F1 2026 Belgian Grand Prix Qualifying Results
July 19, 2026
Marc Marquez‘s remarkable Austrian MotoGP Sprint win ended his Red Bull Ring victory drought and stretched his 2025 MotoGP championship lead to 123 points over his brother Alex Marquez.
The six-time premier world champion claimed his twelfth Sprint victory of the season and extended a staggering unbeaten run to 11 races, cementing his dominance in the 2025 MotoGP campaign.
Marc Marquez started the Sprint from fourth on the grid in the thick of competition against the craftiest rivals Ducati, KTM, Aprilia, and Yamaha have to offer.
However, the start was overshadowed by front-row qualifier Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia who suffered a catastrophic wheelspin at launch, vaulting him from the expected fight for the lead down to fourteenth as the pack thundered past.
Bagnaia’s ship only sank further as he wrestled handling issues on his Desmosedici GP25 while rear tyre grip vanished, ultimately retiring mid-race. His technical woes were later rumored to stem from a problematic rear soft Michelin.
In the early laps, it was a Marquez-family affair up front with Marc’s younger brother Alex Marquez showcasing immense pace on his BK8 Gresini Ducati GP24 to snatch an early lead.
Alex carved away the lead his machine seemingly locked in textbook rhythm, but his grasp on the race was challenged as Marc pursued relentlessly.
The elder Marquez slotted into second within the opening laps having avoided the chaos of Bagnaia’s struggles, and began meticulously managing tyre wear and race tempo.
Calm and clinical, Marc Marquez stalked his brother for nine laps waiting for an opening as the Red Bull Ring crowd buzzed in anticipation. With five laps remaining, Marc capitalized on a slip by Alex to execute a decisive overtake and from there, he controlled the race.
As the laps ticked away, Marc built a comfortable buffer ultimately crossing the finishing line 1.180 seconds ahead of Alex Marquez who was unable to mount a counterattack and had to settle for second.
The Austrian MotoGP Sprint win extended Marc’s championship advantage, bringing his total to a remarkable 393 points, 123 clear of his brother.
Full 2025 Austrian MotoGP Sprint Race Results
Marco Bezzecchi storms to Austrian MotoGP pole as Marc Marquez crashes
Meanwhile, Pedro Acosta delivered a sensational performance to secure a home podium for KTM.
Marco Bezzecchi was unable to convert his pole position into a podium but held firm under pressure to claim a creditable fourth place on the factory Aprilia RS-GP25.
Bezzecchi was quickly relegated down the order in the opening exchanges yet composed himself impressively, parrying advances from rivals and applying late pressure on Acosta as the laps wound down.
Brad Binder made it two KTMs in the top five, marking his best Sprint result of the season much to the delight of the local fans and KTM supporters.
Gresini rookie sensation Fermin Aldeguer endured his own launch drama reminiscent of Bagnaia’s predicament, yet he rallied with a strong race to finish sixth marking his best Sprint showing of the year so far.
Enea Bastianini steered his Red Bull KTM Tech3 RC16 to a solid seventh followed by VR46 Ducati’s Fabio Di Giannantonio who fought back from a frustrating qualifying to come home eighth.
Johann Zarco opted for a different tyre strategy – a medium rear as opposed to the soft chosen by most of his rivals – which ultimately paid off a ninth-place finish for Castrol Honda LCR.
Reigning world champion Jorge Martin rounded out the top ten for Aprilia after a close battle with Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo and Honda’s Luca Marini who finished 11th and 12th respectively.
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