MotoGP Grand Prix France Sprint – Jorge Martin secures Saturday success ahead of Francesco Bagnaia and Marco Bezzecchi as Marc Marquez crashes

Jorge Martin has added yet another Sprint win to his collection in Le Mans, winning by over one second to polesitter Francesco Bagnaia. Martin was kept honest throughout, stealing the lead on the opening lap following a heroic start.

With Bagnaia claiming second position, the positive momentum continues in the Italian’s camp after he defeated Marco Bezzecchi. Meanwhile, the No. 72 completed the podium as he continues to lead the championship.

Pedro Acosta missed out on the podium, beating home hero Fabio Quartararo, who rounded out the top five following an impressive ride. Sticking with the French theme, Johann Zarco was unable to repeat his Friday pace, finishing P10 and behind his rookie teammate Diogo Moreira.

Further back, there were six crashers, most notably Marc Marquez, who suffered a monster highside on the penultimate lap. Raul Fernandez, Franco Morbidelli, Enea Bastianini, Fabio Di Giannantonio, Luca Marini and Jonas Folger also crashed.

Next up: French GP. Join us on Sunday for more MotoGP action as we go lights out at 13:00 GMT. See you then.

Jorge Martin has taken his 18th career Sprint win, adding his name to the history books once again following a cracking start. Following another win, Martin was happy to say the least as he looks forward to Sunday!

Martin added: ”Thank you, I can say Viva la France! I love this track, and today I struggled a little in qualifying, but I knew my potential was much higher.

”I used all my determination at the start, but I didn’t expect to be in first position by the second corner. From there, I just pushed like in the past, like I’m used to, like boom boom boom.

”Merci beaucoup, I’m really happy, and let’s go tomorrow!”

It might not be a win, but it’s positive signs for Francesco Bagnaia, who claims back-to-back Sprint podiums and shows further momentum. The Italian says there is still something missing as he looks forward to Sunday.

Bagnaia said: ”I am much happier than the one in Jerez because the pace was good, so I am really happy. We are still missing something compared to Aprilia, but we are improving, so let’s keep working.

”I hope tomorrow we have some good weather because I think we can get a good result!”

It’s a great result on Saturday for Marco Bezzecchi, who claims his first Sprint podium of the season after finishing third. Already the Italian rider is thinking about tomorrow’s main event!

Bezzecchi said: ”Yeah, I’m very happy, of course, it was a tough race as I wasn’t feeling very good. So I am happy to grab this result when I am struggling, but we are always fighting, so I’m very, very happy.

”A big thanks to my team, all my guys, to all the Noale factory, the academy, Vale and all the staff. Now we think about tomorrow!

”Thanks to fans as well!”

Check out the incident below as Marc Marquez crashing out on Saturday.

Jorge Martin is your Sprint winner! Yet another Saturday medal for the Spanish star as he edges towards 20 Sprint wins. Martin’s officially winning margin sits at 1.107s, beating Francesco Bagnaia and Marco Bezzecchi!

Marc Marquez has CRASHED OUT! It is a spectacular crash as the No. 93 suffers a highside on the corner entry in the final sector. It is a day to forget for Marc as he walks away from the incident.

Ai Ogura currently holds the final Sprint point as he remains the third Aprilia rider out on the circuit. Ogura’s future is unknown, with the Japanese rider leaving Trackhouse at the end of the season.

However, it didn’t take Ogura long to make ground, overtaking Alex Marquez with just two laps remaining – snatching P8. Meanwhile, Raul Fernandez has crashed out, bringing mixed fortunes in the Trackhouse box.

Fabio Quartararo is currently the top French rider, running in P5 as things stand following an impressive lap in qualifying. Quartararo is working his magic, looking for redemption after crashing out of the 2025 edition.

Further back, last year’s winner, Johann Zarco, is not where he’d be hoping for, sitting P12 behind his rookie teammate Diogo Moreira.

Marc Marquez is continuing to struggle in the Sprint, sitting P7 out on circuit, just behind ex-teammate Joan Mir. The No.93 couldn’t explain where he found pace in qualifying and was unsure how strong his race pace would be. 

Meanwhile, his brother Alex Marquez sits behind and after winning at Jerez he will be aiming to move further up the order as he sits in P8.

Franco Morbidelli has crashed out now, in a very similar place to Enea Bastianini just a few moments ago. It’s a very technical final sector at Le Mans, with riders asking too much from the front tyres.

Enea Bastianini is the next rider to go down, this time in the final sector. In terms of KTM runners, Pedro Acosta remains the top rider for the Austrian factory, sitting P4 out on circuit. The other remaining KTM is Brad Binder, who sits P15, outside of the Sprint points…

The action is continuing out on the circuit. Catch up on how things unfolded on the opening lap!

It’s certainly a Sprint to forget for VR46 Racing Team’s Fabio Di Giannantonio, who was trying to make up time after his bad start. It’s resulted in a crash for the No. 49, who will go back to the drawing board tomorrow.

Jorge Martin has already clocked the fastest lap of the Sprint so far, edging his gap to over one second on the third lap of action. Martin has a great history with Sprint success, with everyone wondering what today has in store for the Aprilia rider as he looks to add to his 17 Sprint wins.

Bagnaia now follows in second, overtaking Bezzecchi after the Italian went wide – losing time in the process.

There’s already drama in the opening laps, with Luca Marini crashing out on the second lap of action. Jonas Folger has also crashed, bringing an end to the replacement rider’s day over at turn six.

WE ARE RACING! It’s a great launch from Marco Bezzecchi, who stole the lead on the run to turn one. Jorge Martin also came through, sending a move down the inside at turn three as Marc Marquez drops to P5, and Fabio Di Giannantonio drops outside the points – sitting in P14 on the opening lap.

Polesitter Francesco Bagnaia sits in the final podium position, running in third and already putting Bezzecchi under pressure from behind.

The riders are released onto the circuit now as they complete their final tour of Le Mans before it’s lights out in France. What an exciting prospect this race is, with question marks over at Ducati and some French stars looking to give the crowd something to cheer about!

FIVE MINUTE WARNING 

Here we go then! Sprint racing time and it’s Francesco Bagnaia launching this one from pole position – qualifying P1 for the first time in 196 days! It’s your final time to pop on the kettle because we are five minutes away from lights out in France.

After a blockbuster weekend and some surprises in qualifying, check out how the front four rows of the grid look ahead of the 13-lap Sprint!

1. Francesco Bagnaia (Pole)

2. Marc Marquez

3. Marco Bezzecchi

4. Fabio Di Giannantonio

5. Pedro Acosta

6. Fabio Quartararo

7. Joan Mir

8. Jorge Martin

9. Ai Ogura

10. Alex Marquez

11. Johann Zarco

12. Alex Rins