Enea Bastianini wins British MotoGP Sprint as Bagnaia crashes

Enea Bastianini clinched a spectacular victory in the British MotoGP Sprint, marking his first win of the season as teammate Francesco Bagnaia suffered a crash.

Ducati’s Enea Bastianini secured a remarkable victory in the British MotoGP Sprint race at Silverstone, marking his first win of the season in a race filled with drama which saw several riders suffer retirements particularly championship leader Francesco Bagnaia, who crashed out early in the race.

The race began with Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) making an impressive start from the second row, quickly taking the lead. Bastianini, who started from the front row, slotted into second place, while pole sitter Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) and Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) followed closely behind.

However, disaster struck further back as Marco Bezzecchi and Franco Morbidelli crashed at turn 1, with the incident immediately under review by Race Direction. Raul Fernández had to take evasive action and went wide, steering clear of the incident.

The early laps saw a tightly contested battle among these four riders, with Martin leading the charge. However, the race took a dramatic turn on Lap 5 when Bagnaia crashed out at Turn 4, losing control of his bike and ending his race prematurely.

The incident not only eliminated the reigning champion from the running but also reshaped the championship standings with Martin clawing in on the Italian’s lead.

With Bagnaia out of the picture, Bastianini seized the opportunity to assert his dominance. Initially, he found himself in third place behind Martin and Espargaro. On Lap 6, Bastianini made a decisive move, overtaking Martin at Copse Corner, but Martin quickly responded to reclaim the lead.

The battle intensified as Bastianini continued to pressure Martin and on Lap 7, the Factory Ducati star made another attempt, this time successfully overtaking Martin at Stowe Corner.

After claiming the lead, Bastianini showcased exceptional pace and tyre management, gradually pulling away from Martin and ultimately crossed the finish line 1.094 seconds ahead of Martin.

Jorge Martin had to settle for second place despite leading for several laps and displaying remarkable speed and determination throughout the race. However, his second-place finish edged him closer to the championship lead, now sitting just a point behind Bagnaia.

Aleix Espargaro, who started from pole position, managed to secure a strong third-place finish. He held off a challenge from Marc Marquez, who later suffered a humiliating crash.

The Gresini rider was set to take fourth place after climbing up from seventh on the grid, but the six-time champion lost control of his GP23 going into Vale on the penultimate lap and ended up in the gravel.

This elevated KTM’s Brad Binder up to fourth ahead of Tech3 GasGas rider Pedro Acosta. Gresini’s Alex Marquez finished in sixth, with Jack Miller edging Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales on the line to take seventh.

Fabio Di Giannantonio secured the final point-scoring position in ninth spot after recovering from a long-lap penalty due to track limits violations. Meanwhile, Trackhouse rider Miguel Oliveira rounded out the top ten.

2024 British MotoGP Sprint Results