Short and narrow, with slow and fast areas, physically demanding. This is the Bugatti Circuit in Le Mans. A track where overtaking is difficult but where this weekend Jorge Martín has brought out his best version to demonstrate that one thing is theory and another is practice (almost always).
And what we have been able to confirm is that Aprilia is the bike to beat and that it will be tremendously difficult if, if things continue like this, the title does not end in Noale when we get to Valencia. In whose hands? That’s another story…
Starting well is better than starting in a good position and Martín showed it
One of the peculiarities that Le Mans has is that the straight is not completely straight and, in fact, shortly after the start there is that first corner that is so fast that it is done flat out. Then comes turn two, which is not a typical straight-end curve either, and it is the chicane at 3-4 where the first hard braking comes. So finding the place and positioning yourself well to gain positions is as important as the starting position. This was demonstrated by Jorge Martín who, despite starting in the third row, ended up leading in the first lap.
Behind him Marc Bezzecchi was trying to keep up with his teammate and, especially, not to fall again on Saturday. This situation was taken advantage of by Pecco Bagnaia who was very solid from the beginning in Le Mans. The Ducati rider took second after overtaking Marco during the third lap and, no matter how hard everyone tried, the podium was defined like this: Martín, Bagnaia and Bezzecchi.
Behind them there was a little more movement, with Acosta overtaking a very competitive Quartararo, Joan Mir following closely and overtaking Marc Márquez who could not take advantage of the second position on the grid and who suffered a very hard fall with less than three laps to go. The reigning champion lost the front end at the entrance to turn 13 and, after trying to save the fall, was catapulted off his Ducati. As a consequence, a fracture in the fifth metatarsal of his right foot. Furthermore, after the fall, Marc confirmed shoulder problems that led him to the operating room.
NOOOOOO 😢 Very hard fall for Marc Márquez
On the last lap of the sprint he was completely thrown off the bike 💥#MotoGP 🏁 #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/Lq6jmPawd3
— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) May 9, 2026
Finally Ai Ogura, Álex Márquez and Diogo Moreira rose one place due to Marc’s fall and ended up completing the places with the right to points in the Sprint.
Bad start, good result: spectacular comeback by Jorge
After Martín’s big exit on Saturday, the man from Madrid tried to repeat the move but, as usual, things don’t always go as planned. So, on this occasion it was Marco Bezzecchi who maintained the starting position and worked hard to stay in front.
For much of the race it was like this and, in fact, until lap 17 he managed to reach and surpass the second advantage with Pedro Acosta and Pecco Bagnaia who had a great first half of the race. In fact, first it was Pedro who was chasing and then he was overtaken by a Bagnaia who ended up crashing in 3-4, losing his front end, as has happened to the Ducati all weekend with crashes that no rider of the brand has been spared.
JORGE MARTÍN, TOTALLY UNLEASHED 💥
His overtaking Pedro Acosta so that the Aprilias take the lead ⚫#MotoGP 🏁 #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/zLeIjyOaP7
— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) May 10, 2026
After Bagnaia’s fall, with Bezzecchi ahead and Martín recovering time and positions behind, Acosta held on as long as she could, being by far the best KTM. Even so, he succumbed to the push of Martín who, after overtaking the Murcian, went after his teammate, whom he masterfully overtook in the last stretch of the race. And while Martín and Bezzecchi shared the first and second positions in the French GP, Ai Ogura made a strong comeback from eighth place on the grid to finish third and get closer to Bezzecchi, although not close enough. Thus they completed, for the first time in history, a 100% Aprilia podium in MotoGP.
BAAAAAAAA 🔥🔥🔥
Brutal overtaking by Jorge Martín on Bezzecchi to LAUNCH FOR VICTORY 🙌🏻#MotoGP 🏁 #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/v6WMSs1kUN
— DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) May 10, 2026
From behind, Di Giannantonio finally “stealed” Pedro Acosta’s wallet at turn 13. Fabio Quartararo, in the best weekend of the entire season, took the Yamaha V4 to sixth place. A result that shows that, perhaps, the motorcycle is not the only thing that has not gone to its maximum at the start of the campaign. Enea Bastianini crossed the finish line seventh, with Raúl Fernández eighth, Fermín Aldeguer ninth and Luca Marini tenth as the best Honda after Mir’s fall on lap 19 when he was running seventh.
In addition to Martín’s great role and Marc Márquez’s injury, what the French GP has revealed is a greater closeness in performance between brands, with Aprilia undoubtedly more efficient in every sense, but with Honda and Yamaha closer to Ducati and KTM. Will the same thing happen in the Catalonia GP? This weekend we will find out.
