UPDATED: Valencia MotoGP, Ricardo Tormo – Sprint Race Results

*Rookie.

Jorge Martin wins the Valencia MotoGP Sprint race to take the world championship fight down to Sunday’s season finale.

Brad Binder and Marc Marquez, in his final Repsol Honda weekend, joined the Pramac Ducati rider on the podium.

Francesco Bagnaia’s title lead was reduced to 14 points with fifth place.

If Martin wins again tomorrow, Bagnaia needs to at least repeat today’s fifth to clinch his second crown.

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Bagnaia lined up second on the grid, behind Aprilia’s Maverick Vinales and ahead of Martin’s team-mate Johann Zarco.

Martin started directly behind Zarco, at the tail of the second row in sixth, setting up the likelihood that Sprint-ace Martin would go ‘bar-to-‘bar with Bagnaia sooner or later.

That duel happened after less than a lap.

Martin sliced under Bagnaia for second behind Vinales at Turn 11, Bagnaia responding by standing the Pramac rider up on the exit.

But the tangle allowed Marc Marquez and Brad Binder to pass the pair and while Martin set off in pursuit of the three riders ahead, Bagnaia soon had riders queueing up behind him in fifth.

Fabio Quartararo ed out while trying to pass Bagnaia at Turn 6 while at the front Vinales, Binder, Martin (now third) and Marc Marquez were nose to tail.

Binder sent his KTM under Vinales for the lead on lap 6 but Vinales responded. Binder made it stick a lap later, while Marquez began threatening Martin – brushing the #89’s shoulder with his front wheel!

Martin took the hint and passed Vinales into Turn 1, with Marquez demoting the Aprilia soon after.

Binder gifted the lead to Martin when he ran wide on lap 8 but chased Martin to the flag, while Bagnaia dug in for a damage-limitation ride.

In a repeat of last weekend’s Qatar race, Bagnaia had Gresini’s di Giannantonio crawling all over his rear wheel by the closing stages.

But would di Giannantonio, expected to be confirmed as a VR46 Ducati rider before Tuesday’s test, pass?

The answer was no and Bagnaia crossed the line with di Giannantonio and Marco Bezzecchi in his slipstream.

“4

Joan Mir, who underwent checks in hospital after a Friday morning fall, has withdrawn from the remainder of the weekend.

Soft, medium and hard tyres were in use for the Sprint, with Bagnaia choosing medium-medium and Martin medium-soft (rear).

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Bagnaia and Martin are among 15 full-time riders to have received an Official Warning for low tyre pressure. A further breach during either of this weekend’s races would result in a 3-second time penalty, or 6-seconds for Aleix Espargaro, who has offended twice.

Tyre pressure penalties are announced several hours after the race.

The only riders yet to use their low-pressure warning ‘joker’ are Fabio Quartararo, Takaaki Nakagami, Brad Binder, Joan Mir and Fabio di Giannantonio, plus the returning Alex Rins and absent (through injury) Miguel Oliveira.

The Valencia circuit has been resurfaced ahead of the 2023 event.

Among the riders saying farewell to their current teams this weekend are Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda), Franco Morbidelli (Monster Yamaha), Johann Zarco (Pramac Ducati), Fabio di Giannantonio (Gresini Ducati), Luca Marini (VR46) and Pol Espargaro (GASGAS Tech3).

“5

Reigning Moto2 champion Pedro Acosta will make his MotoGP debut, with GASGAS Tech3, at next Tuesday’s Valencia test.