Bagnaia wins in Thailand to cut Martin’s lead

Reigning MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia cut Jorge Martin’s championship lead to 17 points with two races of the season remaining thanks to victory in the Thailand Grand Prix.

Italian Bagnaia, riding for Ducati, claimed his ninth win of the season in wet conditions at the Chang International Circuit in Buriram.

Pramac Racing’s Martin finished second and fellow Spaniard Pedro Acosta third for Tech 3.

Bagnaia, who slipped from pole to third at the start, regained the lead from Martin on lap five before the race developed into a duel between Bagnaia and six-time champion Marc Marquez.

But Gresini’s Marquez slid off on the 14th of 26 laps and Bagnaia held off Martin to win by almost three seconds. Marquez remounted to finish 12th.

Martin and Bagnaia were second and third respectively in Saturday’s sprint race, which was won by Ducati’s Enea Bastianini.

The Malaysian GP takes place from 1-3 November and the Valencia GP from 15-17 November.