Martin Wins Austrian MotoGP Sprint as Acosta Crashes Out

Jorge Martin took a dramatic victory in the Austrian MotoGP sprint at the Red Bull Ring after Pedro Acosta crashed out of the lead with three laps remaining. The Aprilia rider reclaimed the championship lead by three points over his closest rival.

Acosta looked set to deliver a home win for KTM after capitalising on an early battle between Martin and Marc Marquez to seize the lead on the opening lap. However, an unforced error at Turn 2 on lap 12 of 14 dashed those hopes. Martin, who had dropped to eighth at the end of the first lap, inherited an unlikely win.

The race began with Martin getting a clean start from pole, but he ran too deep into Turn 1, allowing Marquez to close in. The two title rivals collided at Turn 2, with Marquez taking the lead as Martin dropped back. Acosta, also benefiting from the incident, latched onto the leaders. At Turn 3, Marquez missed his braking point and Acosta dived up the inside to take the lead.

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Once ahead, Acosta quickly built a one-second advantage in just three laps. Meanwhile, Martin was on a charge, picking off rivals one by one. On lap 7, he passed his team-mate Marco Bezzecchi for a podium spot. The following lap, he forced Marquez wide to move back into second. Although Acosta had a comfortable 2.5-second lead, Martin kept pushing.

Acosta's crash at Turn 2 changed everything. Martin inherited the lead and rode smoothly to the flag, finishing a second clear of Marquez. The win returned Martin to the top of the standings with a three-point advantage, while Marquez had to settle for second. Bezzecchi completed the podium on the other factory Aprilia.

Ai Ogura, returning after a two-race absence, finished fourth on the Trackhouse Aprilia, ahead of Alex Marquez on the Gresini Ducati. Francesco Bagnaia scored his first points since the summer break with a solid sixth, followed by Johann Zarco, Fermin Aldeguer, and Fabio di Giannantonio. No Yamaha rider finished inside the top 10, with Fabio Quartararo only managing 12th.

Only two riders failed to finish: VR46's Franco Morbidelli and Acosta. Acosta was able to remount after his crash, but his damaged bike forced him to pit shortly afterwards. The failure was a heavy blow for KTM in front of their home crowd and underlined the fine margins between victory and defeat in MotoGP.