Marini in the spotlight as Mir misses Qatar Sprint
All eyes were on Luca Marini in the Honda HRC Castrol team as illness forced Joan Mir out of the Sprint, Marini battling on to 15th and collecting important data for Sunday where he aims for more.
Another day of two halves at the Lusail International Circuit as qualifying took place during the day and the Sprint lighting up the night sky of Qatar. The Honda HRC Castrol team diligently went about their work in both conditions as the fourth round of the year continued.
Able to make further progress from his Friday base, Luca Marini set a best time of 1’51.728 in Q1 and ended the 15 minute session inside the top five. From 15th on the grid, the #10 immediately went for the inside line as the 11-lap Sprint got underway as he went about hunting early gains. Lapping steadily in mid 1’53s, Marini would bring his Honda RC213V home in 15th place after an intense last lap with Brad Binder. Although he and his team had hoped for more, they remain optimistic of making further gains on Sunday.
Joan Mir had a complicated Saturday in Qatar, the #36 suffering from gastroenteritis. After qualifying down in 21st, it was advised he sit out the Sprint Race in order to recover before Sunday’s Grand Prix. He will be reviewed again before Warm Up.
Honda HRC Castrol is aiming to have a full complement of riders back out on track for the 22-lap Qatar GP tomorrow, Sunday April 13, scheduled to start at 20:00 Local Time.
Luca Marini
“Tomorrow morning we need to try some things to improve for Sunday, usually it’s where we are stronger at each of Grands Prix. There’s work to do to improve our situation. We knew here would be a weekend with more things to overcome, so it’s not completely surprising. The good thing about weekends like this is that you can really focus and work on these areas because I think our overall package is quite good and we can be up there fighting.”
Qatar GP - Sprint Race
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | 12 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 20'38.304 |
| 2 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | 9 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 1.577 |
| 3 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | 7 | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 3.988 |
| 4 | Aldegeur Fermin | 54 | SPA | 6 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 4.369 |
| 5 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | 5 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 4.593 |
| 6 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | 4 | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 5.099 |
| 7 | Ogura Ai | 79 | JPN | 3 | Trackhouse Racing | Aprilia | 10.199 |
| 8 | Bagnaia Francesco | 63 | ITA | 2 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 10.334 |
| 9 | Bezzecchi Marco | 72 | ITA | 1 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 11.300 |
| 10 | Vinales Maverick | 25 | SPA | 0 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM | 12.554 |
| 11 | Acosta Pedro | 37 | SPA | 0 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 13.676 |
| 12 | Rins Alex | 42 | SPA | 0 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 14.273 |
| 13 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | 0 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM | 14.408 |
| 14 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | 0 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 15.459 |
| 15 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | 0 | Honda HRC Castrol | Honda | 15.587 |
| 16 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | 0 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 15.775 |
| 17 | Fernandez Raul | 25 | SPA | 0 | Trackhouse Racing | Aprilia | 16.317 |
| 18 | Fernandez Augusto | 7 | SPA | 0 | Prima Pramac Yamaha | Yamaha | 17.922 |
| 19 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | 0 | Prima Pramac Yamaha | Yamaha | 20.274 |
| 20 | Chantra Somkiat | 35 | THA | 0 | LCR Honda | Honda | 31.106 |
| 21 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | DNF | LCR Honda | Honda | DNF |
Rider standings
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team | Constructor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | 98 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 2 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | 96 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati |
| 3 | Bagnaia Francesco | 63 | ITA | 77 | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati |
| 4 | Morbidelli Franco | 21 | ITA | 62 | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | Ducati |
| 5 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | 48 | Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team | Ducati |
| 6 | Ogura Ai | 79 | JPN | 28 | Trackhouse Racing | Aprilia |
| 7 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | 25 | LCR Honda | Honda |
| 8 | Bezzecchi Marco | 72 | ITA | 25 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 9 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | 21 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 10 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | 20 | Honda HRC Castrol | Honda |
| 11 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | 19 | Prima Pramac Yamaha | Yamaha |
| 12 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | 19 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 13 | Acosta Pedro | 37 | SPA | 16 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM |
| 14 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | 16 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM |
| 15 | Mir Joan | 36 | SPA | 10 | Honda HRC Castrol | Honda |
| 16 | Rins Alex | 42 | SPA | 10 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha |
| 17 | Aldegeur Fermin | 54 | SPA | 9 | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati |
| 18 | Vinales Maverick | 25 | SPA | 6 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 | KTM |
| 19 | Fernandez Raul | 25 | SPA | 5 | Trackhouse Racing | Aprilia |
| 20 | Fernandez Augusto | 7 | SPA | 3 | Prima Pramac Yamaha | Yamaha |
| 21 | Oliveira Miguel | 88 | POR | 2 | Prima Pramac Yamaha | Yamaha |
| 22 | Savadori Lorenzo | 32 | ITA | 1 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 23 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | 0 | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia |
| 24 | Chantra Somkiat | 35 | THA | 0 | LCR Honda | Honda |
Location Information
The fabulous Lusail International Circuit lies on the outskirts of Doha, the capital city of Qatar. Built in little over a year, the track cost $58 million USD and required round-the-clock dedication from almost 1,000 workers in order to get it ready for the inaugural event – the Marlboro Grand… read more.
| Length | 5.380 kilometres / 3.343 miles |
| Width | 12 metres |
| Left corners | 6 |
| Right corners | 10 |
| Longest straight | 1.068 kilometres / 0.664 miles |
| Constructed | 2004 |
Losail International Circuit, Al Daayen, Qatar - View in Google Maps
Records
| Pole Position | 1m 50.499s (175.2km/h) Marc Marquez (Ducati, 2025) |
| Race Lap | 1m 52.657s (171.9 km/h) Pedro Acosta (KTM, 2024) |
| 2025 Sprint Winner | Marc Marquez (Ducati) |
| 2025 Race Winner | Marc Marquez (Ducati) |
