The 2023 MotoGP World Championship now has an owner: Pecco Bagnaia. Without needing to finish Cheste’s last race – which he ended up winning – the 26-year-old driver from Turin was proclaimed two-time world champion early, in the sixth lap (of the 27), thanks to the fall of Jorge Martín.
The Madrid rider, who had made a mistake and had fallen back to 8th place when going wide under braking in Turn 1, tripped over the rear wheel of Marc Márquez’s Honda when he tried to come back to put pressure on Pecco, the first two-time champion to retain the title since Cervera did so in 2019.
The last assault for the MotoGP world crown began with a slight added advantage for Pecco Bagnaia. Three hours before the race, the stewards notified a penalty of three places on the grid for the polesitter, Maverick Viñales, for not obeying a flag in the morning warm-up. So the man from Roses left his most advanced starting position to Pecco Bagnaia, who was second, while Jorge Martín started in the same position, sixth. The Italian had the most favorable path to start leading.
The traffic lights went out and Bagnaia conquered the first corner in the lead, but Martín started like a missile and on the inside he climbed from 6th to 2nd place to get behind the Italian. Head to head was served. They were followed closely by two tough and fiery riders like the KTM Binder and Miller. Márquez was seventh (he started 9th) behind Viñales.
The script of a promised tense fight between the Madrid native and the Italian was blown up at the beginning of the third round. When braking at the end of the straight, Martín slipped in, went to the outside, touched the fairing of his motorcycle with Bagnaia’s, and went long into the escape, so that he fell behind and fell to 8th position. . He would have to come back to try to avoid the fast-track coronation of the Italian.
Martín gritted his teeth to climb positions, he had Bagnaia at 2.1 seconds, he overtook Àlex Márquez, but when he reached his brother Marc, the nut was harder to crack; There has never been a good relationship between the two and the man from Cervera would not give him the position.
On the sixth lap, when Martín was trying to pass the Repsol Honda, looking for the inside in turn 4, he touched the rear wheel and both went to the ground.
The Madrid native was excessive, in his drive to advance and climb positions. Goodbye to the title. Pecco Bagnaia was automatically champion, with 20 laps to go. “Martín OUT” they showed the sign from the wall to the Italian.
Pecco Bagnaia was a two-time world champion, the first to retain the title since Marc Márquez (2019), and the first driver to do so wearing the 1 since Mick Doohan in 1998.
Without Martín’s help, and with Bagnaia in the lead, the last race of the course lost all its excitement. Pecco was able to ride alone to the title, although for a few laps he encountered opposition from the impetuous Miller.
The Australian also paved the way for him by erasing himself from the lead with a crash on lap 20. Zarco and Di Giannantonio were left behind as pursuers, very motivated to achieve victory.
In the last lap, the champion imposed his hierarchy and defended himself from the harassment of his countryman, who complicated his life. Pecco secured his seventh victory of the year, with which he equals his mark from last year, and with which he closes the circle: he won the first and last of the course.
