Marco Bezzecchi has won the Indonesian Grand Prix, while Jorge Martin finished third to reclaim the overall lead in the MotoGP world championship. The Italian rider, who was riding an Aprilia, won the race on Sunday at the sweltering Mandalika International Circuit.
Bezzecchi made his decisive move on pole-sitter Raul Fernandez in the final third of a captivating Grand Prix. Fernandez, from Spain, took second, and his compatriot Martin came home third, also on Aprilia machines. Ducati’s Marc Marquez, the reigning seven-time world champion, finished sixth.
Championship standings after the Mandalika race
Martin retook the title lead from Marquez by two points, with five more race weekends still to come. The standings now show:
- Martin: 355 points
- Marquez: 353 points
- Bezzecchi: 309 points, third overall
Martin will travel to Australia in a fortnight holding the narrowest of leads. Bezzecchi, who last won a race in May, remains in contention for the title.
Bezzecchi’s late move and Fernandez’s injury
Fernandez had fractured two fingers in Saturday’s sprint, which forced him to improvise when braking. He still converted his first-ever pole position into a strong start and kept Bezzecchi behind him for much of the race. Bezzecchi and Fernandez had clashed and crashed out of the sprint earlier in the weekend.
The turning point came on lap 19, when Bezzecchi made his move and grabbed the lead. He then pulled away to win by 4.26 seconds, while Fernandez hung on gamely for second. Martin, a former world champion, had been running third for much of the race, while Marquez stayed in fifth without ever really threatening the leaders.
Reactions from Bezzecchi and Martin
Bezzecchi said he was delighted with the result. “It’s amazing, I’m very, very happy,” he said, adding that he believed he and his team deserved a result like this after going through tough times with him.
Martin said he had done everything he could. “I did the maximum,” he said, explaining that he had lost many positions at the start but stayed calm and passed riders step by step. “We are still in the fight and still in the lead,” he added.
