Ducati’s Enea Bastianini led from start to finish in the MotoGP Thai Grand Prix sprint as Jorge Martin survived a track limits sc⭕are to finish a crucial second.

Having heaped the pressure on himself after c𓂃rashing in qualifying, Martin made a scrappy start to the sprint from third on the grid as he tried to launch into the lead ahead of poleman Francesco Bagnaia.

A꧟s he pushed both wide, 🌃Bastianini came through to take the lead and led every lap to secure victory by 1.357 seconds.

Martin fought back to second ahead of Bagnaia, but was handed a track limits warning midway through t💟he 13-lap sprint, creating a nervous end to the race for the Pramac rider.

Responding to late pressure from Bagnaia, though, Martin cemented second by 1.015s to take two vital points and extend his championship lead to 2♊2.

Martin has now put himself in a positi✤on that if Bagnaia wins every one of the remaining races, the Pramac rider only has to finish second in each of them to win the championship.

Bagnaia completﷺed the podium ahead of Gresini’s Marc Marquez, who faded out of the rostrum battle on his GP23 to 🌳3.030s behind his future team-mate.

Off the line, Martin jumped Bastianini and drew alongside Bagnaia into Turn 1, with an 💫aggre🎃ssive move forcing both wide.

Martin ran furt🐟her off track and had to cut the throttle as he rejoined as he nearly hit Marc🦋 Marquez.

This dropped Martin to fifth behind🎃 Tech3 GASGAS rookie Pedro Acosta, who kept the Pramac rider at bay until Turn 5 on lap two.

At the start of lap three, Bastianini was 0.8s clear ꦇof Bagnaia, while Martin would clear Marquez on lap four.

Once ahead of Marquez, Martin quickly piled the pressur൩e on Bagnaia and took second away from his championship r🍸ival with an impressive move on the inside of Turn 7 on lap seven.

But Martin ra𝐆n wide as he did this, which earned him a trಞack limits warning.

Bastianini came under no threat through to the chequered flag as he beat Martin by 1.357s, w𒁏hile the latter avoided any track limits penalty in second.

Behind Bagnaia and Marquez came the sister Gresini Ducati of Alex Marquez, who was 4.7s behind his team-mate in fifth and 0.9s clear of Pra𓂃mac’s Franco Morbidelli.

VR46 duo Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di꧟ Giannantonio came next, with KTM’s Brad Binder scoring the final sprint point in ninth.

A big moment on lap one dropped sixth-placed starter Fabio Quartararo out of the poin🅠ts, with the Yamaha rider taking the 🌱chequered flag in 10th ahead of KTM’s Jack Miller and leading Honda Johann Zarco in 12th.

The Aprilias suffered a difficult sprint, with R❀aul Fernandez for Trackhouse the marque♍’s leading rider in 14th - 19.6s off the win.

Acos๊ta crashed on lap four at Turn 3. He remounted, but retired into pitlane late on𝔍. 

Full 2024 MotoGP Thai Grand Prix sprint results