Jorge Martín took the first of the eight remaining rounds for the MotoGP title with notable superiority. The World Championship leader extended his advantage over Pecco Bagnaia from 10 to 16 points after showing undeniable speed despite the cold, wind and threat of constant rain on the unpredictable and beautiful island of Phillip Island. The Spanish contender achieved a stratospheric lap in qualifying, staying one tenth away from his own circuit record. He surpassed Marc Márquez, his closest pursuer, by more than half a second in a start to the Australian GP where no one could even come close to him in a ‘sprint’ that he dominated from start to finish.
“We finally win again on Saturday, although I thought that with Marc behind it would be more difficult. It wasn’t easy because the wind was gusty, but we did it and I’m delighted,” commented the pilot from San Sebastián de los Reyes, a master of the short format. In total, there are already six victories on Saturday, the same as Bagnaia unable to keep up with the pace of his three brand colleagues, fifth on the grid and fourth at the finish line. The ‘sprint’ podium was completed by Márquez capable of correcting a major mistake at the start and by Enea Bastianini without regard when overtaking his teammate and leader of the ranks.
“You never know. Something always happens. I made a mistake in the first corner, Jorge sped up and I almost touched him. The sensations were good, and the pace was similar to Jorge’s, so tomorrow we have another opportunity to, at least, fight,” summed up the 93, who fell to eighth place after sneaking in the first braking and then came back with such great speed. spectacularity as patience until his second starting place. “Jorge is very explosive, and in the first three laps he makes the difference. When you make a classification with that time frame, you have something more than the rest,” he added in statements to ‘DAZN’.
In a couple of laps, Martín was already a second ahead of a Marco Bezzecchi who started inspired, even blocking Bagnaia, and ended up crossing and throwing Maverick Viñales to the ground in a tricky attack on the penultimate lap. Although the defending champion finished second, he was never able to beat his great rival for the title. Márquez’s comeback showed that he was missing something more, and after the halfway point of the race, a double blow from his future and current teammate, Bastianini, left him off the podium. “We have to look for another strategy, and we know what Jorge has done differently in the configuration of the bike,” commented the Turin native, uncomfortable with the wind and unable to find the sensations with the front axle.
Despite his clear dominance to start the grand prix, Martín does not let his guard down and foresees a long career with a lot of management and certain doubts. “I didn’t want to push too hard, overdo it. I thought that Pecco could close the gap, but I realized that he could widen the gap, although tomorrow will be another story,” he summarized. Due to the rain that disrupted all the teams on Friday, they have barely been able to test the dry tires this weekend. Last year, the Madrid native already experienced a catastrophic drop in performance in the last lap after following a similar script, dominating at will until he ran out of rubber and saw how five drivers overtook him, including his infinite rival for the title. . “It will be another story.”
Having learned his lesson, the man from Madrid takes it day by day and without fanfare. Tracing the rival’s strategy, as he bitterly recalled under the sparkle of rain in Misano less than a month ago, seems key in this point-by-point battle until the close of the championship.
