RACE REPORT | MotoGP Thailand 2026

Marco Bezzecchi began the 2026 season in perfect fashion with a commanding victory in the opening Grand Prix. After a tense race packed with overtakes, crashes and technical issues, the Italian crossed the finish line with a comfortable advantage to take the first win of the year.

The first Grand Prix of the 2026 season had finally arrived. Following an eventful sprint race (won by Acosta) on Saturday, expectations were high for Sunday’s main race.

Bezzecchi made an excellent start and safely held his lead into the opening corners. Alex Márquez also launched well and managed to pass Pedro Acosta to move into sixth place. At the front, Raúl Fernández overtook Marc Márquez and climbed into second position, while Marc nearly lost another place at the start of lap two to Jorge Martín.

After the opening lap, the top ten were: Bezzecchi, Fernández, M. Márquez, Martín, Di Giannantonio, Acosta, A. Márquez, Mir, Binder and Bagnaia.

Further back, Acosta quickly began pushing to regain sixth place and soon closed in on Di Giannantonio, waiting for the right opportunity to attack.

Out in front, Bezzecchi started to control the race, opening a gap of more than one second to Fernández while also setting the fastest lap. Behind them, Marc Márquez was defending his third place from Martín.

At the end of lap three, Acosta overtook Di Giannantonio at turn 12 to move into fifth. Moments later, Martín passed Marc Márquez for third, placing an Aprilia rider in a podium position at that stage.

Acosta soon caught Marc Márquez and repeated his sprint race move, overtaking him at the final corner.

Most riders opted for a soft front tyre and a medium rear tyre. While Bezzecchi gradually increased his lead at the front, Fernández also built a gap of around 1.7 seconds to Martín in third.

Running in fourth place, Acosta showed impressive pace and had already caught Martín by lap six. Further down the order, Fabio Quartararo was running in 15th place.

On lap eight, Acosta attempted a move on Martín but took a poor line and immediately lost the position. He tried again at the next corner but ran wide, allowing Martín to retake the place. Their fight also brought Marc Márquez back into the battle.

Acosta attacked once more and this time made the move stick. The battle continued for several laps, and Marc Márquez took advantage to pass Martín and then Acosta. However, Acosta responded quickly and reclaimed third place from Márquez.

After 11 laps, the top ten were: Bezzecchi, Fernández, Acosta, M. Márquez, Martín, Di Giannantonio, Mir, A. Márquez, Bagnaia and Binder.

Acosta then opened a gap of more than two seconds to Marc Márquez in fourth and began to close in on Fernández in second.

Further back, Ai Ogura passed both Bagnaia and Alex Márquez. On lap 21, Marc Márquez suffered a rear tyre problem and was forced to retire, bringing out yellow flags in sector three. With five laps remaining, Alex Márquez crashed out in sector two.

At the front, the battle for second intensified. Acosta eventually passed Fernández and moved into second place. Shortly afterwards, Joan Mir encountered technical issues and slowly returned to the pits, also retiring from the race. There was also a brief fight for fifth place between Di Giannantonio and Ogura, but Ogura soon made a clean move on the inside to take the position.

As the riders started the final lap, Bezzecchi held a six-second advantage over the rider behind. Aprilia had four riders inside the top five, highlighting a remarkable performance for the manufacturer. Marco Bezzecchi secured victory in the season opener, followed by championship leader Pedro Acosta in second and Raúl Fernández in third.

2026 MotoGP Thailand Grand Prix