Bezzecchi ruled out of sprint podium after Marquez clash

Marco Bezzecchi had taken pole position in qualifying, beating Marc Marquez by two-tenths of a second, and made a strong start to the sprint race, holding the lead before a red flag caused by Francesco Bagnaia's crash reshuffled the order.

At the second start, Bezzecchi was forced to chase Marquez's Ducati. On the fourth lap, during a fierce battle for the lead, he attempted a pass in the corner, Marquez moved to block, and the contact sent Bezzecchi to the ground. Marquez drew a comparison with the incident in Indonesia, which Bezzecchi rejected as unfair, saying he did not believe he had taken an unusual line.

Bezzecchi said he was disappointed rather than angry, adding that he felt he had lost a chance at a strong result and would have been in contention for a good finish had the contact not occurred.