Updated 2026 US MotoGP Sprint Results after a penalty at COTA

Updates: 

Jorge Martin takes his first Aprilia victory in a dramatic 2026 US MotoGP Sprint race at COTA – then crashes during a celebration wheelie on the slow down lap!

Martin was handed second place when team-mate and title leader Marco Bezzecchi crashed out while trying to chase down Ducati race leader Francesco Bagnaia.

The Spaniard was the only rider on the medium, rather than soft rear tyre, and the brave choice allowed Martin to rip chunks out of Bagnaia’s advantage.

Martin made his winning pass with a hard move at the end of the back straight on the final lap, for his first win since his 2024 title-winning season at Pramac Ducati.

Completing a dream day for Martin, he now leads the 2026 standings.

Marc Marquez mistake

Marc Marquez took out pole qualifier Fabio di Giannantonio on the opening lap.

The pair, who battled in both races in Brazil last weekend, picked up where they left off after di Giannantonio was pushed wide by Pedro Acosta at Turn 1.

The VR46 rider swiftly re-passed Marquez for third, but disaster struck when the reigning champion tried to dive under di Giannantonio at the end of the back straight.

Diggia gave Marquez room, but Marquez lost the front and fell, with his sliding bike then wiping out the Italian.

Both riders rejoined in a distant last place, with di Giannantonio later retiring.

Pedro Acosta tyre pressure

KTM’s Pedro Acosta returned to the podium in third place, but was then put under investigation for low tyre pressure.

The penalty was confirmed several hours later, handing a surprise rostrum to Enea Bastianini after Honda’s Joan Mir crashed from fourth in the closing stages.

Bezzecchi and Luca Marini both have a two-place grid penalty for Sunday’s grand prix after obstructing Marc Marquez in qualifying.

The penalty will cost Bezzecchi, seeking a fifth grand prix victory in a row, a front-row start.

 

* Rookie

Qualifying

Fabio di Giannantonio blasts to back-to-back MotoGP pole positions with a new lap record at COTA.

The VR46 Ducati rider will be joined on the front row by title leader Marco Bezzecchi and KTM’s Pedro Acosta after a session marred by traffic controversy.

Factory Ducati team-mates Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez will start from just fourth and sixth, either side of Honda’s Joan Mir.

Traffic

Bagnaia had been the first rider to break the lap record before Mir caused a shock by rocketing to pole at the end of the opening run.

Meanwhile, Austin ace Marc Marquez was just tenth after gesturing in annoyance at traffic ahead in the form of Bezzecchi and Luca Marini.

Bagnaia was then also left frustrated after catching Ai Ogura at the start of his final run.

Meanwhile, replays later showed Enea Bastianini furious after being held up by Marquez.

All the incidents are currently under investigation.

Marquez and Bagnaia both kept the new rear Ducati aero they had debuted in this morning’s final practice.

Fermin Aldeguer and Mir progressed to Q2 via Qualifying 1, where Fabio Quartararo fell from his factory Yamaha before claiming 16th on the grid on the bucking V4.

The ten lap COTA Sprint race starts at 3pm local time (8pm UK).

 

* Rookie

Official COTA MotoGP Records:

Best lap: Maverick Vinales, Aprilia, 2m 0.864s (2024)

Fastest race lap: Marc Marquez, Ducati, 2m 2.221s (2025)

Final Practice

Jorge Martin got the better of Marc Marquez during final practice for the 2026 US MotoGP at COTA, while Aprilia team-mate and title leader Marco Bezzecchi was among a string of fallers.

After Friday’s heat, conditions were cloudy and cool for the 30-minute session, prompting most riders to fit soft rubber front and rear.

The exceptions were Bezzecchi, Johann Zarco, Pedro Acosta and Luca Marini on the medium rear.

Martin was unique in starting with a medium front but soft rear, before switching to a medium front to top the session.

Fellow Aprilia rider Ai Ogura, the top RS-GP rider on Friday, fell at the final corner midway through the session.

Gresini’s Alex Marquez, Bezzecchi, rookie Diogo Moreira – and finally Ogura again – then crashed in quick succession in the closing stages.

Further back, Toprak Razgatlioglu was the leading Yamaha rider, in 15th.

New Ducati aero

Friday leader Marc Marquez, who feared he’d be stiff and sore today after his huge FP1 accident, used some new ‘Aprilia style’ rear aero and leg wings to set his best time.

Aprilia’s title leader Marco Bezzecchi is chasing his fifth grand prix victory in a row this weekend, a run that began at Portimao in late 2025.

Reigning champion Marc Marquez is a seven-time COTA MotoGP winner. However, his most recent victory was in 2021, crashing from the lead of last year’s grand prix, won by Bagnaia.

Tech3’s Maverick Vinales withdrew from the event after FP1 due to pain in his left shoulder caused by a loose screw from last year’s operation.

Qualifying 1, for those outside the top ten on Friday afternoon, will now get underway.

* Rookie

Official COTA MotoGP Records:

Best lap: Maverick Vinales, Aprilia, 2m 0.864s (2024)

Fastest race lap: Marc Marquez, Ducati, 2m 2.221s (2025)