COTA delivers Texas-sized drama as Pecco pounces

Marc Marquez blunder hands brother Alex the championship lead, Miller bags a top 5

The Circuit of the Americas played host to a rollercoaster of a MotoGP race as Australia’s Jack Miller battled hard, Pecco Bagnaia returned to the top step, and Marc Marquez’s perfect season came to a crashing halt – quite literally – in one of the most incident-packed races of 2025 so far.

Under sunny skies in Austin, it was Marc Marquez who made the headlines in the opening laps, launching off the line to snatch the holeshot and lead the pack into Turn 1. Younger brother Alex slotted into second, successfully fending off Bagnaia’s early advances, while Diggia and Jack Miller rounded out a combative top five.

By the end of the first lap, the #93 had already established a 1.1-second lead and looked every bit the dominant force we’ve seen so far in 2025. Bagnaia, however, wasn’t giving up without a fight. After several failed attempts, the factory Ducati star finally made a move stick at Turn 12 on Lap 4, slipping past Alex Marquez into second and eyeing a chase for the win.

Marc answered with two blistering laps—a 2:02.466 followed by a 2:02.433—to stretch his advantage to nearly two seconds. But just as it looked like another dominant display from the six-time MotoGP Champion, disaster struck.

The pivotal moment of the race came on Lap 6. Pushing hard into Turn 4, Marc clipped a curb and hit a damp patch, losing the front of his GP25 and going down heavily. Though he remounted, damage to his machine—most notably a missing right foot peg—meant his Sunday would end without points. The undefeated streak was no more, and with it, the complexion of the championship shifted dramatically.

With Marc out of the running, Bagnaia took full control and managed the gap expertly. By Lap 15, his lead over Alex Marquez was up to three seconds. Behind them, Di Giannantonio kept the pressure on but couldn’t quite close the gap to the #73.

Meanwhile, the fight for the top ten sizzled. Rookie sensation Fermin Aldeguer lit up the timing screens and muscled past Jack Miller for P5 late in the race, only to crash out at Turn 15. Johann Zarco also fell victim to the merciless COTA layout at Turn 12 after a strong showing.

In the final laps, it was a question of survival and strategy. Bagnaia rode a faultless second half to claim his first win of 2025 and become just the 10th rider in MotoGP history to hit the 30-win mark. Alex Marquez held firm for second and, with it, now finds himself leading the World Championship – a remarkable twist in the season’s unfolding narrative. Di Giannantonio rounded out the podium in third with a determined ride.

Franco Morbidelli showed his class in P4, while Miller earned his best finish of the year for Yamaha in P5 – a gritty ride from the Aussie, who diced throughout with the likes of Morbidelli and Bezzecchi. Speaking of which, Bezzecchi climbed from 13th on the grid to finish sixth, with Bastianini in seventh salvaging a solid result for KTM after Acosta’s early crash ended the rookie’s day.

The top ten was rounded out by Luca Marini, Ai Ogura, and Fabio Quartararo, while the remaining points places went to Rins, Raul Fernandez, Augusto Fernandez, Viñales and Savadori.

MotoGP fans were once again treated to an electrifying spectacle in Texas, with a major championship shake-up and unforgettable drama. As the paddock packs up and heads for Qatar, Bagnaia reasserts himself as a title threat, and Alex Marquez holds the upper hand in the standings. But if COTA taught us anything, it’s that no lead is safe, and every lap counts.

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