Motorsport
Shock in MotoGP! World Championship leader Bagnaia crashes, title fight takes a dramatic turn! Bezzecchi reigned supreme in India ahead of Martín
The World Championship series of road motorcycles began a gruelling Asian tour with the premiere grand prix in India. Thousands of local fans witnessed an extraordinary spectacle at the Buddh International Circuit, from which Marco Bezzecchi emerged victorious.
The World Championship series of road motorcycles began a gruelling Asian tour with the premiere grand prix in India. Thousands of local fans witnessed an extraordinary spectacle at the Buddh International Circuit, from which Marco Bezzecchi emerged victorious. The Italian registered his third win of the season ahead of Jorge Martín and Fabio Quartararo. The biggest shock of the weekend came when championship leader Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia crashed out of second place! The battle for the world championship title was thus made extremely dramatic!
The Indian Grand Prix made its first appearance on the World Championship calendar. Prior to this, the country enjoyed an international motorsport event between 2011 and 2013 thanks to Formula 1. The circuit near New Delhi was modified and upgraded for the needs of motorcycle racing.
Jorge Martín took the win in Saturday’s sprint race, narrowing the gap to Pecca Bagnai, who finished third, to 33 points. With Ducati proving to be the strongest factory in India, it was clear that the top three in the championship would once again battle it out for the main race triumph.
This time the start was without crashes
Marco Bezzecchi lost the advantage of pole position for the second time, with Martín taking the lead followed by Bagnaia. The tricky first corner witnessed several crashes and off-track exits, fortunately all 20 riders were able to fit in, despite a mid-field squeeze involving five KTM and Aprilia riders.
Fabio Quartararo led an excellent first lap, while Maverick Viñales dropped to 18th.
Very quickly after the start, Bagnaia began to put pressure on Martín, whom he had to start beating in order to maintain his relatively comfortable lead at the front of the championship. The Italian’s hopes of another victory were boosted after a mistake by his Spanish rival when Martín went off the track into turn four, handing him the race lead.
Bagnaia, however, did not enjoy the top position for long. Bezzecchi made his way past his compatriot at the end of the opening circuit and immediately began to pass the rest of the field. Factory Honda rider Marc Márquez was also showing great form. Not only was he, like Quartararo, keeping up with the leading drivers, he was even pressing Martín.
Repsol Honda’s second rider Joan Mir was also nowhere to be found after the start, battling with Quartararo for fifth place. Unfortunately for the Japanese constructor, a cold shower came when Márquez crashed at the start of lap six. He immediately mounted his machine, but left the podium.
A lap earlier, Martín had taken a hard step on Bagnai’s second place. The Spaniard’s aggressive manoeuvre briefly allowed Márquez to close in on the pair, but the aforementioned crash for the eight-time world champion occurred a short moment later.
Podium or crash, nothing in between…
Bezzecchi rode to success as the first winner in India. His lead going into the second third of the race was over three seconds. It was also due to a thrilling waiting battle between Martín and Bagnaia. The reigning world champion nearly rammed the Pramac driver when attempting an overtaking manoeuvre, even though the two machines were separated by mere centimetres.
On lap 11 of the 21 laps scheduled, Aleix Espargar and his Aprilia suffered mechanical problems which forced him to retire from the race. In the second half of the starting field, not only Márquez but also Viñales was in pursuit. While the former was taking his time with his comeback, the latter was already in the top 10 halfway through the race.
Two laps later, there was another crucial moment in the battle for second place. Bagnaia couldn’t hold on to the ride behind Martín’s rear wheel and indiscriminately sent his machine in front of the 25-year-old Spaniard into turn nine. Bagnaia’s pace then seemed to have caught the necessary juice. Bagnaia seemed to have shown the world that he was the champion and the strongest candidate for the title…
However, in the very next round came the undoubted shock of the season. Bagnaia passed Martín, but failed to brake on the run into turn five and threw his Ducati away for the umpteenth time this season! Not only did he fail to score for the fifth time this year on Sunday, but his lead at the head of the championship was shrunk to just 13 points by Martín’s potential second place finish! this continues the 26-year-old Turin native’s streak of either podium finishes or falls from a promising position.
A satellite rider on his way to the title?!
Bagnai’s crash promoted Yamaha and Quartara to third. However, the gaps already established between the riders did not suggest that there could yet be further direct battles for positions, at least in the top half of the field.
So the spectators across the world waited until the very end for more drama. With two laps to go, the zipper on Martín’s overalls came undone. To escape a possible penalty, the Spaniard adjusted his clothing but had to slow down, which allowed Quartararo to close in on him. Still, the 2021 world champion was several lengths short of Martín’s machine.
Just behind them, Miro and Brad Binder were battling it out. The South African pulled ahead of the 2020 champion at the end of the grand prix to clinch fourth place for himself. Lap 21 of 21 brought the crowd out of their seats for the last time as Martín went off the track and momentarily handed second place to Quartararo. However, a beautiful manoeuvre on the outside saw Martín take back his lost place and although Quartararo was not about to give up, he eventually had to bow out to the second man in the World Championship.
Bezzecchi had a trouble-free race and won the first Indian MotoGP Grand Prix by a huge margin of almost nine seconds. The podium went to second-placed Martín and third-placed Quartararo, who repeated his best result of the season from Austin, USA.
Bagnaia’s lead in the championship after the Indian GP is now 13 points. While Martín has recorded only two non-scoring results in the main races, Bagnaia now has a total of five. If Bagnaia really wants to think about defending his title, all he has to do is not crash. After all, since last year’s Spanish VC, apart from one occasion he has either stood on the podium or crashed.
Bagnaia can repair his reputation next weekend. The 14th stop of the season awaits the rider in Motegi, Japan.
MotoGP Indian Grand Prix results (Race 13/20, 21 laps = 105.21 km; top 10 only):
1. Marco Bezzecchi (Ita., Ducati) 36:59.157
2. Jorge Martín (Span., Ducati) +8.649
3. Fabio Quartararo (Fra., Yamaha) +8.855
4. Brad Binder (RJA, KTM) +12.643
5. Joan Mir (Span., Honda) +13.214
6. Johann Zarco (Fra., Ducati) +14.673
7. Franco Morbidelli (Ita., Yamaha) +16.946
8. Maverick Viñales (Span., Aprilia) +17.191
9. Marc Márquez (Span., Honda) +19.118
10. Raúl Fernández (Span., Aprilia) +26.504
2023 MotoGP rider standings (after 12/20; top 10 only):
1. Francesco Bagnaia (Ita., Ducati) 292 points
2. Jorge Martín (Spa., Ducati) 279
3. Marco Bezzecchi (Ita., Ducati) 248
4. Brad Binder (RJA, KTM) 192
5. Aleix Espargaró (Span., Aprilia) 160
6. Johann Zarco (Fra., Ducati) 157
7. Maverick Viñales (Span., Aprilia) 138
8. Luca Marini (Ita., Ducati) 135
9. Jack Miller (Aus., KTM) 109
10. Álex Márquez (Span., Ducati) 108
Source: MotoGP
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