Bezzecchi Storms to Qatar MotoGP Win, Marquez Leads by 60
(MENAFN) Marco Bezzecchi turned a painful Sprint crash into a commanding Grand Prix triumph on Sunday, converting pole position into victory at the MotoGP Qatar Grand Prix while Marc Marquez stretched his title lead over Jorge Martin to 60 points.
The Italian Aprilia rider, who was taken out of Saturday’s Sprint in contact with points leader Marquez, delivered a flawless performance at the Lusail International Circuit to claim the full 25 points.
Bezzecchi had grabbed pole on Saturday with an all-time lap record of 1 minute, 50.028 seconds, beating a mark Marquez had set earlier in the same qualifying session.
His Sprint hopes ended when he collided with Marquez while the two fought for the lead. Race stewards reviewed the incident and took no further action.
On Sunday, Bezzecchi got his answer on the track, crossing the line ahead of Ducati’s Marquez for the sixth MotoGP win of his career. Raul Fernandez completed the podium in third.
Japan’s Ai Ogura took fourth, followed by Enea Bastianini in fifth and Pedro Acosta in sixth. Martin, who started 11th, finished seventh. Fabio Di Giannantonio, Johann Zarco and Iker Lecuona rounded out the top 10.
MARQUEZ INCHES TOWARD TITLE AHEAD OF PORTUGAL
Despite missing out on the win, Marquez widened his championship margin over his nearest rival Martin from 49 to 60 points.
The reigning world champion and seven-time MotoGP title winner, who took Saturday’s Sprint, banked 20 points for second place on Sunday and now has 431 points overall.
Martin collected nine points for his seventh-place finish, moving to 371 and slipping further back in the standings.
Bezzecchi’s win moved him to 357 points in third, 14 behind Martin and 74 off Marquez.
With two rounds left, Marquez can clinch the world title at the Portuguese Grand Prix. He needs just 15 points across the weekend to seal it, regardless of how Martin performs.
The Italian Aprilia rider, who was taken out of Saturday’s Sprint in contact with points leader Marquez, delivered a flawless performance at the Lusail International Circuit to claim the full 25 points.
Bezzecchi had grabbed pole on Saturday with an all-time lap record of 1 minute, 50.028 seconds, beating a mark Marquez had set earlier in the same qualifying session.
His Sprint hopes ended when he collided with Marquez while the two fought for the lead. Race stewards reviewed the incident and took no further action.
On Sunday, Bezzecchi got his answer on the track, crossing the line ahead of Ducati’s Marquez for the sixth MotoGP win of his career. Raul Fernandez completed the podium in third.
Japan’s Ai Ogura took fourth, followed by Enea Bastianini in fifth and Pedro Acosta in sixth. Martin, who started 11th, finished seventh. Fabio Di Giannantonio, Johann Zarco and Iker Lecuona rounded out the top 10.
MARQUEZ INCHES TOWARD TITLE AHEAD OF PORTUGAL
Despite missing out on the win, Marquez widened his championship margin over his nearest rival Martin from 49 to 60 points.
The reigning world champion and seven-time MotoGP title winner, who took Saturday’s Sprint, banked 20 points for second place on Sunday and now has 431 points overall.
Martin collected nine points for his seventh-place finish, moving to 371 and slipping further back in the standings.
Bezzecchi’s win moved him to 357 points in third, 14 behind Martin and 74 off Marquez.
With two rounds left, Marquez can clinch the world title at the Portuguese Grand Prix. He needs just 15 points across the weekend to seal it, regardless of how Martin performs.
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