Recapping all the MotoGP/2/3 action from Misano – Reports – Images – Results – Points

2024 MotoGP World Championship
Round 13 – Misano – Sunday
Gran Premio Red Bull di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini

Just one week after returning to the top step of the podium on home soil, Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) reigned supreme once again behind enemy lines at Misano.

The Italian crowd continued singing their version of the national anthem long after the official singer had ceased, provided a stirring moment that saw the Italian riders on the grid singing along with them. They had come to see an Italian win, on an Italian motorcycle and by all accounts that was going to be on the menu. It was a big crowd too, 163,558 fans over the race weekend eclipsing the previous record at the venue.

However, rain showers added another ingredient that spoiled their home dish, as Spaniard Marc Marquez marched his way through the field from ninth place on the grid to take a resounding victory.

Still, Pecco was somewhat a winner on Sunday. Championship leader Jorge Martin made a frankly quite ridiculous gamble by entering the pits for a wet bike early on in the race. With a handy points lead up his sleeve, the smart move would have been to just follow what Pecco did, but instead he made a decision that, while a gamble, was one at extreme long odds, and just unnecessary.

Bagnaia, like just about everyone else, chose to stay out, and remained locked with Marquez for much of the race before settling into second place as the huge twist offered up by Martin’s mistake handed him key Championship gains.

Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) took the final spot on the rostrum, keeping his 100 per cent MotoGP rostrum record at Misano in tact and making his own gains on Martin in the standings.

When MotoGP returns to Misano in two weeks things are much tighter at the top. Martin’s lead has been trimmed to seven points. Marc Marquez is now only 46-points further behind, with nine-points over Bastianini.

MotoGP Race Report

There was drama before the start, with spots of rain and tension in the air. The white flags waved, allowing riders to swap bikes, and the stage was set for an enthralling San Marino GP.

As the lights went out, Bagnaia secured the holeshot, this time holding off Martin after the Spaniard got a good start but this time had to also dispatch team-mate and front row starter Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing) in third.

The two were locked together in the lead and Martin half went for a divebomb move at Turn 2, forced to cede and just avoiding contact with Bagnaia, but there was some contact further back in the aftermath as Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) then tried a move on Morbidelli but clashed with the Italian.

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Acosta lost a wing but did eventually find his way through at Turn 8 before ceding it again as he went wide at Turn 10. The rookie’s promising race then took a twist as he crashed out not long after, with the rain starting to pick up, and Morbidelli was next to slide out.

As the rain started to have a visible effect on the pace, there were decisions to be made. And at the front, Martin was now right back on the exhaust of Bagnaia in the lead, with Marc Marquez making serious progress into the group and Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) too. Heading towards pit entry next time round, there was one rider who decided to pit from the group: Martin.

As he peeled in, Bagnaia led Marquez at the front, but not for long. By the end of Lap 8, Marc was into the lead and Miller was hot on Bagnaia’s heels too, with Martin down in P15 afer rejoining.

But the rain didn’t get any worse, allowing Marquez and Bagnaia to stretch away just as Martin realised he was going to have to pit, again.

Re-emerging a lap down but right behind the leaders, the goal for Bagnaia to make Championship gains was now wide open. Those who gambled – Martin, Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Racing), Acosta after rejoining, Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team) and Aprilia Racing’s Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Viñales all pitted again, all but out of the fight for points.

Meanwhile, the rain had stopped but the gap at the front was only getting bigger. After holding it steady with Bagnaia on his tail, Marc Marquez began to pull away in the lead.

Bastianini was also fast coming into podium contention, slipping past Miller to take over in third, and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was next on the scene as he charged through into fourth as conditions improved, but as Bagnaia couldn’t make inroads on Marquez, neither could Bastianini nor Binder bridge their respective gaps.

Marquez kept it upright in some style to take first first back-to-back wins in 2021, throwing his name more firmly back into the Championship hat and on Gresini home turf. Bagnaia’s second place, however, was a stunning 19-point swing in the Championship as Martin’s gamble backfired – and the reigning Champion was happy enough with that for a tough day’s work under pressure.

Behind Bastianini and Binder in third and fourth, a duel to the finish decided fifth. After a tougher start from the front row, Marco Bezzecchi (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) was storming back through and homing in on Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP) as the laps ticked down, glueing the VR46 machine to the rear wheel ahead. The move came in the form of a dive up the inside at Turn 14, and Bezzecchi made it stick and held off the counter attack to complete the top five.

Meanwhile, Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team) concluded an impressive weekend, with the Frenchman matching his and Yamaha’s best results of 2024 so far as they work on moving back towards the front. Quartararo duelled Miller to the flag in the latter stages, slicing through at Turn 8 to take that P7. Fabio di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s wildcard Pol Espargaro rounded out the top 10, with Martin taking that single point in P15.

Racing will return to the iconic Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli in two weeks at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, and that’s after a one-day test on Monday too…

MotoGP Misano Race Results

Misano MotoGP Top Speeds Across Weekend

MotoGP Championship Standings

Moto2

A third win of 2024 for Ai Ogura (MT Helmets – MSI) has seen the Moto2 World Championship lead change hands as the Japanese star beats Aron Canet (Fantic Racing) by 0.6s to climb to the summit of the overall standings. Third place went the way of Tony Arbolino (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) as the Italian pocketed his second top three on the spin.

From pole, Arbolino launched well to grab the holeshot as Ogura stuck his Boscoscuro up the inside of Celestino Vietti (Red Bull KTM Ajo) to move up one place to P2. The opening lap saw title-hunting Alonso Lopez (Beta Tools SpeedUp) crash out at the final corner before we saw a move come in from Canet to grab P3 from Vietti.

The top three were getting into a competitive groove, with Arbolino leading Canet – who had now passed Ogura – by 0.4s, with the latter a couple of tenths further back in P3. At this stage – Lap 5 of 22 – Vietti was 0.9s away from the podium places in P4, with Manuel Gonzalez (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2™) keeping tabs on the Italian in P5.

With 13 laps left, the lead changed hands for the first time. Canet pounced on Arbolino, and on the same lap, the Italian ran wide at Turn 14 to allow Ogura to swing by. For the next few laps it was as you were at the front, with the gaps stabilising between Canet, Ogura and Arbolino. Meanwhile, Vietti was sitting 1.2s away from Arbolino’s rear wheel.

On Lap 18 of 22, Ogura was now climbing all over the tail of Canet’s Kalex-Triumph. Arbolino was still in touch but was operating 0.6s behind, as the leading duo engaged battle at Turn 14. Ogura was up the inside but ran in deep, which allowed Canet to swoop back through and keep the P1 baton.

That was snatched from him at Turn 10 with four laps left though. Ogura slid up the inside and made the move stick, as Arbolino and Vietti etched their names into the victory fight. However, Ogura was stretching the pack and trying to keep hold of the podium trio, Vietti crashed unhurt at the penultimate corner.

Four became three with two to go. Ogura was leading Canet by 0.2s, with Arbolino now just under a second from the win. Heading onto the last lap, it was just two riders in the victory hunt – Ogura and Canet. Could the latter get close enough to make a move? The answer was no. Ogura strung an inch-perfect final lap together to claim a massive win that sends him to the Championship summit. Canet finished a close P2 as Arbolino completed the podium, eventually finishing four seconds away from P1.

Gonzalez picked up a solid P4 finish, while Jake Dixon (CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team) came from P14 on the grid to pick up an important P5. Fermin Aldeguer (Beta Tools SpeedUp) was P6, as Filip Salač (Elf Marc VDS Racing Team) showed some great late race pace to take home a P7 – his best result of the season. Diogo Moreira (Italtrans Racing Team), Albert Arenas (QJMOTOR Gresini Moto2) and Darryn Binder (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) completed the top 10 just ahead of Australian rookie Senna Agius.

Senna Agius – P11

“It feels a bit strange because P11 is not a bad result in any way, but it’s a bit bittersweet. I feel like we are leaving a lot on the track at the moment, especially in the middle of the race when it comes to getting better positions and consolidating my rhythm, I lose some time. So I’m not completely satisfied because I don’t feel good enough in the middle part to take positions and fight in the group. All in all, it’s not too bad, but I still need to improve a lot. The positive thing is that the area we need to improve is very clear. This means for Misano two that we start again and keep working on this area, then Sunday will soon be really good if we can fix a few small things that are also related to Saturday. We are learning, the team is working hard, a big thank you to them and everyone involved.”

With Sergio Garcia (MT Helmets – MSI) finishing in a disappointing P12, the title lead is now with Ogura. 11 points split the team-mates ahead of the Emilia-Romagna GP in a couple of weeks, which way will the title race pendulum swing when we come back to Misano?

Moto2 Misano Race Results

Moto2 Misano Top Speeds Across Weekend

Moto2 Championship Standings

Moto3

Double Long Lap penalties normally rule you out of winning races – but it didn’t for Angel Piqueras at the San Marino GP! The Leopard Racing rookie is a Grand Prix winner after producing an unbelievable comeback ride to beat Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) by 0.035s, as Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) completed the podium after passing David Alonso (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team) on the final lap.

There was drama from the off as Turn 2 saw Aragon winner Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo), David Muñoz (BOE Motorsports) and Riccardo Rossi (CIP Green Power) crash, as Piqueras took an early lead. Ortola and Holgado were up to P2 and P3, with polesitter Alonso dropping to P4.

Having claimed a career-best grid spot, Luca Lunetta (SIC58 Squadra Corse) was handed a double Long Lap penalty for jumping the start – and Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) was in the same boat. Another rider facing a double Long Lap was Piqueras, and he took the first of those on Lap 3 to go from the top three to P12, which became P17 after the second was completed a lap later.

Meanwhile, Ortola and Holgado were making a break for it at the front. On Lap 5, the Spaniards were 1.5s up the road from Taiyo Furusato (Honda Team Asia), who had Joel Kelso (BOE Motorsports) and Alonso for very close company. By Lap 11 of 20, that deficit had been bridged as the top five locked horns in Misano.

With six laps to go, Furusato hit the front for the first time after picking Ortola’s pocket at Turn 1. That lead didn’t last long though as the #48 and Holgado shuffled the Japanese star back down to P3, as Alonso then pounced too. The Colombian then sent it up the inside of Holgado at Tramonto, before the #80 led with four laps left.
With three to go, the gloves were off. Holgado was back in P1 with Alonso, Furusato and Ortola right on his tailpipes, with Kelso 0.8s back. Suddenly, the recovering Piqueras was P4, then P3, as a four-way fight quickly became a seven rider scrap for the podium.

Last lap time! A belter had played out until now and we were treated to a stunning final 4.23kms. Holgado led into Turn 1 as Piqueras shoved his way past Alonso into P2, before the #36 then carved his way into the lead at Turn 8. At Turn 10, contact was made as Ortola dived up the inside of Alonso to move into P3, with the bumping and barging costing Alonso valuable ground. It was now a question of whether Piqueras hold off Holgado for the win. The latter was swarming, but Piqueras didn’t put a foot wrong to clinch his first Grand Prix win by 0.035s. Holgado was back on the box for the second time in three races, as Ortola bagged the final rostrum spot in P3 – 0.2s shy from the win.

Furusato had to settle for P4 after a great effort from the #72, as Veijer managed to grab P5 on the final lap. Having exceeded track limits on the last lap, Alonso was demoted to P7, which means Kelso leaves Misano with a solid P6. That ten-points sees Joel now only six-points away from moving inside the championship top six.

Joel Kelso – P6

“After a tough Friday with some difficulties, I thought the weekend was going to be an uphill battle. But we worked hard, took a gamble in Q1, and found the pace to put me at the sharp end in P6. It was a solid recovery effort by both myself and the team. Now, we can reflect on where to make those small improvements so we can come back even stronger in two weeks time.”

Seventh place for Alonso saw his healthy Championship points advantage shrink slightly to 70 ahead of Round 14, with Holgado moving up to P2.

Tatsuki Suzuki (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP), Lunetta and Filippo Farioli (SIC58 Squadra Corse) rounded out the top 10, the latter duo handing SIC58 a double top 10 on home turf.

Australian rookie Jacob Roulstone bagged four points from his 12th place finish.

Jacob Roulstone – P12

“Quite happy to finally get the confidence back and finish in the points. I got a better start than the last rounds, with better opening laps, which is a point I have been struggling with quite a lot. From the fifth lap,  I was a bit stuck in a group, but once I escaped, I got in a better group. The two riders in front of me made a small mistake in the end so I could grab two more positions, but I am overall happy with our race today. We have another race here in two weeks, and for sure it will benefit us! Thank you to the team as always, and let’s continue improving!”

Moto3 Misano Race Results

Moto3 Misano Top Speeds Across Weekend

Moto3 Championship Standings