Marc Marquez wins Japan sprint as French riders score

Marc Marquez reduced Jorge Martin’s advantage in the MotoGP championship by winning the Japanese Grand Prix sprint, with seven rounds still to come. The Ducati rider claimed his seventh sprint victory of the season, keeping the title fight tightly contested.

Marquez completed the 12-lap race ahead of Martin, but a late penalty changed the order behind him. Martin and Enea Bastianini were each demoted one position for exceeding track limits on the final lap. Diogo Moreira therefore moved into second for his first sprint podium, while Martin fell to third. The Aprilia rider remains the championship leader, seven points ahead of Marquez and 45 clear of Marco Bezzecchi.

The race was reshaped on the opening lap when Alex Marquez made a mistake that brought down Pedro Acosta and Fabio Di Giannantonio. All three retired. Johann Zarco and Fabio Quartararo benefited from the incident, moving from 10th and 12th on the grid to seventh and ninth respectively, and they held those positions to the finish.

Zarco earned three points and Quartararo one. Bezzecchi, who started among the leading contenders, ended sixth after choosing a medium tyre. The sprint results set up Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix, where Martin will try to protect his narrow championship lead.