Ducati Lenovo rider Francesco Bagnaia returned to the top of the 2024 MotoGP standings after winning the main Austrian GP race at the Red Bull Ring Circuit, Sunday (18/8).
The two-time world champion now has a five-point lead over his closest rival, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing), who secured second place in this race.
The victory also completed Bagnaia’s weekend in Austria, after claiming the highest podium in the Sprint Race session the day before.
In addition, this is also the second consecutive victory for Bagnaia at the Red Bull Ring Circuit, after last year’s pole position, victory in the Sprint Race, and the main race.
Furthermore, this also makes Bagnaia record seven major race wins in the 2024 season, equaling the record he previously set last year.
Meanwhile, Bagnaia was 3.232 seconds ahead of Martin after an intense battle for pole position.
Also read: Francesco Bagnaia Wins Austrian GP Sprint Race
On the other hand, the strong consistency of Bagnaia’s teammate, Enea Bastianini, led him to complete the Austrian GP podium, with a time margin of 7.357 seconds from the race leader.
In fourth place is eight-time world champion Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing) who experienced dynamics in this race. Starting the race from third position, Marquez looked to have difficulty at the start which caused his position to continue to decline.
Marquez’s imbalance saw him drop to 13th, before he eventually found a way to overcome the problem and nearly snatch a place on the final podium.
Also read: Francesco Bagnaia Determined to Repeat Last Season’s Domination at the Austrian GP
The final position to fill the top five was secured by Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) who also performed dramatically.
The South African rider started the race from 12th position, but a solid performance saw him finish as the fifth fastest rider this time.
Completing the top 10 list are Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46), Maverick Vinales (Aprilia Racing), Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing), Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing), and Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing).
Meanwhile, the five strongest riders in the standings this season are Bagnaia (275 points), Martin (270 points), Bastianini (214 points), Marc Marquez (192 points), and Vinales (139 points).
The next series for MotoGP 2024 is the Aragon GP, which will take place on August 30-31 and September 1. (Ant/Z-1)
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