Marc Marquez wins a chaotic 2026 Spanish MotoGP Sprint race at Jerez, benefitting from a crash during a mid-race downpour!

After a wet Saturday morning qualifying, the track dried before dark clouds gathered once again just before the start of the 12-lap Sprint.

Light spots of rain were already falling as Marc Marquez accelerated from pole position and took the holeshot at Turn 1.

Friday’s dry leader and defending Spanish GP winner Alex Marquez then worked his way past second on the grid, Johann Zarco before chasing down the Lenovo machine.

Alex took the lead on lap 7, just as the brothers were caught by VR46’s Fabio di Giannantonio. But rain then began pouring down, moments after Toprak Razgatlioglu and Lorenzo Savadori collided.

Marc Marquez crash creates pit stop chance

All the leaders initially decided to stay out, but Marc Marquez then crashed at the final corner, moments after passing the pit lane entry.

The mistake paid off handsomely.

Keeping the engine alive, and now with nothing to lose, Marquez was able to shortcut across the grass and into pit lane for his wet bike, while the rest of the leaders ‘wasted’ a lap in the intensifying rain!

Brad Binder, Pecco Bagnaia and Franco Morbidelli were the first riders to pit, followed by the recovering Marquez.

Race leader Alex Marquez then crashed out in the treacherous conditions, as rider after rider fell on both slick and wet tyres (most of them re-joining).

When the mayhem finally cleared, Pecco Bagnaia held the lead, just ahead of team-mate Marc Marquez.

Marquez promptly overtook the Italian, with three laps to go, raising a roar from the fans, while Bagnaia held second and Franco Morbidelli completed the rostrum from 18th on the grid!

Factory Aprilia nightmare

The factory Aprilia team suffered a nightmare Sprint with title leader Marco Bezzecchi plummeting to 17th when his rear tyre spun on a tear-off at the start. 

Bezzecchi was later among the long list of riders to crash in the rain. 

Team-mate Jorge Martin didn’t get that far, retiring from an early third with a technical issue, thought to be braking-related, given his glowing front discs.

Points

• Jerez Sprint: New 2026 MotoGP World Championship standings

 

*Rookie.

 

Qualifying

Marc Marquez takes a popular home pole position for the 2026 Spanish MotoGP at a wet Jerez.

The reigning MotoGP champion won a duel with last year’s wet Le Mans winner Johann Zarco, with the rest of the field over one-second adrift.

The LCR Honda rider had a chance to snatch pole back on his final lap but suffered a big moment at the last corner, leaving Marquez to wave to the fans after his first pole since Hungary last year.

VR46 Ducati’s Fabio di Giannantonio was best of the rest in third, followed by Aprilia’s title leader Marco Bezzecchi.

Friday’s dry leader and 2025 Spanish Grand Prix winner Alex Marquez overcame a crash on his way to fourth, ahead of KTM’s Pedro Acosta.

Fermin Aldeguer suffered his second fall of the day early in Q2, moments after passing Acosta.

Team-mate Alex Marquez then tumbled from his Gresini machine at Turn 9. 

Jorge Martin crashed from his Aprilia with four minutes remaining, bringing out more yellow flags and cancelling more fast laps.

Zarco and final practice leader Acosta advanced through Qualifying 1, which saw falls for Franco Morbidelli, Jack Miller, Diogo Moreira and Luca Marini.

Morbidelli finished the session with smoke coming from his GP25, causing the start of Q2 to be delayed while checking for fluid on track at Turns 9 and 10.

Wild-card Augusto Fernandez will start as the top Yamaha in 16th.

Martin has a three-place grid penalty for the grand prix after obstructing Alex Marquez at the end of Friday practice.

Joan Mir could also face a grid drop for staying on track despite being shown black-and-orange flags in final practice.

All eyes will now be on the weather ahead of this afternoon’s 12-lap Sprint race, which starts at 3pm local time (2pm UK).

*Rookie.

Official Jerez MotoGP Records:

• Best lap: Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha, 1m 35.610s (2025)
• Fastest race lap: Alex Marquez, Ducati, 1m 37.349s (2025)

Final Practice

Pedro Acosta leads Marc Marquez during a wet final practice for the 2026 Spanish MotoGP at Jerez.

After a dry Friday, led by Alex Marquez, the wet weather descended on Saturday morning.

Razgatlioglu save, Mir penalty?

WorldSBK champion Toprak Razgatlioglu made a huge final corner save, somehow lifting his Pramac Yamaha back on two wheels despite sliding for several seconds on his knee and elbow!

Joan Mir could well face a penalty for returning to the pits despite being shown the black-and-orange flag after rejoining the track with bike damage. The incident will be investigated after qualifying.

Fermin Aldeguer, still recovering from a pre-season femur fracture, limped away from a final turn lowside.

Brad Binder then fell at a higher speed in the final minute of the session

Q1, for riders outside the top ten on Friday afternoon, including KTM’s home hero Acosta, will now begin.

Aprilia title leader Marco Bezzecchi is chasing his sixth grand prix victory in a row this weekend, a run that began at Portimao in late 2025, and has also led the last 121 GP laps in a row.

Test riders Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) and Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia) are making their first wild-card appearances of the season.

Tech3’s Maverick Vinales is absent following shoulder surgery and has not been replaced.

Jorge Martin will have a three-place grid penalty for the grand prix after obstructing Alex Marquez at the end of Friday practice.

An official test will be held at Jerez on Monday.

*Rookie.

Official Jerez MotoGP Records:

• Best lap: Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha, 1m 35.610s (2025)
• Fastest race lap: Alex Marquez, Ducati, 1m 37.349s (2025)