Aurélie Sacchelli, Media365, published on Saturday November 16, 2024 at 3:48 p.m.
Starting from pole position, Francesco Bagnaia won the sprint race of the Barcelona Grand Prix, ahead of Enea Bastianini and Jorge Martin. He therefore takes five points from Jorge Martin, who will have 19 points on his rival before the last GP of the season on Sunday.
The 2024 MotoGP world champion title will be awarded on Sunday! While a victory in the sprint race in Barcelona this Saturday would have given him a first world title, Jorge Martin was content with third place, while his rival Francesco Bagnaia won, and everything will therefore be decided during the Grand Price, the two men are now separated by 19 points. Starting in pole position, the double Italian world champion was almost untroubled during this last sprint of the season. If his future-ex teammate Enea Bastianini (who made it known that he would not help him win the title, himself aiming for third place in the world) took the lead in the first corner thanks to a great start (he was 8th on the grid), Bagnaia took back the lead before the end of the first lap (out of twelve) and never let go. The Ducati rider did not manage to take off, but he maintained a one-second lead over the competition, which allowed him to win his seventh sprint of the season.
A ninth place will secure the title for Martin
Starting fourth, Jorge Martin quickly took third place in the first corner, then second on the third lap by overtaking Enea Bastianini. The two men had a nice duel, overtaking each other on several occasions, and on the last lap, while Martin had been second for seven laps, the Italian (who had once found himself fourth after being overtaken by Franco Morbidelli ) overtook him once again to finish second. The Spanish driver did not try to avoid this overtake, because it was better to lose two points compared to Bagnia by finishing third, than twelve by going to the ground. On Sunday, Francesco Bagnaia will have to take 19 points from Jorge Martin to win a third world title. A place in the Top 9 will therefore ensure the world title for the Spaniard, even if the Italian wins. On the French side, Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco did not impact the race. Starting 10th and 12th, they finished 10th and 11th.
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