Marc Márquez owned Buriram Saturday, blasting from pole to a crushing Tissot Sprint win in his Ducati Lenovo Team debut. The six-time MotoGP champ fended off brother Alex Márquez by 1.185 seconds, while Francesco Bagnaia held off rookie Ai Ogura for third, 3.423 back. It’s Márquez’s first gold of 2025—and his first points lead since 2019.
“It was the perfect Saturday, and the best way to start this new journey with the Ducati Lenovo Team,” Márquez said post-race. “Both pole position and sprint race win are important and I’m happy, but I know that tomorrow’s race is what counts the most. We’ll try to be consistent: Pecco is very strong as so is Alex, who showed his speed both in testing and in the weekend so far.”
Lights out, Márquez snatched the holeshot, Bagnaia nabbed P2, but Alex lunged past Pecco into Turn 3. Ogura swooped wide at Turn 1, sniping fourth from Jack Miller’s fifth. Lap two, Marc stretched a 0.3-second lead, Alex clung to second, and Bagnaia trailed as Ogura shadowed. By lap three, Marc’s edge hit 0.6, Alex held a second on Pecco, and Miller tucked into fifth ahead of Franco Morbidelli.
Trouble brewed early—Marco Bezzecchi botched his launch, sinking to the back, clawing to 14th by mid-race. Lap four, Marc pushed to 0.8 over Alex, Bagnaia lost touch, and Ogura kept Pecco honest. Then Miller’s race imploded—seven laps left, the Aussie lowsided at Turn 8 from sixth, gifting Fabio Quartararo the Yamaha lead. Pedro Acosta pounced a lap later, nicking sixth off Quartararo’s mistake at the same corner.
Five to go, Marc’s gap ballooned to 1.1, Alex sat 1.2 ahead of Bagnaia, who found pace as the fastest man on track. Ogura hung 0.5 off Pecco, Morbidelli a distant fifth. Three laps left, the top three locked in—Ogura’s podium bid faded to 0.8 behind Bagnaia. Final two, Bagnaia’s chase for second fizzled, and Marc cruised home, sealing a perfect Saturday. Alex banked P2, Pecco P3, and Ogura’s stunning fourth landed 4.392 back—1.3 clear of Morbidelli.
Sunday’s Grand Prix (15:00 UTC +7) beckons. Márquez’s triple’s alive—Alex and Bagnaia won’t go quiet.
Top 10 – Tissot Sprint, PT Grand Prix of Thailand:
- Marc Márquez (Ducati Lenovo Team)
- Alex Márquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) +1.185
- Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) +3.423
- Ai Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) +4.392
- Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) +5.790
- Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) +11.700
- Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) +13.437
- Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) +14.228
- Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) +15.453
- Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +16.209
