Bagnaia wins Barcelona Tissot Sprint as Bastianini locks horns with Martin
Words and images courtesy MotoGP
It was pretty much a must-win Tissot Sprint for Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) at the Motul Solidarity Grand Prix of Barcelona…So, win it he did!
But it was also nearing a must-not-bin Sprint for Championship leader Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing). He passed his test too.
After the elbows came out early on, Bagnaia escaped in the lead and kept it cool. Martin threw down with Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) behind. The ‘Beast’ won that duel with a final lap lunge to force Martin to settle for third.
It’s now 19 points between Martin and Bagnaia as #TheRematch rolls into the final day of the season.
Revs up, lights out – it was a tight run into the first corner.
It looked like Bagnaia was set for the holeshot before Martin made up the metres to move alongside.
Then, Bastianini sailed past both. But Bagnaia attacked back in the melee, grabbing the lead again round Turn 3.
There was drama at the same corner on Lap 1 as Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) and Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) then tangled.
Both headed wide and both stayed upright!
Marquez was able to collect it. However, Acosta’s front fairing got ripped off, leading the rookie to limp back to pitlane, out of the action.
Bagnaia led Bastianini led Martin.
By the end of Lap 2, the reigning Champion was starting to build a small gap as the #89 lined up Bastianini. He got the job done into Turn 1.
It was close but perfectly judged. He stayed ahead until the next time around. That was when Bastianini did an even more brutal carbon copy to take back second.
The two were then locked together for another lap before Martin hit back. He found a few more millimetres to really push both to the edge.
With that, the momentum behind for Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing) and Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) got them involved.
Martin was just clear and Bastianini shouldered his way back through to third. As you were.
At the front, Bagnaia pounded on.
Martin was hovering just over a second away but the gap was going up tenth by tenth. Those on his tail were not being left behind either.
Bastianini had faded briefly but got back within half a second. Both Alex Marquez and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) were now on the scene as Morbidelli started to get dropped.
By the penultimate lap it was Bagnaia holding a small gap ahead of that quartet.
Then Alex Marquez was wide at Turn 10 and Espargaro got through. This divided the four into a duel for fourth and a decisive one ahead: the points leader vs his title rival’s teammate for second.
Down the main straight for the final time, Bastianini wasn’t quite close enough.
But he was able to close in and by Turn 5, the red machine darted out from behind the Championship leader and went for it. Breath held, the move was aggressive but clean enough. Crucially, it got the job done. Now Martin had to decide whether to try and reply or take the third place he’d got pretty secure. He looked tempted but Bastianini offered no way back through.
Bagnaia crossed the line just less than a second clear.
This ensured the Championship fight rolls on to the final showdown of the season. He stayed near perfect under pressure.
Bastianini got his elbows out to stake a further claim on that third overall. He also proved his own point.
Martin put in the exact performance needed to ensure he remains in a comfortable position heading into the Grand Prix. He is now 19 points clear.
Can he wrap it up on Sunday?
The duel behind saw Espargaro hold onto fourth, with Alex Marquez completing the top five. Morbidelli, meanwhile, had to fend off Marc Marquez after the #93’s earlier tangle with Acosta. Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) were incredibly close there too. Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) just lost out in the tussle and was denied the final Sprint point, taking tenth.
And so the tension rolls on to Sunday. The gap goes back down to 19 points, and Barcelona holds its breath.
Moto2
A 1:42.003 handed Aron Canet (Fantic Racing) a final race of the season pole position at the Solidarity GP of Barcelona.
He did so by a decent margin too. A tenth and a half was the Spaniard’s advantage over second place Manuel Gonzalez (Gresini Moto2).
A late flyer from Zonta van den Goorbergh (RW-Idrofoglia Racing GP) saw the Dutch star grab a front-row start in third.
Jake Dixon (CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team) was the rider to narrowly miss out on a top three in Q2.
Van den Goorbergh beat the Brit’s time by a slender 0.020s. That means it’s P4 for Dixon on the grid ahead of his final race with Aspar.
Joining the #96 on Row 2 are World Champion Ai Ogura (MT Helmets – MSI) and Diogo Moreira (Italtrans Racing Team).
Malaysian GP winner Celestino Vietti (Red Bull KTM Ajo) launches from P8 behind Filip Salac (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team).
Stand-in rider Jorge Navarroagain impressed on the OnlyFans American Racing Team Kalex after qualifying in P9.
A bunch of top 2024 names will be starting from outside the top 10 in Sunday’s race. After coming through Q1, Alonso Lopez (Sync SpeedUp) settled for P13.
He was one place ahead of Sergio Garcia (MT Helmets – MSI). Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) begins his race from P15.
After a crash towards the beginning of Q2, Fermin Aldeguer (Sync SpeedUp) has a mountain to climb from 18th.
Moto3
It’s now seven pole positions in 2024 for World Champion David Alonso (CFMOTO Valresa Aspar Team). He again shone brightest on a Saturday afternoon.
The #80 claimed pole by over three tenths in Barcelona to head Collin Veijer (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) and Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) on the front row.
Both set their sights on finishing as the overall runner-up in 2024 on Sunday.
2024 Rookie of the Year, Angel Piqueras (Leopard Racing) fronts the second row of the grid, with Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) launching his silver medal bid from the middle of Row 2.
Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse) aims to end his impressive debut Grand Prix campaign on a high from P6 on the grid.
Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) goes hunting for a top five World Championship finish from P7.
The Spaniard sits nine points away from David Muñoz (BOE Motorsports), with the latter P12 on the grid.
