Francesco Bagnaia kicked off his MotoGP title defence with victory in a thrilling Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday, as Marc Marquez finished a strong fourth on his Ducati debut.
Sprint winner Jorge Martin got the holeshot from pole position on his Pramac Ducati, but Bagnaia got an even better launch from fifth on the grid to slot into second position. Eager not to allow Martin to run away at the front, Bagnaia wasted little time in making a move on his 2023 title rival, throwing his factory Ducati up the inside into Turn 4 to snatch the lead straight away.
Marco Bezzecchi was classified 14th on the VR46 Ducati, while Trackhouse's Miguel Oliveira was able to recover from a long-lap penalty - a result of a clash with Espargaro in last year's Valencia GP - to claim the final point in 15th. Jack Miller was the last of the classified finishers in 21st after suffering a crash at Turn 1 on lap 2. The race was delayed when Raul Fernandez encountered an unspecified mechanical issue on his Trackhouse Aprilia at the original start.
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