Marco Bezzecchi celebrates a start-to-finish victory at the season opener in Thailand – Pedro Acosta (KTM) finishes second – Marc Marquez (Ducati) retires with tire damage
Marco Bezzecchi made up for his crash in the sprint. The Aprilia rider dominated the 2026 MotoGP season opener in Thailand and celebrated a commanding start-to-finish victory. Sprint winner Pedro Acosta (KTM) defended his World Championship lead with second place. Marc Marquez (Ducati) retired with a puncture (see results).
With asphalt temperatures reaching 55 degrees Celsius, all 22 riders opted for the medium rear tire. The Grand Prix was scheduled for 26 laps. Bezzecchi won the holeshot from pole position and took the lead ahead of Marc Marquez and Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse-Aprilia).
The Trackhouse rider overtook the world champion on the first lap, and Jorge Martin (Aprilia) also attacked Marc Marquez. Bezzecchi led after the first lap ahead of Fernandez, Marc Marquez, Jorge Martin (Aprilia), Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46-Ducati), and sprint winner Acosta.
Bezzecchi immediately pulled away at the front. After two laps, he already had a one-second lead over Fernandez. Marc Marquez lost touch with the Aprilia duo slightly and had the chasing group right behind him.
On the fourth lap, Marc Marquez lost third place to Martin. This meant that Aprilia had a triple lead. The world champion was also overtaken by Acosta and was now only fifth. Acosta then put pressure on Martin and attacked at the end of the eighth lap in the final corner, but the Aprilia rider countered on the home straight and regained third place. Acosta then tried again in turn 3, but once again the overtaking maneuver did not work.
One lap later, Acosta attacked again in the final corner, but Martin held his ground on the straight once more. Acosta made his next move in turn 3 and it worked, but Marc Marquez took advantage of this duel and overtook both of them.
The world champion didn’t stay in third place for long, as Acosta made his move in turn 8 and took the lead in this three-way battle. Bezzecchi controlled the race at the front. After ten laps, he had a two-second lead over Fernandez, who was three seconds ahead of the chasing pack.
The positions were initially set. Acosta was also able to pull away from Marc Marquez and Martin and secure third place. In the final third of the race, Fernandez’s lap times dropped significantly. Acosta and Marc Marquez caught up with the Trackhouse rider.
One more look at @marcmarquez93‘s incident ThaiGP pic.twitter.com/ruidYi7hWw
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) March 1, 2026
On lap 21, Marc Marquez suddenly rolled out! He had a rear tire failure. One lap later, his brother Alex Marquez (Gresini-Ducati) crashed out of the race in turn 4. Four laps before the end of the race, Acosta overtook Fernandez and was in second place.
However, Marc Marquez was not the only rider with a tire problem. Joan Mir (Honda) also slowed down four laps before the end. However, his rear tire did not come off the rim and he was able to drive back to the pits at a slow speed.
Ducati’s podium streak ends after 88 races
These were the final dramas of the race. Including the last two races at the end of 2025, this was Bezzecchi’s third Grand Prix victory in a row. “Yesterday was a small mistake with big consequences. That’s why it was important to fight back today,” said the Italian.
“My pace with the medium tire was good, we worked really well all weekend. I knew I could be fast if I was at the front, so I tried everything to get a good start. The bike was perfect!”
Kept it cool, calm, and collected when it mattered
And now stylish ThaiGP pic.twitter.com/EM4eFayaIq
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) March 1, 2026
With his sprint victory and second place, Acosta defended his World Championship lead. He now has a seven-point lead over Bezzecchi (in the World Championship standings). “We definitely have to be happy,” said the KTM rider, praising his team: “The team is doing a great job.”
“When you consider how we started here last year – even scoring points was difficult – and this year we’ve secured two podium finishes in a row. Thanks to KTM and everyone in Mattighofen, who were surely cheering us on early in the morning.”
Fernandez finished third. He attributed his slump to the fact that his rear tire was worn out. This ended the Ducati series after 88 races with at least one rider on the podium. Aprilia also took fourth and fifth place with Martin and Ai Ogura (Trackhouse-Aprilia).
Second place now for @ 37_pedroacosta ThaiGP pic.twitter.com/9t1jS3lIdN
— MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) March 1, 2026
Di Giannantonio was the best Ducati rider in sixth place. Brad Binder (KTM) finished seventh, followed by Franco Morbidelli (VR46-Ducati), who overtook Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) on the final lap. Luca Marini was the best Honda rider in tenth place after Mir’s retirement.
Eleventh place went to Johann Zarco (LCR-Honda). Enea Bastianini (Tech3-KTM) followed in twelfth position. Rookie Diogo Moreira (LCR-Honda) scored World Championship points in his debut, finishing 13th. Yamaha scored World Championship points with its new V4 engine.
Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins finished in 14th and 15th place. They lost half a minute to the leaders over the 26 laps. Superbike World Champion Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac) finished 17th on his MotoGP debut.
The Motorcycle World Championship is now taking a short two-week break. The next Grand Prix will take place on March 22 in Brazil. For the first time since 1989, the race will be held in Goiania. The track is new territory for all riders.
