Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team #63) is a Grand Prix winner in 2025 after an immensely dramatic Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas unfolded on a Sunday afternoon that saw COTA King, Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team #93), crash out of the lead. Report: Ed Stratmann/MotoGP

With another P2 finish, Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP #73) became the new MotoGP title chase leader, as Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team #49) completed the podium in an absolutely unforgettable Round 3.

Read our MotoGP Round 2 report here...

Friday Practice and Saturday Qualifying

MotoGP

Starting wet, finishing dry and with a flurry of action, Friday afternoon’s MotoGP™ Practice at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas was a real treat. With rain easing off after a lunch time shower, we got the fastest times of the weekend thus far, resulting in Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) setting a 2.09:929 to set the only time in the 2.02 bracket of the day, holding off Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team pairing Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli (#21) behind.

Qualifying for MotoGP™ at the Circuit of the Americas was a rollercoaster, with history made and some late shuffles changing the front row once and then again. Having topped Friday afternoon and Saturday morning action, COTA master Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) remained the rider to beat with his eighth pole at the circuit though, and that’s a new record for poles at one track in MotoGP.

Behind Marc Marquez was Di Giannantonio, Alex Marquez, Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing #37), Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Bagnaia.

Moto2

Days at the office don’t get much better than that if your name is Jake Dixon (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team #96). P1 in FP1 was backed up by a dominant P1 in Practice to see the British rider sail into Saturday as the rider to beat in Moto2 at the Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas, as Tony Arbolino (BLUCRU Pramac Yamaha Moto2 #14) and Alonso Lopez (Team HDR Heidrun #21) pocketed P2 and P3 on Friday.

It’s one win apiece in Moto2 this season for Championship leader Manuel Gonzalez (Liqui Moly Intact GP #18) and key rival Jake Dixon (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team), but the former’s made a clean sweep of qualifying so far. Dixon turned the tables in Texas to take his first pole of the year though, and it was Gonzalez he denied to set up another showdown – the #18 even heading through Q1 too.

Third went to Barry Baltus (Fantic Racing LINO SONEGO #7) as he took his first front row. Aron Canet (Fantic Racing LINO SONEGO #44) slotted into fifth ahead of a huge step forward in Moto2 qualifying for Alonso.

Moto3

Practice for the Moto3™ World Championship saw a familiar name on top as Matteo Bertelle (LEVEL UP – MTA #18) continued his prowess from the opening two Grands Prix. In a session that was once again wet, he led a very fast rookie in Maximo Quiles (CFMOTO Valresa Aspar Team #28), whilst Scott Ogden (CIP Green Power #19) was P3.

David Muñoz (LIQUI MOLY Dynavolt Intact GP #64) put in a late charge to pole position at the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas, denying rookie sensation Maximo Quiles (CFMoto Valresa Aspar Team) an unbelievable debut pole by just 0.110. Joel Kelso (LEVELUP – MTA #66) completes the front row, having come from Q1.

Saturday

Tissot Sprint

Stateside Tissot Sprint glory went the way of Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) – but not without a decent slice of drama and fireworks thrown in along the way. The #93 eventually beat Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) by less than a second in Austin to keep up his 100% victory record in 2025, as Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) – after leading on the first lap – brought home a bronze medal to set things up beautifully for Sunday.

Without any shadow of a doubt, the opening lap of the Sprint was the best lap of the season – and it’ll take some beating too. Bagnaia, from P6, launched away superbly to grab the holeshot up the hill into Turn 1. Marc Marquez bit straight back at Turn 2 to retake the lead from his teammate, but at Turn 3, it was Pecco doing the overtaking again. It didn’t take long before Marquez decided to pounce back though, Turn 7 his chosen spot.

So it was Marc Marquez leading Bagnaia and Alex Marquez. But at Turn 17, the #93’s Sprint very nearly came to a premature end. An almighty rear-end slide led to the six-time MotoGP Champion getting thrown out of the saddle, which cost the Championship leader P1 and P2. Thought we were done? Nope. Bagnaia and the Marquez brothers were locked together on the exit of Turn 19 and into Turn 20, the final corner, Marc Marquez passed both to retake the lead, with Alex Marquez slotting into P2. That’s worth several rewatches.

That was some opening lap. But after hitting the front again and getting into a rhythm, Marc Marquez started to build a gap to Alex Marquez. It was 0.6s on Lap 3, as Bagnaia lost touch with the top two. The Italian had Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP #20) swarming all over his rear tyre before the Frenchman had a huge moment on entry to Turn 15, which allowed Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) to slide through. Now, Quartararo was in a VR46 sandwich, with Fabio Di Giannantonio sitting in P6.

On Lap 5 of 10, Marc Marquez’s advantage had shrunk from just under a second to 0.4s. That did rise back up to 0.6s on the next lap though, as Pecco found pace. But was it too late to lock onto the rear end of Alex Marquez?

Meanwhile, a ferocious battle was unfolding between the two VR46 Ducatis and Quartararo. The trio exchanged fourth with four laps to go as the Yamaha star dug deep to try and cling onto a chance of finishing P4 – and what a job he was doing.

With two laps to go, Marc Marquez’s lead was up to 1.4s, while Alex Marquez was still holding Bagnaia at bay by just over a second. However, heading onto the last lap, Alex had reeled in Marc. It was 0.7s over the line, so could anything be done by the younger Marquez to end his brother’s early season momentum?

The answer was no. Marc Marquez held firm to pick up his third Tissot Sprint win on the bounce, with Alex Marquez continuing his P2 streak. Bagnaia claimed an important P3, just under two seconds away from his teammate, but the 2022 and 2023 MotoGP World Champion would be wanting more in Sunday’s Grand Prix despite being pleased with the result.

After a phenomenal mid-race scrap, Di Giannantonio won the fight for fourth, with Morbidelli keeping Quartararo behind him as the former teammates clinched P5 and P6 respectively – a top effort from the Yamaha star.

“That opening lap was too close,” Marquez commented. “The grip was worse, but it was a nice fight with Pecco and Alex. In the end I found my rhythm.”

Tissot Sprint Race Results

  1. Marc Marquez Ducati Lenovo
  2. Alex Marquez BK8 Gresini Ducati (+0.795s)
  3. Francesco Bagnaia Ducati Lenovo (+1.918s)
  4. Fabio Di Giannantonio Pertamina VR46 Ducati (+8.536s)
  5. Franco Morbidelli Pertamina VR46 Ducati (+9.685s)

Sunday

MotoGP

Talk about amplified drama. Rain before the start saw the riders face incredibly tricky conditions heading to the grid, as Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) proved. The Frenchman crashed on his sighting lap, but managed to get back round to the grid, as we then saw something we very rarely see.

Just before the three-minute board was signalled, Marc Marquez dashed off the grid. This led to Bagnaia, Di Giannantonio, Alex Marquez and more following suit, with riders and team members sprinting down pit lane to grab the spare bikes that were fitted with slick tyres.

Some though, including Luca Marini (Honda HRC Castrol #10), Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing #33), Ai Ogura (Trackhouse MotoGP Team #79) and Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3 #23), opted to gamble on slick tyres from the get-go and remained on the grid – along with some other riders. However, in the chaos, the red flags were thrown. Below, the reasoning from Race Director Mike Webb:

“We called for a delay and then quick start procedure due to safety concerns. Given the number of riders, bikes and pit staff on the grid and in the pit lane area, it was impossible to start the Warm Up lap. A new race start was the safest way to respond to the unprecedented circumstances at the start of the Grand Prix. We will analyse the situation together with the teams and revisit the regulations.”

After a brief pause in proceedings, the updated information was a 14:10 pit lane green light and a quick start procedure, with original grid positions to be occupied by every rider. Then, it was time to try again – every rider now on slicks. But again, there was drama. Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech3 #12) had to be wheeled off the grid before we finally got the Grand Prix underway.

Marc Marquez launched well and grabbed the holeshot, with Alex Marquez holding off Bagnaia into Turn 1. Pecco was trying to wriggle his way past the Gresini rider, first at Turn 11, then at Turn 12, but both attempts failed. Meanwhile, Marc Marquez built a 1.1s lead at the end of Lap 1, with the top four – Marquez, Marquez, Bagnaia and Di Giannantonio – nearly two seconds up the road from Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Team #43), who was enjoying a good battle with Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team).

A 2:02.466 from the #93 saw Marquez stretch his lead to 1.6s at the start of Lap 5, and then a 2:02.433 meant the gap was now up to the two-second mark. Meanwhile, further down the pack in the fantastic fight for P6, Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) crashed at Turn 1.

Then, fancy another massive slice of drama? Because that’s what we got. Turn 4 was the place, and it was race leader Marc Marquez who was on the floor! The front end washed away as he clipped across the curb too far, hit a wet patch, and with that, the undefeated run was over. Marquez was able to remount in P18, but without a right foot peg, plus more damage to his GP25, there was no way back into the points for the #93 with both Viñales and Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia Racing #32) passing the six-time MotoGP Champion.

So where did that leave us? Bagnaia led Alex Marquez by 1.6s, with the latter 2.2s clear of Di Giannantonio. And on Lap 13, Marc Marquez called time on his 2025 Sunday outing at the Americas GP. The victory streak was officially over.

Meanwhile, the fastest rider on track was Fermin Aldeguer (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP #54) and the rookie, with two laps left, bullied his way past Miller for P5. However, a fantastic ride then ended in the gravel trap at Turn 15, and at a similar time, Zarco’s impressive display ended at Turn 12.

Last lap time. Bagnaia simply had to bring it home, but 2.5s behind, Alex Marquez couldn’t relax as much. Diggia was prowling, a second split the two, so any slight error from the #73 could prove costly. In the end, it stayed as you were. Bagnaia bagged a massive 25 points to become the 10th rider in history to earn 30 MotoGP wins, as new World Championship leader, Alex Marquez, crossed the line in P2 for the sixth straight outing. Di Giannantonio’s efforts weren’t enough for P2, but nevertheless, a phenomenal P3 was pocketed for the Italian in Austin. Morbidelli came home in P4, with Miller grabbing his best Yamaha result with a very classy P5.

“It’s an incredible feeling, I’m very happy. It’s the first time I’ve won here at COTA,” Bagnaia said. “I know that the win came because of a crash for Marc. He was faster than us, faster than everybody else today. So I was just trying to match his pace as best as possible.”

MotoGP Race Results

  1. Francesco Bagnaia Ducati Lenovo
  2. Alex Marquez BK8 Gresini Ducati (+2.089s)
  3. Fabio Di Giannantonio Pertamina VR46 Ducati (+3.594s)
  4. Franco Morbidelli Pertamina VR46 Ducati (+10.732s)
  5. Jack Miller Pramac Yamaha (+11.857s)

Check out the full MotoGP race results here…

MotoGP Championship Points

  1. Alex Marquez Ducati Lenovo – 87
  2. Marc Marquez BK8 Gresini Ducati – 86
  3. Francesco Bagnaia Ducati Lenovo – 75
  4. Franco Morbidelli Pertamina VR46 Ducati – 55
  5. Fabio Di Giannantonio Pertamina VR46 Ducati – 44

Moto2

P1 on Friday, pole position on Saturday and P1 on Sunday. Jake Dixon (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) was simply unstoppable at the Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas as wet weather added an extra dose of spice to the Moto2 Grand Prix.

Just as the Moto3 race ended, the skies decided to sprinkle some water over COTA to add some pre-race drama to Moto2. But with the rain not heavy, some riders decided to chance it on slick tyres for the start – including World Championship leader Gonzalez. Dixon, the polesitter and Argentina GP winner, opted for Pirelli’s wet tyres.

And it proved to be the right decision for the Brit and most of the other riders. On Lap 8, Dixon lapped Gonzalez, the Spaniard’s teammate Senna Agius (#81) and Diogo Moreira (Italtrans Racing Team #10), who were all struggling to keep their Triumph-powered machines on the road.

With five laps left, Dixon grew his lead to six seconds over Arbolino, with Lopez four seconds behind the Italian. That gap dropped to 5.2s on the penultimate lap, but heading onto the final lap, it grew again to 5.5s. Meanwhile, chasing teammate Lopez for the final podium spot, Celestino Vietti (Team HDR Heidrun #13) crashed not once, but twice. Turn 12 the first and then eager to get back into the race, Turn 13 saw Vietti go down to end his points hopes altogether.

There were no such issues for Dixon though. A mixed conditions masterclass saw the #96 clinch a second consecutive victory and, with it, the Championship lead. Arbolino collected his first podium of the season, and so too did Lopez as Boscoscuros locked out the rostrum.

Aron Canet (Fantic Racing LINO SONEGO) claimed an important points haul in P4, with Izan Guevara (BLUCRU Pramac Yamaha Moto2 #28) coming from P26 on the grid to bag a P5 – a tremendous ride from the Spaniard.

Moto2 Race Results

  1. Jake Dixon Elf Marc VDS Racing (Boscoscoro)
  2. Tony Arbolino BLU CRU PramacYamaha Moto2 (+4.148s)
  3. Alonso Lopez Team HDR Heidrun (+12.685s)
  4. Aron Canet Fantic Racing LINO SONEGO (+28.375s)
  5. Izan Guevara BLU CRU Pramac Yamaha Moto2 (+30.290s)

Moto2 Championship Points

  1. Jake Dixon Elf Marc VDS Racing – 59
  2. Aron Canet Fantic Racing LINO SONEGO – 46
  3. Manuel Gonzalez Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP – 45
  4. Alonso Lopez Team HDR Heidrun – 30
  5. Tony Arbolino BLU CRU PramacYamaha Moto2 – 28

Moto3

Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) put in another stunner at the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas, hitting the gas at the front and pulling a gap to take his second win of the year. Joel Kelso took his first dry weather podium in second, with LEVELUP – MTA teammate Matteo Bertelle completing the rostrum for his first Moto3 podium ever.

Off the line it was a stunning start for Maximo Quiles (CFMoto Valresa Aspar Team) and the debutant kept it pinned round the first lap too, leading his very first racing lap in the World Championship. The classic group fight at the front was in hot pursuit although it didn’t take long for some dramas to change the dynamic again.

David Muñoz (Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP) was the first as he slid out of the lead group, suffering another tough race after starting on pole. Adrian Fernandez (Leopard Racing) had some dramas too, the first of which was nearly not making it out of pitlane on time after a technical issue. He was allowed to leave to line up on the grid despite the red light because the green flag hadn’t been removed, but he was at the back. And then he jumped the start and got two Long Laps.

Meanwhile, Quiles led the first lap, but then came under attack, with Rueda making his way to the front and building a lead. By half race distance it was over two seconds, with Kelso and Bertelle in a duel in second and third. Then came Angel Piqueras (FRINSA – MT Helmets – MSI #36), Alvaro Carpe (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Quiles on the chase, before a much bigger gap back to a big group battle from seventh place down.

Rueda began the final lap with some breathing space in the lead, with Kelso also managing to make it a safe second ahead of teammate Bertelle, who finally took a podium after having also taken two poles to start the season but missed out on the rostrum. The fireworks came behind between Piqueras and Quiles, who had a spectacular last lap duel. Experience just won out as the #36 took fourth and a good chunk of points. Quiles debuts in the top five after a stunning weekend, with Carpe forced to settle for sixth.

Moto3 Race Results

  1. Jose Antonio Rueda Red Bull KTM Ajo
  2. Joel Kelso LEVELUP – MTA (+2.399s)
  3. Matteo Bertelle LEVELUP – MTA (+4.200s)
  4. Angel Piqueras FRINSA -MT Helmets – MSI (+5.345s)
  5. Maximo Qulies CFMOTO Aspar Team (+5.522s)

Moto3 Championship Points

  1. Jose Antonio Rueda Red Bull KTM Ajo – 66
  2. Angel Piqueras FRINSA – MT Helmets – 42
  3. Adrian Fernandez Leopard Racing – 40
  4. Matteo Bertelle LEVELUP – MTA – 40
  5. Alvaro Carpe Red Bull KTM Ajo – 30

How Did the Aussies Do?

Jack Miller claimed his first top five finish of the 2025 campaign with an excellent ride in Texas. Cutting a delighted figure after the race, his words made for great reading. “It was a good day for us,” Miller explained. We had a solid pace throughout the entire race after a strong start, where I also managed to stay out of trouble at Turn 1.

“The bike was behaving well, and I was trying to get the maximum out of it. I really hope we can continue this trend. I‘m also very happy for the entire Prima Pramac Yamaha team. They work so hard every day to give me a great bike, and they deserve a day like this. The atmosphere is so amazing that it just makes me want to give them more and more.”

The unpredictable weather conditions ensured it was a tough one for Senna Agius, as the Australian went for slick tyres. While this move unfortunately didn’t pay off, the 19-year-old showed commendable maturity to bring it home safely in 23rd.

Joel Kelso had a race to remember as the young hotshot claimed a masterful second. Banking his first dry weather podium in fine style, in a race where he showed his skills, fight and racecraft, this was a fitting reward for an outstanding body of work.

“It’s been a long time between podiums! But I am so happy to finally be back up there. Thank you all for the support! Let’s keep the ball rolling,” an overjoyed Kelso insisted.

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