Joan Mir revealed his sixth-place in Sunday’s Austrian MotoGP race was his “realistic position in the standings” despite previous misfortune.

The Honda rider recorded his best result with the manufacturer since the 2023 Indian GP by taking sixth in Spielberg, showing signs of a potential improvement for both the bike and rider.

Mir admitted he believed his result was “realistic” and said that it was possible because he was able to “ride like I want” though suggested it was the maximum he could take from the weekend.

“Today, we gave 110% in this race,” Mir shared post-race via GPOne.

“Honestly, I’m happy because I think this is my realistic position in the standings. I had seen it since free practice and in qualifying.

“If I can ride like I want, this result is possible. To do more, though, was impossible.”

“Overall though, we have to be satisfied with this result.”

The 2020 World Champion has been vocal about his struggles aboard the RC213V machine, crashing in 58% of the races he has competed with the Japanese manufacturer.

Following the sixth-place finish, Mir said he has “a lot of confidence” ahead of the next few rounds, including at the brand-new Balaton Park circuit in Hungary. 

“I think the last race where I managed to do something like this was in Aragon because, like in the others, I had the potential, but for one reason or another, I never succeeded.

“Definitely, this result gives me a lot of confidence; it’s something I needed, and I’m happy about it.

“I’m sure it’ll help me in facing the next races. Now, let’s enjoy the moment. It means we aren’t so far away after all.”

Joan Mir: ‘Still not enough’ improvement from Honda to become regular MotoGP challenger

Despite the positive result of Austria, Mir played down the idea that Honda had made any significant improvements at the Red Bull Ring. 

The Spaniard recognised the improvements of the Japanese manufacturer, who took a podium and a victory with Johann Zarco earlier in the campaign, but suggested “it’s still not enough” to return to the front regularly.

“It’s still to early to say, it’s true that we are improving,” Mir said.

“We improved at the beginning of the year but during the season then we didn’t improve much. With the package we have we have done what we can, but I think other manufacturers have improved as well.

“KTM has improved, Aorukua at the beginning of the season was lost while now they are always competitive.

“We are improving, but it’s still not enough. We have made small steps, not enough to make a decisive step compared to the others. They are improving faster than us.”

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Francesco Bagnaia revealed it is “difficult to explain” his 2025 struggles after a disappointing Austrian MotoGP weekend.

Bagnaia qualified on the front row after a strong start to the weekend, but failed to finish the Sprint race after a faulty rear tyre, before finishing eighth in the main race on Sunday. 

While Bagnaia admitted podium finishers Marc Marquez and Marco Bezzecchi “did everything better” during the race, the Italian was unable to provide an answer as to why he was 12 seconds slower than last year’s race time.

“What has been happening all year has happened again,” the double World Champion told DAZN. 

“I fight and give it my all. But this time, giving it my all, I finished eighth. The winner did it in the same time it took me to win last year. So I have the potential.

“I don’t know why things aren’t working out for me. Marco [Bezzecchi] and Marc [Marquez] did everything better than me. 

“That I finished 12 seconds behind on a circuit where I always made a difference is something I don’t understand, and will never understand.”

Bagnaia’s eighth place means he is now 197 points behind team-mate Marquez in the championship, and 55 points adrift of Alex Marquez for second place.

Following another disappointing Sunday, the Italian demanded that Ducati “explain” the cause of his issues as he is “running out of patience” with his current form.

“I’m always focused, I’ve never lost my head, but today I couldn’t accelerate; everyone was overtaking me coming out of the corners. 

“I hope Ducati explains it to me, because I’m running out of patience.”

Gigi Dall’Igna bemoans ‘wasted opportunity’ for Bagnaia at Austrian MotoGP round

Bagnaia may not be the only figure inside Ducati to be losing his patience, with Ducati General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna publicly showing disappointment with the Turin native for the first time.

The Italian engineer bemoaned a “wasted opportunity” for Bagnaia to take a step forward after his struggles aboard the GP25 this season.

Dall’Igna also vowed Ducati would look into the issues the two-time World Champion suffered on Saturday, but labelled Bagnaia’s performance in the main race as “underwhelming.”

“Every race that passes is a wasted opportunity to improve,” Dall’Igna said to Sky Italia.

“He had a good weekend during all the practice sessions. Yesterday, he had a problem that we have to analyse, but his race was definitely underwhelming today.”

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Marc Marquez admits rookie Fermin Aldeguer was his biggest concern en route to Austrian MotoGP victory due to the Gresini rider’s tyre data.

The eight-time World Champion scored a ninth double of 2025 to extend his championship advantage to 142 points following his first-ever triumph around the Red Bull Ring circuit.

However, Sunday’s race wasn’t as easy as Marquez’s previous Grand Prix victories as he spent the majority of the race behind polesitter Marco Bezzecchi before making his move on Lap 20. 

The Spaniard admitted that too much strain on his rear tyre meant he was unable to close the gap to Bezzecchi, and allowed the fast-charging Fermin Aldeguer to catch the pair in the late stages. 

“When I was riding behind Marco, I was putting too much strain on the rear tyre,” said Marquez to Speedweek.

“I couldn’t brake as I wanted, and therefore needed more tire coming out of the corners. So I eased off a bit halfway through the race, took a deep breath, and attacked again in the final laps.

“Then, suddenly Aldeguer came out of nowhere with incredible pace, putting on a lot of pressure. I gained a bit of ground in the last three laps and was able to maintain the gap.”

Marquez also revealed Ducati’s data had shown Aldeguer was the best at managing the rear tyre, and admitted he “started to worry” when he saw the rookie closing the gap behind.

“After I overtook Marco, I checked him. When I saw that the group behind us was two or three seconds behind, I forgot to check what was happening.

“Then I suddenly saw +1 on my pit board and didn’t even know who it was.

“Then I realised it was Aldeguer and started to worry. We had analysed all the Ducati riders on Saturday, and he was the one who was the most careful with the rear tyre.”

‘There will be a weekend when I won’t be the fastest’ – Marc Marquez on MotoGP dominance

Despite his run of victories, Marquez also suggested there will be races where he will not be the fastest rider on track. 

The eight-time World Champion suggested the upcoming Balaton Park circuit will be a “good track” for his riding style, but admitted he is staying “realistic” for the next few rounds. 

“I’ve understood and accepted that there will come a Saturday or Sunday when I won’t be the fastest,” Marquez conceded.

“People expect me to always win – but that’s MotoGP, and it doesn’t work that way.

“We have to stay realistic and will face greater difficulties in some races.

“For now, we’re enjoying the moment; I also believe that Balaton will be a good track for me.”

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Marc Marquez continued his dominance with a sixth consecutive win, claiming victory in MotoGP’s 1,000th race in Austria.

The Spaniard fended off a late challenge from rookie Fermin Aldeguer after a successful move on Marco Bezzecchi, with all three rounding off the podium.

Bezzecchi took the holeshot from pole into Turn 1 as Francesco Bagnaia and Marc Marquez followed close behind.

The championship leader quickly dispatched his younger brother, before making a lunge at Turn 3 on his team-mate. Bagnaia wasn’t giving up without a fight, as the Italian immediately slotted back through.

Marquez sat back for the rest of the lap before permanently overtaking on Lap 2 at the same corner.

While the factory Ducati duo were scrapping, polesitter Bezzecchi extended his lead to 0.8 seconds by setting a consistent pace early on.

Gresini’s Alex Marquez was issued a long-lap penalty after colliding with Honda’s Joan Mir at the previous round, dropping from fourth to 11th.

The leading duo of Bezzecchi and Márquez had broken away from Bagnaia to create a second gap, with the Italian having come under pressure from KTM rider Pedro Acosta behind.

By Lap 5, the gap between the Aprilia rider and the championship leader held steady at 0.7s, but Marquez’s trademark mid-race purple patch was still to come.

On Lap 6 and Lap 7, the rapid pace from the Spaniard arrived, setting quicker lap times as he closed the gap to 0.4s.

Further behind, Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez made an aggressive lunge on KTM’s Brad Binder at the final corner, resulting in the South African to drop down to ninth.

In turn, Fernandez remained in sixth as rookie Fermin Aldeguer sneaked his way through on his inside.

Out front, Marquez closed right to the back of Bezzecchi’s Aprilia and tried to navigate the perfect overtake opportunity.

The Spaniard piled on the pressure by closing in at Turns 3 and 4, though he showed no urgency to make a move just yet.

Between Laps 12 and 13, however, Marquez dropped back to within 0.8 seconds, possibly indicating a tyre pressure issue.

Bezzecchi’s team-mate, reigning MotoGP champion Jorge Martin, lost the front of his Aprilia at Turn 7 on Lap 14.

The gap between Bezzecchi and Márquez steadily decreased over the next few laps, narrowing to 0.2 seconds. Marquez made his first attempt on Lap 19, but Bezzecchi fought back with an unconventional move into Turn 6.

The factory Ducati rider made another lunge at Turn 1 before completing the race-winning move at the start of Lap 20.

While the drama unfolded at the front, Bagnaia ran wide at the final corner, which promoted Aldeguer and Acosta to third and fourth, respectively.

Aldeguer displayed incredible late-race pace, lapping half a second quicker than the lead duo and completing a block pass on Bagnaia on Lap 23.

Although Aldeguer couldn’t overtake Marquez for the win, the championship leader picked up his ninth win of the season.

The Spaniard earned his first win on the Austrian roads, picking up sixth consecutive win for the first time since his 2014 title-winning campaign.

Aldeguer’s second cemented another podium in his debut campaign, followed by polesitter Bezzecchi.

Acosta and Enea Bastianini finished fourth and fifth on the KTM, with Honda’s Joan Mir securing his best result since 2023 in sixth.

Brad Binder managed a strong result of seventh, while two-time champion Bagnaia had to settle for eighth.

Raul Fernandez claimed ninth for Trackhouse, as Alex Marquez made only one overtake following his long lap to round off the top 10.

Franco Morbidelli posted 11th for VR46 Ducati, defeating Johann Zarco and Luca Marini in the closing stages

Ai Ogura crossed the line in 14th for Trackhouse, whereas Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo claimed 15th and the final point.

Alex Rins finished five seconds behind the Frenchman, with the Pramac duo of Miguel Oliveira and Jack Miller trailing behind the Spaniard by four and seven seconds, respectively.

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Italtrans Racing Team rider Diogo Moreira cruised to a comfortable and dominant victory in Austria in Moto2.

The Brazilian secured his second victory of the season, marking another strong performance in the Moto2 intermediate class.

CFMoto rider Holgado maintained the holeshot into Turn 1, but Moreira secured the lead at the end of the opening lap.

Senna Agius suffered a tough highside at Turn 2, resulting in Alonso Lopez having to take evasive action and dropping back.

Out front, the Brazilian rider stretched a 0.3s by the end of Lap 2, with the Italtrans rider bidding for a second win in the intermediate class.

He posted back-to-back fastest laps on Lap 3 and Lap 4, but the gap didn’t increase any further until the end of Lap 5.

Dramatically, that same lap, championship leader Manual Gonzalez dropped back to 14th after occupying the higher positions.

His bike slowed down dramatically down the straight between Turns 3 and 4, but got going again. The issues reoccurred two laps later, before retiring due to a technical issue on Lap 7.

As the race approached the midway point, riders weren’t overtaking, but only 0.5s separated the lead trio consisting of Moreira, Holgado and Vietti.

On Lap 14, Alonso caught up to the back of Vietti before rising to third heading into Turn 3. Vietti responded later in the lap, but Alonso completed a successful move on Lap 15 as the Italian was handed a long-lap penalty for exceeding track limits.

Vietti dropped down to fifth after his long lap penalty behind fellow countryman Tony Arbolino.

The leading trio of Moreira and the CFMoto duo, Holgado and Alonso, were keeping the Brazilian at bay, but the latter threw away his podium chance with a crash at Turn 9.

Vietti continued to show rapid speed to overtake Arbolino almost immediately, putting him back in the final spot on the podium.

Out front, Moreira upped the ante as he established a 1.4s advantage over Holgado, before winning by 2.3s.

His win boosts his title hopes following Gonzalez’s retirement, while Holgado secured his first Moto2 podium in his rookie season.

Vietti’s long-lap penalty issuing proved to be meaningless as he secured the final podium spot, defeating Alberto Arenas and Arbolino in the closing stages.

Ivan Ortola won in a last-lap battle with Barry Baltus, Colin Veijer, and Izan Guevara, where all four riders were separated by less than half a second.

Championship contender Aron Canet had a quiet race as he rounded off the top ten, followed by Filip Salac, Marcos Ramirez, and Ayumu Sasaki.

Daniel Munoz produced his best result in 14th, one second ahead of Darryn Binder, who closed out the points.

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Angel Piqueras came out on top to clinch the Moto3 race victory in Austria after a closely fought battle.

The Spaniard held his nerve in the final sector to pick up his third race win of the season, edging out Ryusei Yamanaka and David Munoz.

Polesitter Valentin Perrone and second-place qualifier Piqueras switched places down into Turn 1, before rookie Quiles fought his way through to join the lead group.

Maximo Quiles, Perrone, Piqueras, and now Yamanka were the lead quartet in the early phases, contesting in an ongoing battle.

Quiles, in particular, was strongest in the second and third sectors, allowing him to stretch a marginal lead into Lap 3.

The 17-year-old remained in the lead for the next two laps, but the leading three riders behind squabbled for track position.

Quiles managed to build a 0.3-second lead, but as is typical in Moto3, maintaining or extending a gap is always a challenge.

By Lap 6, the most significant gap on track was between Perrone and Leopard Racing rider Adrian Fernandez, trailed by over 2.1 seconds as he led the second core group.

Japanese rider Yamanaka made a successful move on Quiles to take the lead for the first time, but this crucial stage of the race was all about conserving both front and rear tyres.

Quiles retook the lead into Turn 1 on Lap 9, before Piqueras sneaked his way through to slot himself behind the CFMoto rider.

His pace was evident as he looked to stretch the lead again, but he had to tread carefully in the second half after receiving a track limits warning.

KTM Tech3 rider Perrone didn’t make any moves in the first half of the race, but stayed tucked in behind the leading trio, while the gap between him and Fernandez had shrunk to 1.6 seconds by the halfway mark.

The polesitter made a decisive move on Yamanaka into Turn 1 on Lap 12, likely benefiting from the tyre life he had carefully preserved over the first ten laps.

Quiles made a costly mistake at the same corner, dropping back to third and allowing the gap between fourth and fifth to shrink from 1.6 to 1.2 seconds.

But incredibly, the Spaniard swooped around the outside at Turn 1 on Lap 13 to take the lead once more.

He led for the following four laps before a small error in the third sector caused him to slip back to third place.

Argentine rider Perrone then led proceedings, but Quiles’ rapid pace saw him regain the lead once again heading into the penultimate lap.

Japanese star Taiyo Furosato displayed rapid speed to close in and join the lead quartet with two laps to go.

David Munoz followed the Japanese star, then punted Quiles and Perrone off at the penultimate corner to move into second.

Piqueras secured a crucial third win of the year, narrowing the championship gap to Jose Antonio Rueda.

Yamanka and Munoz entered the fold right at the end to secure the final podium spots, followed by Quiles and title leader Rueda.

Furusato sealed sixth for Honda Team Asia, crossing the line a second clear of the second CFMoto rider of Dennis Foggia.

Polesitter Perrone inevitably finished eighth, closely followed by Fernandez and fellow rookie Guido Puni.

Alvaro Carpe endured a quiet race to secure 11th for KTM, pipping Joel Kelso and David Almansa to the line.

Jacob Roulstone and Scott Ogden secured the final two points, finishing 14th and 15th, respectively.

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Marc Marquez continued his dominance in Saturday afternoon races by landing his sixth successive victory in the Austrian MotoGP Sprint.

Marquez overtook younger brother Alex Marquez with five laps to go to ensure a third successive Sprint victory for the factory Ducati team at the Red Bull Ring circuit.

Maverick Vinales withdrew from the Sprint, as well as the remainder of the weekend, after struggling with his shoulder injury throughout the opening sessions in Spielberg, leaving the grid with 20 riders. 

It was Alex Marquez who made the best start to the race of the riders on the front row, immediately passing Marco Bezzecchi into the first corner.

However, Francesco Bagnaia spun up on the start and was demoted to 14th by Turn 1 from the front row, while Fermin Aldeguer also suffered from the same issue directly behind the Italian.

Marquez also made a good start from the second row, and used his momentum up the hill to make an overtake on Bezzecchi at Turn 2 to move behind his brother in the lead. 

Bezzecchi faced further misery at the chicane one lap later, as Pedro Acosta made a lunge on the Italian to take the final spot on the podium. 

Further down the order, Bagnaia was forced to make overtakes after his difficult start and passed Jack Miller into 14th. 

However, the double World Champion was forced to surrender the position a few laps later to reigning champion Jorge Martin, with Joan Mir also progressing past the Ducati rider. 

An issue with the Italian’s bike became prevalent as the laps continued to tick down, as he dropped further down the order and eventually pulled into the pits to retire from the Sprint race. 

Back at the front of the field, the elder Marquez began to find the rhythm and closed the gap that the Gresini rider had built up.

With five laps to go, the Ducati rider made his move at Turn 3, taking the lead of the race and leaving his younger brother no opportunity to respond. 

As Marquez pulled out an advantage at the head of the field, the reigning World Champion began to make moves further down the order, passing Fabio Quartararo before attempting to close the gap to Johann Zarco in the last points position. 

As the chequered flag came out, Marquez crossed the line to seal his 12th Sprint victory of the campaign despite starting outside the front row of the grid. 

The younger Marquez retained his second-place finish, while Acosta completed the podium in third. 

Bezzecchi finished fourth after losing out in the opening laps, with Brad Binder completing the top five after a successful home Sprint race for the KTM team. 

After suffering wheelspin on the start, Aldeguer crossed the line in sixth ahead of Enea Bastianini in seventh. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio gained eight places to finish the Sprint in eighth, while Zarco held off Martin’s challenge for the final points position in ninth.

Quartararo narrowly missed out top 10, as the Frenchman edged ahead of the factory Honda pair of Luca Marini in 12th and Joan Mir in 13th. 

Franco Morbidelli suffered from a few errors throughout the Sprint and finished 14th, with Ai Ogura crossing the line in 15th.

Alex Rins ended the race in 16th, as the Pramac Yamaha riders completed the standings as Jack Miller took the flag in 17th and Miguel Oliveira rounded out the finishers in 18th. 

Raul Fernandez appeared to suffer from a ride height device issue while running in 5th and joined Bagnaia in retiring from the race due to technical issues.

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Marco Bezzecchi stunned the field to take pole for the Austrian MotoGP round, as championship leader Marc Marquez crashed out of contention.

Bezzecchi earned his first pole since the 2023 Indian GP by the smallest of margins, beating Alex Marquez to the position by just 0.016s. 

The Italian took charge of the session despite being forced to progress through Q2, though was challenged by strong lap times set by Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia.

The times set by the trio of riders demoted Marc Marquez to the second row of the grid, and the Spaniard was unable to improve on his time after crashing at the chicane with just minutes remaining.

A crash for Raul Fernandez with a minute remaining meant that the rest of the field could not challenge the Aprilia man, who took the manufacturer’s first pole of the season. 

The younger Marquez brother missed out on the top spot by 0.016s as he qualified in second place. 

Bagnaia was a further tenth behind as he completed the front row of the grid, ahead of team-mate Marquez. 

Enea Bastianini completed the top five after a strong showing throughout qualifying, while Fermin Aldeguer was sixth over the line. 

Pedro Acosta attempted a late challenge for pole position, but lost the front at the final corner, with his lap time only good enough for seventh, while Franco Morbidelli was eighth.

Fernandez was ninth despite his crash in the closing stages of qualifying, while Joan Mir rounded out the top 10. 

Brad Binder earned 11th, with Johann Zarco completing the fourth row of the grid in 12th. 

Luca Marini narrowly missed out on a Q2 spot and qualified in 13th ahead of reigning World Champion Jorge Martin in 14th. 

Fabio Di Giannantonio struggled throughout qualifying and could only muster 15th, with Fabio Quartararo leading factory Yamaha team-mate Alex Rins to 16th and 17th respectively.  

Miguel Oliveira completed qualifying in 18th, while Ai Ogura headed the final row of the grid by taking 19th. 

Jack Miller’s best time was only good enough for 20th, as Maverick Vinales struggled with shoulder pain on his return to action and completed the standings in 21st.

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Marc Marquez continued his imperious form by topping the final Austrian MotoGP practice session at the Red Bull Ring. 

Despite never winning at the Spielberg circuit, Marquez finished fastest in all three practices as he searches for a maiden Austrian victory. 

The Spanish rider set a time of 1:28.751 to complete his practice dominance, with his fastest lap three tenths clear of the field. 

The remainder of the field was split by just over a second, as Francesco Bagnaia ended the session in second, 0.326s off his team-mate’s best time. 

Pedro Acosta was the top non-Ducati, completing the top three at KTM’s home track, while Marco Bezzecchi and Alex Marquez set identical lap times in fourth and fifth. 

Luca Marini finished sixth in a strong session for the Italian, with Raul Fernandez edging ahead of Fabio Di Giannantonio to take the flag in seventh. 

Joan Mir ensured the two factory Hondas finished inside the top ten as he took ninth in the final practice, while Franco Morbidelli concluded the top 10.

Fabio Quartararo completed the session in 11th, while Jorge Martin laid down a strong showing in 12th.

Enea Bastianini’s fastest time was enough for 13th, ahead of Fermin Aldeguer in 14th and Miguel Oliveira in 15th.

Johann Zarco suffered a crash with minutes remaining in the session and ended in 16th, while Maverick Vinales persevered despite his shoulder injury to 17th.

Brad Binder struggled with a technical issue as the chequered flag was thrown out, as he only managed 18th ahead of Ai Ogura in 19th. 

Yamaha duo Alex Rins and Jack Miller both struggled as they completed the standings in 20th and 21st respectively.

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Championship leader Marc Marquez continued his dominant form by topping the second MotoGP practice session in Austria.

The Spaniard posted the quickest lap on his final stint, lapping an impressive 1.28.117s.

KTM rider Pedro Acosta made a step from this morning to secure second place, lapping 0.228s behind the factory Ducati rider.

Francesco Bagnaia finished the session in third place, though he led the classification charts in the first half of the hour long session.

Alex Marquez finished right behind the Italian once again, with Raul Fernandez close behind as he continued his purple patch.

Joan Mir impressed once again by securing sixth place for Honda, while Franco Morbidelli split Mir and fellow Honda rider Johann Zarco in the timings.

Fermin Aldeguer improved to take ninth and qualify straight through to the second phase of qualifying, followed by KTM’s Brad Binder.

Enea Bastianini’s adaptation has seen improvements to secure 11th, but he and rookie Ai Ogura missed out by the narrowest of margins.

Luca Marini slotted his Honda in 13th, lapping quicker than Fabio Quartararo and Fabio Di Giannantonio.

Jorge Martin, Alex Rins and Marco Bezzecchi finished 16th to 18th in the classification charts, despite showing impressive pace in the first session.

Miguel Oliveira and Jack Miller lacked pace and finished the session 19th and 20th for Pramac Yamaha, respectively.

Maverick Vinales closed out proceedings and lapped one second slower than Miller, likely due tp the injuries he sustained prior the summer break.

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