KTM’s Pedro Acosta won a stunning MotoGP sprint at the Thailand Grand Prix on Saturday, the Spaniard taking victory for the first time after compatriot Marc Marquez (Ducati) was controversially penalised while leading on the final lap.
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Acosta and Marquez, who look set to be teammates at Ducati’s factory team next season, engaged in a race-long battle for the lead after pole-sitter Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) crashed out on lap two.
Acosta passed Marquez on laps seven, 10 and 11 of the 13-lap sprint, only for the older Spaniard to immediately reclaim the lead.
After Acosta passed Marquez on the penultimate lap, Marquez overtook the KTM with a daring raid down the inside of the final corner, with Acosta running wide.
Race stewards immediately ordered the reigning MotoGP champion to drop one position on the final lap for “irresponsible riding” and Marquez allowed Acosta through at the last corner of the race, Acosta crossing the line 0.108 seconds ahead of Marquez, with fellow Spaniard Raul Fernandez (Aprilia) rounding out the podium.
While Marquez’s Ducati team manager Davide Tardozzi called the penalty “unfair” – “Marc didn’t touch Pedro, he didn’t go out of the race track … I’m sure Pedro would do the same,” Tardozzi told motogp.com – Marquez didn’t take the bait afterwards when asked if the penalty was justified.
“My opinion is that race direction decides, so I follow their rules,” Marquez said in his first race back since right shoulder surgery last October.
“When I saw Bezzecchi crash, then I just slowed down the race, I was just trying to control. I know this championship is super long, and that is what I tried to do, control the pace of the race. Every time Pedro overtook me, I overtook [back] on the next corner. But unfortunately I get that penalty.”
Acosta, who becomes the first KTM rider ever to lead the MotoGP world championship, had his eyes on Sunday’s full-points Grand Prix after finally winning for the first time in the premier class after debuting in 2024.
“Super cool to make a sprint like this, especially with Marc,” he said.
“It’s true that maybe I don’t feel like a winner because he let me past, but we have another opportunity tomorrow. It’s a good way to start the season, but tomorrow maybe we try to get this real victory.”
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Bezzecchi, who led all three practice sessions at the Buriram track and edged Marquez by 0.035secs to pole position earlier on Saturday, completed an unwanted hat-trick of crashes after he fell in the morning practice session, his final lap of qualifying after having already secured pole, and then from the lead at turn eight on just the second lap, setting the stage for the Acosta vs Marquez battle that followed.
From 18th on the grid, Australia’s Jack Miller finished as the best of Yamaha’s four riders in 15th place, 13.467secs behind Acosta and ahead of stablemates Fabio Quartararo (16th), Alex Rins (18th) and Pramac Yamaha teammate Toprak Razgatlioglu, who finished 20th after crashing on the second-last lap and rejoining the race.
The 26-lap Thailand Grand Prix, round one of MotoGP’s 22-round 2026 campaign, will take place at 7pm (AEDT) on Sunday.
In Moto2, Sydney’s Senna Agius became the first Australian to take pole position in the intermediate-class category since Remy Gardner in 2021 when he qualified first for Sunday’s 22-lap race, while in MotoGP, Australia sole representative in the Moto3 field, Darwin’s Joel Kelso, will start from 16th place.
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