Aprilia-Trackhouse’s Spanish rider Raul Fernandez won the British MotoGP Grand Prix on Sunday, claiming just the second race victory of his career. Championship leader Jorge Martin started on pole but was outpaced from the flag by his 25-year-old compatriot. Martin finished second, while Italian Marco Bezzecchi rounded off the podium.
Reflecting on his performance, Fernandez noted, “I’m happy and this win is special because we got three consecutive podiums and this one was a victory.” The win marked a significant turnaround for the Spaniard, who had crashed out of contention during Saturday’s sprint race and subsequently described himself as “an idiot.”
On Sunday, Fernandez led all 20 laps of the Silverstone circuit from start to finish. His path to victory was aided by a poor start from Martin, who may have been hampered by a mechanical problem following a shower of sparks from the rear of his motorcycle. Notably, Fernandez is the 12th different winner at Silverstone in 12 Grand Prix races on the legendary course, which also hosts Formula One Grands Prix.
Despite the difficult start, it was a productive weekend for 2024 world champion and Silverstone sprint winner Martin, who extended his lead in the overall standings to 31 points. “This result gave us a big, big boost for our motivation,” Martin said, adding that he had been highly focused but made a small mistake in the first corner that cost him several positions.
Japan’s Ai Ogura, who had started second on the grid and was sitting second overall, slid off the track midway through the race and now trails Martin by 37 points. Instead, Martin’s Aprilia teammate Bezzecchi has emerged as his principal title challenger following a heroic effort, having spent the summer break recovering from a collarbone fracture suffered in Germany last month.
Spain’s Alex Marquez of Ducati-Gresini finished fourth, placing ahead of KTM’s Spaniard Pedro Acosta and Italy’s Fabio Di Giannantonio of the Ducati satellite team VR46. Meanwhile, reigning world champion Marc Marquez of Spain, riding for the factory Ducati team, finished the race in seventh position.
