed with Bezzecchi and continued the fight at the front.
By Lap 5, Márquez was beginning to close in on Bezzecchi, setting the stage for another battle between the pair.
The race took another turn on Lap 6 when Francesco Bagnaia crashed out, while the battle at the front began to intensify. Márquez and Bezzecchi went wheel-to-wheel, allowing Acosta to close in and move into second as the three riders became involved in a thrilling fight for the lead.
The action continued into Lap 7 when Franco Morbidelli crashed out, but the battle at the front remained the main focus.
Acosta refused to let Márquez break away as the race progressed, staying close enough to attack under braking and putting pressure on the Ducati rider. By Lap 13, however, Márquez responded in style, setting the fastest lap of the race and continuing to stretch the pace at the front.
Marc repeated the feat again on Lap 15, and by Laps 16 and 17, he was finally beginning to pull away from the chasing pack.
There was still time for one final scare, as Márquez had a moment on Lap 17, but he managed to keep the bike upright and maintain his lead.
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu then crashed with just two laps remaining, adding another retirement to an already dramatic race.
At the start of the final two laps, the order was Márquez, Acosta, Bezzecchi, Álex Márquez, Jorge Martín and Fermín Aldeguer.
There was to be no stopping Márquez from there. He crossed the line to complete a brilliant weekend at Aragón, adding the Grand Prix win to his Sprint victory and putting himself back into second place in the championship.
Acosta held on for second, with Bezzecchi completing the podium after another impressive weekend for Aprilia. Álex Márquez finished fourth, while Martín rounded out the top five.
After a hugely impressive weekend at Aragón, Márquez leaves MotorLand with a Sprint win, a Grand Prix victory and a major boost to his championship campaign. With the title fight tightening up, the Ducati rider has put himself firmly back into contention.
Be sure to tune in for the next round of the championship as MotoGP heads to Misano for the San Marino Grand Prix on September 13th at 13:00 BST.
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