Ducati-Pramac’s Spanish rider Jorge Martin took victory in the sprint race of the German MotoGP Grand Prix, which took place at the Sachsenring circuit. Martin crossed the finish line ahead of Italian Francesco Bagnaia, also of Ducati, who remains the championship leader.
The podium was completed by Australian Jack Miller of KTM. With this victory, Martin provisionally moves up to second place in the overall World Championship standings, which until now was in the hands of Italian Marco Bezzecchi of Ducati-VR46, who could only be seventh in this race.
Starting from sixth on the grid in the sunshine after a rainy morning, Martin managed to overtake Bagnaia on the fourth lap of the 15-lap sprint race. Bagnaia recognized Martin’s speed and was happy with his second place.
With 119 points, Martin is now 21 points behind Bagnaia, who leads with 140 points. The Spanish rider expressed his enjoyment during the race and will be looking for another victory in the premier class at the German Grand Prix on Sunday.
On the other hand, six-time class champion Marc Márquez struggled on his Honda and finished eleventh, out of the points. Marquez crashed three times during the day, but despite that, he managed to move up two positions at the start of the race. Although Marquez has won at the Sachsenring on eight previous occasions, this time he was unable to stand out.
Ducati-VR46’s Luca Marini and Ducati-Pramac’s Johann Zarco completed the top five, while 2021 world champion Fabio Quartararo finished 13th. On Sunday, Bagnaia will start first in the Grand Prix, having taken pole position before the sprint race, followed by Marini and Miller.