The current world champion had an exciting start to the 12-lap sprint, working his way up from fourth place. When Brad Binder from KTM crashed while leading on lap seven, Bagnaia took over the lead and seemed set to win his first sprint race since the 2023 Austrian GP. But on the final lap, at Turn 5, he crashed, marking his third sprint Did Not Finish (DNF) of the season.
Bagnaia described the crash as “curious” because he entered Turn 5 slower than before, indicating that he wasn’t pushing too hard at that point. He emphasized the need to analyze and understand what happened to prevent similar incidents in the future. Despite leading and feeling in control until the crash, he expressed disappointment at missing out on another opportunity to win.
Reflecting on the crash, Bagnaia noted that it was unusual for a crash to happen in such a controlled situation. He also observed that other riders who were leading also crashed during the race, making it a strange occurrence that needs further investigation.
Bagnaia’s crash in the sprint race further hampers his chances in the 2024 championship. While he was aiming to close the gap in the standings, he now finds himself 44 points behind the leader, Jorge Martin. This setback adds to a challenging season in sprint races for Bagnaia, who hasn’t stood on the podium in a sprint since the 2023 Malaysian GP.
In contrast, Martin has been successful in sprint races this season, winning three times and consistently finishing on the podium. Similarly, Marc Marquez has secured multiple second-place finishes, showing strong performance on the Ducati run by Gresini Racing.
