MotoGP Qatar GP: Marc Marquez wins sprint race from brother Alex

Marc Marquez reclaimed the lead of the MotoGP world championship after leading every lap from pole position in the sprint race at the Qatar GP.

The victory marked his fourth successive sprint win over his brother and previous championship leader Alex Marquez at the start of 2025.

Franco Morbidelli came home in third for the VR46 Ducati team, while Marquez’s team-mate Francesco Bagnaia could only manage eighth following a disastrous qualifying crash.

While Marquez did lead every lap after rocketing away into first place at the start, he briefly found himself behind Alex at the start of the second lap. The younger Marquez’s pass at Turn 1 brought no lasting joy, however, as he ran slightly wide and Marc reclaimed the advantage.

While Alex feigned looks up the inside at the same spot over the next couple of laps, Marc’s pace finally ground him down. It would be yet another sprint second for Alex, who now trails Marc by two points in the championship.

Fabio Quartararo got the good start he had hoped for from the front row, slotting his Yamaha into third place behind the dominant Marquez pair. But he was only able to hold on to it for a lap, as Morbidelli flew past when the field returned to the pit straight for the first time.

Morbidelli looked comfortable ahead of Quartararo for most of the race, but suddenly had to work to defend his podium on the final lap. Not only was Quartararo mounting a late challenge, but remarkable rookie Fermin Aldeguer had found more and more pace as the race went on and the Spaniard had both in his sights.

Quatararo then made a mistake at the final corner of the race. The Frenchman ran wide, gifting Aldeguer fourth – by far the best result of his nascent MotoGP career.

Quartararo thus had to settle for fifth, ahead of Fabio di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati), who had a bad start and opening lap, and had to fight his way back from well down the order.

He was helped along in that quest by several riders struggling after choosing the soft rear tyre. These included Maverick Vinales (Tech 3 KTM), Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) and Pedro Acosta (KTM), each of whom fell gradually down the order, which in turn ensured plenty of overtaking action in the midfield.

Ai Ogura was another beneficiary, finishing seventh for Trackhouse Aprilia, albeit five seconds shy of di Giannantonio at the end.

Bagnaia made no substantial progress after starting 11th, and only really moved forward as a result of the aforementioned soft-tyre strugglers.

Reigning world champion Jorge Martin, returning to action at this race after missing the first three due to injury, ran as high as 11th, a spot he reached by passing his 2024 title rival Bagnaia. But his fitness woes began to count against him as the race continued, and he finished 16th.

Martin will face a tougher challenge in tomorrow’s Qatar Grand Prix, which will be double the length. Another rider with a health question mark ahead of Sunday is Joan Mir, after the Honda man pulled out of the sprint due to illness.

MotoGP Qatar GP – Sprint race results

Photos from Qatar GP – Qualifying & Sprint