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Marc Marquez details crazy Jerez MotoGP sprint: ‘I crashed at the right time’
Marc Marquez opens up on his wild crash-to-victory ride in the Jerez MotoGP sprint
Marc Marquez says he “crashed at the correct time” on his way to victory in the Jerez MotoGP sprint, though he concedes he made a mistake staying on slicks as long as he did.
The factory Ducati team rider claimed his first pole of the season on Saturday morning and converted that to his second sprint win of the 2026 campaign.
But he did so after crashing with five laps to go while running second, as rainfall around the Jerez circuit intensified.
He dived into pitlane to swap bikes, before going on to win by over three seconds against team-mate Pecco Bagnaia.
Marquez repeats flag-to-flag error from 12 years ago
Marc Marquez joked that he came off at the right time and in the correct place, but admits he made a mistake in staying out on slicks for another lap at the point he fell.
He was reminded of a similar error at Aragon in 2014, when he was leading into the final stages of the grand prix but crashed on slicks as the track grew too wet.
“Yeah, we can say that today I crashed in the best way, at the correct time, in the correct corner,” he said in the TV broadcaster set.
“But, you never want to crash, because, especially, I think it was a mistake to stay out that lap.
“But it was difficult, and I didn’t take the correct decision, butt lucky I crashed in that last corner.
“When I crashed, I just waited on the run-off area and when all the group passed, just I went into the box to change the bike, because the bike I crashed was also a bit damaged.
“And from that point, I restarted the race and I saw I was P3. I overtook Pecco, Binder crashed, and somebody today said ‘Ok, this is the final result’.”
He added: “All the riders did the same mistake, because you are there, and even in the past I did the same mistake in 2014 in Aragon.
“You are there and you see that every three, four laps remain, and you say ‘Ok, I’ll stay out’, because it’s only three laps.
“But the rain was super heavy and was fully wet. So, with the slick tyres it was impossible.”
Marquez was found to have broken no rules when he crossed the circuit into pitlane, with the Ducati rider noting that he couldn’t have stayed out anyway due to bike damage.
“The thing is, when I crashed, when I picked up the bike, I saw the handlebar was too close and then it was difficult to ride with that,” he explained.
“For that reason, I just waited. I said ‘I cannot do anymore laps’ and I went into the pits. That was a very crucial moment. If you crash in Turn 1, 2, then the race is finished.”
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Marc Marquez opens up on his wild crash-to-victory ride in the Jerez MotoGP sprint
Marc Marquez says he “crashed at the correct time” on his way to victory in the Jerez MotoGP sprint, though he concedes he made a mistake staying on slicks as long as he did.
The factory Ducati team rider claimed his first pole of the season on Saturday morning and converted that to his second sprint win of the 2026 campaign.
But he did so after crashing with five laps to go while running second, as rainfall around the Jerez circuit intensified.
He dived into pitlane to swap bikes, before going on to win by over three seconds against team-mate Pecco Bagnaia.
Marquez repeats flag-to-flag error from 12 years ago
Marc Marquez joked that he came off at the right time and in the correct place, but admits he made a mistake in staying out on slicks for another lap at the point he fell.
He was reminded of a similar error at Aragon in 2014, when he was leading into the final stages of the grand prix but crashed on slicks as the track grew too wet.
“Yeah, we can say that today I crashed in the best way, at the correct time, in the correct corner,” he said in the TV broadcaster set.
“But, you never want to crash, because, especially, I think it was a mistake to stay out that lap.
“But it was difficult, and I didn’t take the correct decision, butt lucky I crashed in that last corner.
“When I crashed, I just waited on the run-off area and when all the group passed, just I went into the box to change the bike, because the bike I crashed was also a bit damaged.
“And from that point, I restarted the race and I saw I was P3. I overtook Pecco, Binder crashed, and somebody today said ‘Ok, this is the final result’.”
He added: “All the riders did the same mistake, because you are there, and even in the past I did the same mistake in 2014 in Aragon.
“You are there and you see that every three, four laps remain, and you say ‘Ok, I’ll stay out’, because it’s only three laps.
“But the rain was super heavy and was fully wet. So, with the slick tyres it was impossible.”
Marquez was found to have broken no rules when he crossed the circuit into pitlane, with the Ducati rider noting that he couldn’t have stayed out anyway due to bike damage.
“The thing is, when I crashed, when I picked up the bike, I saw the handlebar was too close and then it was difficult to ride with that,” he explained.
“For that reason, I just waited. I said ‘I cannot do anymore laps’ and I went into the pits. That was a very crucial moment. If you crash in Turn 1, 2, then the race is finished.”
Marc Marquez says he “crashed at the correct time” on his way to victory in the Jerez MotoGP sprint, though he concedes he made a mistake staying on slicks as long as he did.
The factory Ducati team rider claimed his first pole of the season on Saturday morning and converted that to his second sprint win of the 2026 campaign.
But he did so after crashing with five laps to go while running second, as rainfall around the Jerez circuit intensified.
He dived into pitlane to swap bikes, before going on to win by over three seconds against team-mate Pecco Bagnaia.
Marquez repeats flag-to-flag error from 12 years ago
Marc Marquez joked that he came off at the right time and in the correct place, but admits he made a mistake in staying out on slicks for another lap at the point he fell.
He was reminded of a similar error at Aragon in 2014, when he was leading into the final stages of the grand prix but crashed on slicks as the track grew too wet.
“Yeah, we can say that today I crashed in the best way, at the correct time, in the correct corner,” he said in the TV broadcaster set.
“But, you never want to crash, because, especially, I think it was a mistake to stay out that lap.
“But it was difficult, and I didn’t take the correct decision, butt lucky I crashed in that last corner.
“When I crashed, I just waited on the run-off area and when all the group passed, just I went into the box to change the bike, because the bike I crashed was also a bit damaged.
“And from that point, I restarted the race and I saw I was P3. I overtook Pecco, Binder crashed, and somebody today said ‘Ok, this is the final result’.”
He added: “All the riders did the same mistake, because you are there, and even in the past I did the same mistake in 2014 in Aragon.
“You are there and you see that every three, four laps remain, and you say ‘Ok, I’ll stay out’, because it’s only three laps.
“But the rain was super heavy and was fully wet. So, with the slick tyres it was impossible.”
Marquez was found to have broken no rules when he crossed the circuit into pitlane, with the Ducati rider noting that he couldn’t have stayed out anyway due to bike damage.
“The thing is, when I crashed, when I picked up the bike, I saw the handlebar was too close and then it was difficult to ride with that,” he explained.
“For that reason, I just waited. I said ‘I cannot do anymore laps’ and I went into the pits. That was a very crucial moment. If you crash in Turn 1, 2, then the race is finished.”
[analyse_source url=”http://crash.net/motogp/news/1093520/1/marc-marquez-details-crazy-jerez-motogp-sprint-i-crashed-right-time”]