Motorcycling-Bezzecchi overcomes early setback to win thrilling Indonesian sprint

MANDALIKA, Indonesia, Oct 4 (Reuters) – Aprilia's Marco Bezzecchi staged a sensational comeback to win the Indonesian Grand Prix sprint on Saturday, overtaking Gresini Racing's 20-year-old rookie Fermin Aldeguer on the final lap at the Mandalika International Street Circuit. Bezzecchi, who started from pole position, endured a disastrous start and dropped several places before the 26-year-old Italian rallied to secure his third sprint win in MotoGP. Having led for most of the 13-lap sprint, Aldeguer was denied a historic triumph that would have made the Spaniard the youngest MotoGP sprint winner. Trackhouse's Raul Fernandez completed the podium after starting third on the grid. Newly-crowned 2025 MotoGP champion Marc Marquez struggled at Mandalika, a circuit where the seven-times MotoGP champion has never won. Marquez got a long lap penalty for contact with Yamaha's Alex Rins, resulting in the 32-year-old Spaniard finishing seventh. Despite his challenges, Marquez's points contribution helped Ducati clinch the teams' world championship after a dominant season featuring 13 Grand Prix wins and 15 sprint victories. Marquez's teammate and twice MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia had a day to forget as the Italian finished 14th, having also failed to qualify for Q2. KTM's Pedro Acosta also endured a tough day, crashing out of second place on lap five to end his hopes of a podium finish. (Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

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