Márquez takes second in Austrian Sprint as Bagnaia finishes sixth for Ducati
Marc Márquez finished second in the 14-lap Austrian Sprint, while Ducati Lenovo team-mate Francesco Bagnaia came home sixth after starting from seventh.
- 2nd
- 6th
- 14 laps
- 28 laps
What Happened
The Ducati Lenovo Team completed the fifteenth Sprint of the season at the Austrian Ring, with Marc Márquez taking second place at the end of the 14-lap encounter and Francesco Bagnaia sixth at the flag. Márquez retained second place at the start and briefly took the lead at the first chicane before being overtaken by Acosta. After dropping down to third at the start of lap eight, he found himself back in second place with three laps remaining and tried to re-enter the battle for the win until the end. Bagnaia, who was seventh on the grid after going through Q1, finished with an encouraging sixth place.
Márquez retains second place and briefly takes the lead at the first chicane before Acosta overtakes him.
Márquez drops down to third.
Márquez is back in second place and tries to re-enter the battle for the win until the end.
Warm-up session at the Austrian Ring.
The 28-lap Grand Prix of Austria gets under way.
- Started in 2nd place, finished 2nd
- Started 7th after going through Q1, finished 6th
“Today we achieved the main goal, which was to finish right behind Jorge (Martín) with no other rider in between. The first two laps were intense, then I simply kept my pace and scored the best possible result, as we are struggling a bit here. We need to keep working in order to improve in some specific areas of the track and, if we manage to do so, everything will become a whole lot simpler. Tomorrow's race will be a long one and we'll have to be careful with tyre wear.”
“We're doing a good job. Today we improved in the time attack, while in the Sprint we mainly worked towards tomorrow's race by choosing the medium tyre, as we know how important it'll be to manage tyre wear. I think it was the correct decision. It's true that we struggled in the opening laps, but then the pace wasn't so bad. The feeling has improved and now I hope we can make another step forward – with regards to grip and traction on corner exit – ahead of tomorrow.”
Both riders pointed to tyre management as the key factor for Sunday's 28-lap Grand Prix of Austria. Márquez said the team is struggling a bit at the Austrian Ring and needs to improve in some specific areas of the track, adding that the race will be long and tyre wear will require care. Bagnaia said the Sprint was used mainly to work towards the race by choosing the medium tyre, a decision he believed was correct, and that although the opening laps were difficult the pace was not bad. He added that the feeling has improved and he hopes for another step forward in grip and traction on corner exit before tomorrow.
Previously from Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A.
Ducati arrived at MotoGP round 15 at the Austrian Red Bull Ring with Marc Márquez leading the championship, a track where the manufacturer has won at least once every season for the past 10 years. On the Friday before this Sprint, Márquez ended practice in fourth while team-mate Francesco Bagnaia was 18th and had to go through Q1 — the session he navigated to line up seventh for the Sprint.
- Márquez fourth in Spielberg Friday Practice as Bagnaia finishes 18th and faces Q1
- Ducati Lenovo Team heads to the Red Bull Ring for MotoGP round 15 with Márquez leading the championship
Background drawn from MotorClaw's earlier coverage of Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A.'s official releases.
Why this matters
Sprint races are part of the MotoGP weekend and count towards the championship, so Márquez described finishing directly behind Jorge Martín with no rider in between as the main goal. Bagnaia's climb from a Q1 qualifying run to sixth, and the team's choice of the medium tyre, were both aimed at Sunday's 28-lap Grand Prix of Austria.
Terms in This Story
- Sprint
- A shorter race held on the day before the main Grand Prix, run over a reduced number of laps.
- Q1
- The first stage of qualifying, from which riders must progress in order to reach the final grid positions.
- Warm-up
- A short practice session held on race day ahead of the Grand Prix.
- Chicane
- A sequence of tight, alternating corners built into a section of track to slow riders down.
Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.