Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia demonstrated exceptional control at the rain-soaked Buriram International Circuit, securing a commanding victory in the Thailand Grand Prix on Sunday. This win significantly reduced his gap to championship rival Jorge Martín, bringing it down to just 17 points. Bagnaia capitalized on mistakes made by Pramac Racing's Martín and Gresini Racing's Marc Márquez to cross the finish line first, marking his ninth win of the season. Martín finished in second place, while GasGas Tech3 rookie Pedro Acosta claimed third.
"This morning after the warm-up, I wasn't particularly pleased, but I want to thank my team," Bagnaia said. "We reviewed the data, identified what needed improvement. The increased water on the asphalt worked in my favor. I'm incredibly happy." Martín's second-place finish boosted his points to 453, while Bagnaia trails closely with 436 points. With two races remaining—in Sepang next weekend and Valencia in two weeks—the championship remains fiercely contested.
Bagnaia started the race from pole position, but Martín seized the lead at the first turn with a powerful start. However, the championship leader struggled with the challenging conditions and lost his edge on the slick surface, going off track on the fifth lap and ceding the advantage to Bagnaia. Martín's error relegated him to third place behind Bagnaia and Márquez, forcing him to trail Márquez's spray for several laps.
Reflecting on the rain-affected race, Martín noted, "The speed we're achieving, few can comprehend how fast we're going, even in these conditions. Today was a challenging race. I started strong but took some risks. I went wide in corner three. After that, I focused on staying close to Marc and Bagnaia. I had numerous close calls. The grip was extremely poor; I struggled a lot."
Six-time world champion Márquez increased his pace midway through the race, rapidly closing the gap to within half a second of Bagnaia, causing concern for the Ducati rider. Bagnaia managed to fend off Márquez's attempts to overtake, and Márquez eventually crashed on the 15th lap. By the time Márquez crashed, Martín had already lost ground to Bagnaia, making it nearly impossible to prevent the Italian's victory.
"When Marc crashed, I was still trying to catch Bagnaia, but I realized I was pushing too hard," Martín said. "Then I decided: 'OK, it's time to settle for second again.' I let him win." Márquez was able to remount his bike and rejoin the race, finishing in 12th place. Enea Bastianini, who won Saturday's sprint, started in second but quickly dropped several positions due to a poor start, eventually crashing and finishing in 14th.
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