Ducati rider Marc Marquez returned to winning ways at the Aragon Grand Prix, as the 2025 MotoGP championship leader took his seventh Sprint Race win so far this year.
After Marquez set a new MotoGP record with six consecutive Sprint wins in the opening six rounds, the 32-year-old produced a rare failure at Silverstone as he failed to win either race at the British Grand Prix. But Marquez has hit straight back at one of his loved playgrounds.
Marquez earned his seventh Aragon GP pole thus far on Saturday morning after denying his Gresini star sibling Alex Marquez by 0.260 seconds. But the six-time premier class champion would not convert pole into the lead at Turn 1, as Alex stole an early edge in the 11-lap race.
Mat Oxley defends Marc Marquez sticking his elbow out on Pedro Acosta in the Aragon Sprint
Marquez of Ducati got a good start from pole position, but it was by far the worst compared to Gresini’s Marquez and VR46’s Franco Morbidelli on the front row. KTM rider Pedro Acosta also got the jump on his fellow Spaniard from fifth on the grid, so passed Marquez at Turn 1.
Acosta would only lead Marquez in the Aragon GP for half of Turn 1, though, as the Cervera native cut back on the Mazarron-born star on the exit after the KTM racer ran deep. He also got back in front of Morbidelli at T1 on Lap 2 of 11, before overtaking Alex on L6 for the win.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Marc Marquez from net worth to girlfriend
But a somewhat controversial incident also occurred between Marquez and Acosta at T1, as the Ducati rider raised his left elbow as his KTM rival tried to squeeze him as far to the right-hand side as possible. Acosta wanted to open his line for T1 and claim the rubbered-in track.
Isle of Man TT lap record holder Mat Oxley had no problems with Marquez raising his elbow towards Acosta at the start of the Aragon Sprint, however. He argues the Ducati rider simply protected himself, while also avoiding both of the Spaniards crashing at the start of the race.
He said: “When a rider puts out an elbow like MM did after the start, it’s to stop your bike getting tangled up with your rival’s. If metal meets metal, you’ll probably both go down.”
Marc Marquez will rue his inferior launch letting Pedro Acosta get ahead in the Aragon Sprint
Acosta pushed Marquez as far to the right-hand side of the road into T1 as he possibly could at the start of the Aragon Sprint. But the KTM pilot did not stay ahead as the Ducati ace out-foxed Acosta, as Marquez braking earlier to avoid a collision meant he then got the cutback.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Pedro Acosta from net worth to girlfriend
It will no doubt bother Marquez that he could not get the holeshot into Turn 1 from pole in the Aragon Sprint, though. He will likely now want to work with his Ducati engineers to try to find a better setting for his launch device ahead of Sunday’s Grand Prix to do the double.
Despite Marquez winning each of the first six Sprint races this term, he has only secured the double three times since joining Ducati from Gresini ahead of the 2025 MotoGP season. He took Sprint and Grand Prix wins in the first two rounds in Thailand and Argentina plus Qatar.
