Marc Márquez closes the gap in the MotoGP World Championship after his victory in the San Marino sprint

At Aprilia they can't stop adjusting the rearview mirror, and Marc Márquez's Ducati continues to approach at full speed in the battle for the World Championship. With his sixth sprint victory of the course in 14 stops, the seven-time MotoGP world champion continued to tighten the screws on his great rivals for the title, leader Jorge Martín and Marco Bezzecchi, author of a stratospheric pole position at his home circuit. The defender of the crown is now 14 points behind the Madrid driver, when not so long ago he was in a hole of 102, and could even take the lead in the championship this Sunday (2:00 p.m., DAZN) at the San Marino GP.

The Italian candidate, the man who amazed at the beginning of the course, saw how the red '93 Desmosedici slipped past him for the third consecutive race in the first corner of the track, just as he did in the sprint and the grand prix two weeks ago in Aragon. That aggressiveness at the start allowed Márquez to set the script for a test where he decided to change strategy at the last minute to go against those who everyone points out as his great rival for the crown. Martín, first in the table but third in the pools of the majority of the paddock, could not keep up with his two opponents during qualifying and had to climb from fifth to third place to save the furniture once again this season.

Despite equipping the medium tire, the 93 knew how to print a devilish pace from the first moment, knocking out the commitment to soft rubber of an emboldened Bez. A few hours earlier, the rider from Rimini had beaten the absolute circuit record with a 1:29.982, the first lap in history at Misano and its 4.23 kilometers under 90 seconds. Crazy, of course, but for these pilots it's their daily bread. Bezzecchi's first blow in the morning, however, was of little use now that the final blow on Saturdays is given during the after-dinner meal.

"The plan was to take the lead, because those first laps could be dangerous if Bez got his best rhythm. Then I saw that I got away, and I relaxed a little, but then I had to push again. Luckily, we had the rhythm saved and I was just trying to manage the risk," pointed out Márquez, at 33 years old a first-class strategist. He barely raised a finger at the finish line to celebrate, focused on taking another bite on Sunday, when the significant points are distributed.

While the Spaniard continues adding Saturday merits, the Italian continues without having won any Saturday this season. "It's the best result of the year in a sprint, and I'm happy about it. We are ready for tomorrow," commented the man from Rimini positively. As the final third of the course approaches, Martín continues to lead for another day with 263 points. Márquez is 14th and his teammate Bezzecchi also threatens him with only 22 points. “I didn't want to risk too much, and the truth is that it's not being an easy weekend,” Martín agreed after his umpteenth endurance exercise of the course. The man from Madrid looked serious, perhaps aware that to win the race he will have to find that extra something that will allow him to compete again to win races.