Marc Marquez had to settle for sixth at the Indonesian Grand Prix as Jorge Martin reclaimed the lead of the championship.
The Ducati rider led the championship after winning the Sprint race on Saturday. But on Sunday, he did not have the pace to match Aprilia.
Marquez finished sixth at the Indonesian Grand Prix. It was the first time he had made it to the chequered flag in Mandalika on a Sunday, but it came as Aprilia clinched a 1-2-3-4 result.
Neil Hodgson found it ‘bizarre’ Jorge Martin passed Marc Marquez from so far back and on the brakes
Marquez was playing mind games with Martin in Indonesia. He followed him during qualifying, allowing him to get a tow and start ahead of him on the grid.
Martin could not get the better of Marquez in the Sprint as he finished off the podium. But the RS-GP was unbeatable on Sunday, with the Ducati rider struggling to keep up with his Italian rivals.
Marco Bezzecchi clinched victory over Raul Fernandez, with Martin in third ahead of Ai Ogura. Marquez was running third at the start, but on lap three, Martin produced an ambitious move from far back and made it stick.
Neil Hodgson was taken aback by the Aprilia rider’s overtake. He found it ‘bizarre’ that Marquez had been passed from so far back and late on the brakes.
He said on commentary on TNT Sports 2: “How bizarre. It’s rare you would see Marc Marquez get passed from that far back, on the brakes. I thought, ‘Well surely Martin’s going to go wide there into turn 10.’
“He is quite a way back. I would say he is three or four bike lengths, and then to be on a tighter line, on the dirty part of the track, cleanly go through, make the apex, very impressive.
“We’ve seen it, when Martin’s feeling it sometimes, maybe it’s one of those races now where everything starts clicking for him.”
Marquez says Martin’s riding style is similar to his, having been impressed by his data during his Pramac Ducati days. The pair are both late on the brakes, which sets up a tense title battle over the final five rounds of the season.
Source: MGP