Italy’s Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia on the Ducati Desmosedici GP22 clinched his third straight victory and the fifth win of the season at the Austrian Grand Prix held at the Red Bull Ring. The race saw Fabio Quartararo, the current world leader on the Yamaha YZR M1, defending his position with a bold strategy that kept him in the fight, finishing a close second ahead of Jack Miller, Bagnaia’s teammate on the Ducati squad.
Bagnaia managed to chip away at Quartararo’s overall advantage, though Ducati executives had hoped for a larger reduction. Aleix Espargaró, racing the Aprilia RS-GP, showed strong form by outperforming many rivals but ultimately finished sixth, leaving a notable gap in the standings. The gap remained significant, with 32 points separating Bagnaia from Quartararo and a broader spread to other contenders.
Early in the race, Bagnaia surprised Enea Bastianini by jumping Miller to third place, while Jorge Martín sat in fourth and Quartararo held fifth, shortly after the first dramatic moment as Joan Mir crashed at Turn 4 while leading the early phase of the race.
After the opening lap, Quartararo dropped a position as his teammate moved ahead, and Aleix Espargaró rose four places in the first lap to sit eighth. Ducati opened with a powerful statement as four of their riders led the initial phase, with Bagnaia at the forefront.
Bagnaia’s early surge helped establish Ducati’s control, with Miller acting as a protective shield behind Bagnaia while Bastianini and Martín jockeyed for position in a bid to challenge Miller for a place within the factory Ducati squad. Espargaró set the pace for the youngest laps with the fastest times as the field sorted itself out.
Maverick Viñales encountered a momentary misstep on the fifth lap when Quartararo and Espargaró passed him. A technical issue struck Bastianini on a later lap when the front tire bead failed, causing a drop in pressure that forced him off Turn 4 and out of contention.
From there, Bagnaia and Miller pulled clear of the field, showing that the race would be a two-man duel at the front. Miller briefly edged Bagnaia on lap eight, but the Italian quickly regained the lead, with Martín settling into third and solidifying the front group.
Quartararo moved up into the chase pack, positioned behind Bagnaia and Miller. The championship leader faced further pressure as the race progressed, tightening the gap on the wheel-to-wheel battle among the top contenders and keeping the outcome in suspense.
As the laps dwindled, Quartararo began pressing the pace to close down Miller and Bagnaia. By the midpoint of the race, the order showed Bagnaia in front, followed by Miller and Martín, with Quartararo not far behind in fifth as the race crossed the halfway mark in a 28-lap format.
Martín encountered trouble when he switched setups late in the seventeenth lap, allowing Quartararo to slip ahead and put pressure on the leaders. The Spaniard briefly lost ground but continued pushing, while Quartararo pressed hard to reclaim ground and chase the podium positions.
Further back, Viñales found himself losing momentum, with Luca Marini, Johann Zarco, and Aleix Espargaró challenging for position as Brad Binder approached from behind in a late charge. The closing stages brought a surge from Binder and others who looked to capitalize on any misstep from the leaders.
With fewer than five laps remaining, Quartararo put on a late surge to overtake Miller and moved into second place, pressing Martín in a bid to shave further time. Miller fought hard to defend his position, but Espargaró took advantage of a mistake by Rins to slip into a points-paying spot and drop Martín down a rung as the race entered the final stretch.
After the podiums, Bagnaia stood atop the podium, with Quartararo in second and Miller in third. The remainder of the top ten included Marini, Zarco, Espargaró, Binder, Rins, Bezzecchi and Martín, while Viñales held a points-paying position further back. Márquez and Pol Espargaró finished outside the points, and the field continued to circulate with competitive fire for the remaining rounds of the season.