Marc Marquez closes in on Jorge Martin in MotoGP title fight at Motegi

The 2026 MotoGP title fight looks set to go down to the wire after Marc Marquez picked up his 22nd sprint race win. 

Heading into the 12-lap race, Marquez trailed his fellow Spaniard by 12 points, although victory would reduce that margin by at least three.

And that’s what we thought had happened after Marquez claimed a dominant victory ahead of Martin. 

However, the 2024 world champion was demoted one position after taking the checkered flag, as was P3 finisher on-track, Enea Bastianini.

Both riders dropped a position for exceeding track limits on the final tour, which gave LCR Honda rider Diogo Moreira an unlikely second place finish.

This means Marquez is now seven points away from regaining the championship lead heading into Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Away from the final results, there was drama on the opening lap of the sprint when Marquez’s brother, Alex, took out two other riders.

The Gresini Ducati rider attempted to make a pass on future factory KTM team-mate Fabio di Giannantonio, before colliding with Austrian MotoGP winner Pedro Acosta.

Marquez, Acosta, and di Giannantonio all crashed out of the race as part of the collision at turn three. 

The incident did little to help Aprilia Racing’s Marco Bezzecchi, who continues to see his title hopes fade.

The Italian rider started 2026 with a run of three consecutive Grand Prix victories, however, Bezzecchi has won just one Sunday race since then.

Find the latest motorcycle news on Visordown