Acosta beats Marquez in a dramatic ThaiGP Sprint to open the new season

Pedro Acosta and Marc Marquez fought a close Sprint at the MotoGP 2026 season opener in Thailand. A penalty for Marquez following the Turn 12 incident helped Acosta secure his first premier-class Sprint victory and become the youngest Sprint winner.

The MotoGP 2026 season opened with PT Grand Prix of Thailand. Its Sprint took place on Saturday afternoon, 28 February 2026, at Chang International Circuit in Buriram.

Aprilia Racing's Marco Bezzecchi started from pole, with reigning champion Marc Marquez of Ducati Lenovo second. Trackhouse MotoGP Team's Raul Fernandez completed the front row after progressing through Q1.

Marquez made a strong start to the 13-lap race and took the lead at the first corner. At Turn 3, his brother Alex Marquez of Gresini Racing ran off the track, disrupting the race of Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing’s Fabio Di Giannantonio as both riders lost ground.

Marc Marquez and Bezzecchi exchanged the lead in an intense opening battle. The Italian's challenge ended when he crashed at Turn 8 on lap 2 and retired from the race.

Pedro Acosta of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing then closed on Marquez. After three attempts to pass at Turn 12, he made the move stick with three laps remaining.

The decisive incident came on the final lap, when Marquez passed Acosta at Turn 12 but made contact, forcing Acosta off the track. The FIM stewards imposed a one-position penalty, and Marquez gave the place back before crossing the finish line.

Pedro Acosta claimed his first MotoGP Sprint victory in 19 minutes 39.155 seconds, becoming the youngest Sprint winner at 21. Marc Marquez finished second, 0.108 seconds behind, with Raul Fernandez third at 0.540 seconds.

Ai Ogura of Trackhouse MotoGP Team climbed from eighth on the grid to finish fourth, 2.100 seconds behind the winner. Aprilia Racing’s Jorge Martin finished fifth, 3.851 seconds back.

Red Bull KTM Factory Racing's Brad Binder finished sixth, 4.612 seconds behind his teammate, followed by Honda HRC Castrol's Joan Mir at 4.921 seconds. Fabio Di Giannantonio recovered from an opening-lap setback to finish eighth, 5.748 seconds behind the winner.

Ducati Lenovo's Francesco Bagnaia recovered from 13th on the grid to finish ninth, 6.910 seconds behind the winner. Brazilian rookie Diogo Moreira of Pro Honda LCR started his first MotoGP race from 15th and finished 13th, 11.970 seconds behind. Prima Pramac Yamaha's Toprak Razgatlioglu finished 20th after a crash.

Actor and singer James Teeradon, also known as Jamyjamess, waved the chequered flag at the end of the Sprint.

Sunday's published programme for PT Grand Prix of Thailand 2026 on 1 March listed Moto3 at 12:00, Moto2 at 13:15 and MotoGP at 15:00, with live coverage on TrueVisions SPOTV.