Controversial Marquez penalty hands Pedro Acosta sprint victory

The pair found themselves fighting for the win after pole sitter Marco Bezzecchi crashed out on Lap 2. Acosta, who is set to become Marquez's future teammate at the factory Ducati team, fought bravely and ultimately claimed a deserved victory - but not one without controversy.

After several overtakes between the two, Marquez launched a huge divebomb into the last corner and forced Acosta off the track. 

He was handed a 1 place penalty and forced to hand over the sprint victory to Acosta on the final lap. 

In the immediate aftermath, Marquez said that he accepted the decision and would leave it to the discretion of the stewards rather than give his personal opinion.

If the sprint race is anything to go by, we are in for a highly competitive Thai Grand Prix tomorrow.

The first qualifying session of the 2026 season has conclused at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram, Thailand with Marco Bezzecchi claiming the first pole position of the year.

It was another strong session for Aprilia who managed to secure three of the top five spots on the grid and appear to be the stronger bike around this track.

Bezzecchi was clearly the fastest rider throughout qualifying and secured pole position despite crashing out on his final flying lap attempt.

Read about the qualifying session and check out a full table of results including Moto2 and Moto3 here.