#BritishGP – MOTOGP, SPRINT & RACE
MOTOGP – SPRINT: 1 point in it: Bastianini excels to win as Martin punishes Bagnaia’s crash
Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) stormed to an incredible Tissot Sprint victory at the Monster Energy British Grand Prix, taking his first Saturday podium in some style: on the top step. Beast mode was very much engaged as the #23 denied Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing), although the #89 claws back some crucial Championship points after drama for points leader Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) saw the reigning Champion slide out.
Completing the rostrum on Saturday was polesitter Aleix Espargaro as the Aprilia Racing rider ran the top two close, escaping the attentions of Bagnaia and having pulled ahead of Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) on the chase. The eight-time World Champion then also slid out late on to cede third overall in the Championship to Bastianini in a dramatic afternoon at Silverstone.
As the lights went out it was a fantastic launch from Bagnaia, who pushed Espargaro wide on the entry to Turn 1. It was an immediate melee at the front, however, and Martin was able to sneak through and snatch the Sprint lead on the opening lap at Silverstone.
There was drama behind too as Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing) and Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) crashed on the opening lap after the former overshot Turn 1 and sent both sliding out. Both passed fit, but Morbidelli given a double Long Lap penalty to serve on Sunday.
There was soon more drama in the fight just behind the podium battle too as Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) clashed, with no harm done to either but a confetti shower of winglets sent into the air. The clash was also just enough for Marc Marquez to pry the door open and slice past both, needing no second invitation and at least briefly getting past the duo.
At the fornt, Martin continued to lead from the chasing Bastianini, with the Italian hanging on to the tail of the #89 as Espargaro and Bagnaia shadowed the duo.
The first title fight drama then unfolded, with Bagnaia losing the front on Lap 5 at Turn 4. Rider ok, but that was all she wrote and the Italian was forced to watch from the sidelines as teammate Bastianini started to harry Martin. Polesitter Espargaro was released from the pressure of having the reigning Champion sat on his tail too, and with Martin still in the lead the #1 looked to have lost the Championship lead.
However, after one failed attempt that saw Martin hit back immediately, the Beast then sliced through to the lead on Lap 6 and attempted to stretch away almost instantly. The #23 put together a series of impressive times inside the 1:58 bracket with a handful of laps remaining, gaining a little breathing space but Martin still very much in touch. A Bastianini win was a 1-point lead for Bagnaia in the title fight, a Martin win was the #89 back on top.
Then, further drama for the top echelons in the standings: Marc Marquez lost the front at Turn 16. That brought an end to the Spaniard’s chance to earn some vital Championship points as he retired to the pitlane, leaving it as a KTM-GASGAS battle for fourth and likely about to drop out the top three in the standings given Bastianini was now holding station at the head of the field.
With one lap remaining, all that was coming in was perfection from Bastianini. The #23 extended his lead from a handful of tenths to one second and that was that – a first ever Sprint victory secured at Silverstone. Martin consolidated second nevertheless, clawing back crucial Championship points to now sit just one behind Bagnaia. And behind him is now Bastianini in third.
Binder and Acosta’s battle didn’t stop as they continued their fight until the line, with the South African pipping the rookie for fourth after the 10-lap dash. Alex Marquez took sixth, having homed in but not able to get the better of the two.
It was a competitive battle for seventh place and the final point-scoring positions as Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) crossed the line just 0.185s ahead of Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) and Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team), with the latter taking that final point on Saturday.
MOTOGP – RACE: 10/10: Bastianini bags British GP double as Martin reclaims title lead
After a dream Saturday, it was a stunning performance on a special Sunday for Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team), who capped off a historic weekend at the Monster Energy British Grand Prix with a win. The #23 became the 10th different rider to take victory at Silverstone in the last ten events at the track, storming through late on to put himself third in the title fight and only 49 points off the top. Meanwhile, the top of the standings once again belongs to Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) as the #89 led the majority of the Grand Prix before proving unable to deny Bastianini.
Reigning Champion Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) secured the final spot on the podium as he bounced back from a crash on Saturday, but the 16-point haul on Sunday puts him back behind Martin by three.
Once the lights went out it was a blast from the past from Bagnaia, who claimed the holeshot on the run to Turn 1 after a phenomenal launch, ahead of Bastianini and Martin. While it was a great start from the #1, it was a tougher opening lap from polesitter Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing), who dropped to fourth position after some shuffling, with Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) moving briefly past the Aprilia before being demoted to P5 once more.
Unfortunately, it was an early end to the Grand Prix for Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), who suffered an issue at the race start. Later on in the opening lap, Trackhouse Racing’s Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez races also came to an end, crashing out.
Bagnaia led from Bastianini, but Martin was quick to make his way past the #23. Bastianini soon dropped back to fourth too, with Espargaro finding a way through. Marc Marquez was also close on the chase as the top five started to break away.
Further back, Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) and Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) began to battle for seventh position. Di Giannantonio found his way through on the #31 and then began to duel with Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) in sixth, with the two exchanging some paintwork and the VR46 rider even doing the Moto3™ classic: tapping the rear of the seat to say “follow me”.
Meanwhile at the front, tension was building as Martin homed in, looking for an opportunity to pounce on Bagnaia in the lead. He took over at the front for the first time on Lap 12, making the move stick on the entry to Turn 3. Behind the leading duo, Bastianini then found a gap in Espargaro’s armour – entering the provisional podium places.
However, Martin ran wide at Turn 13 one lap later, putting Bagnaia and Bastianini right back on his tail. The next move inside the top three came from Bastianini though, who overtook his teammate for second as Pecco suffered a front end moment. The ‘Beast’ immediately started to pull back the gap to Martin.
It was six laps to go and seven tenths up the road to Martin. Slowly but surely, that was creeping down. It was agonising progress though, with hundredths and tenths making the difference as the #23 edged further and further forward. By the penultimate lap he was there and suddenly Martin was wide once and then again at Turn 3, on second time of asking too wide to defend it. Bastianini was through and headed over the line in the lead as the final lap began.
In only one lap, Bastianini put together a fantastic end to the British Grand Prix, stretching out a magnificent gap to cross the line and create history ahead of Martin and teammate Bagnaia, who claimed the final spot on the podium.
Marc Marquez took fourth after a late charge at Pecco but unabel to arrive, and he had his own closing gap to deal with as Di Giannantonio climbed from 10th on the grid to fifth at the chequered flag. Polesitter Espargaro took sixth and was being chased by Alex Marquez, with the #73 finishing a mere 0.227s behind. Meanwhile, Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) took eighth ahead of Acosta in ninth. The rookie had another strong point-scoring finish and was ahead of Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing), who battled through the field to take the final spot inside the top 10 after his two Long Lap penalties after the incident on Saturday.
It was a difficult race, as I made a few mistakes in the first two laps and lost some ground. Then, I was able to find the right confidence to get back to the leading group: I bridged the gap first to Aleix (Espargaró), who was not an easy one to pass, and then to Pecco. In the lasf four-five laps, Jorge was pushing really hard and it wasn’t easy to catch him. It’s a fantastic feeling to be back on top of the podium in a Sunday race. I’ve been working a lot on myself: I analysed the first half of the race – the positives and the negatives of it. Generally speaking, my pace has been strong until now, but obviously the qualifying performance surely had a negative impact on many occasions. I tried to work on the mental side of things in order to avoid being caught unprepared in this regard, and I hope I can continue this way.
Enea Bastianini – P1
One of the hardest races. The tire drop arrived and I felt it every corner! I could see other bikes struggling but it was very, very tough to make it to the end. I’d been struggling with rear grip all weekend. I hope better tracks will come. Austria is completely different, we’ll see there.
Augusto Fernández – P16
Click the button below to find out all the images of the #KytCrew during the weekend in Silverstone.