WATCH: Pecco Bagnaia wins the Japanese MotoGP after Acosta's 'stupid' failure

Pecco Bagnaia continued his sensational 2024 MotoGP season by securing a double win at the Japanese Grand Prix in Motegi, significantly closing the gap to title rival Jorge Martin. With this win, Bagnaia now sits just 10 points behind Martin in the championship standings, reigniting his hopes for a repeat world title.

After taking the lead from debut pole-sitter Pedro Acosta in the very first turn, Bagnaia never looked back. Despite Martin’s rapid progress from a distant 11th on the grid to a close second, Bagnaia stayed in control and defended his position skillfully. By mid-race, Martin had reduced the gap to just over half a second, but Bagnaia responded decisively, keeping his competitor at bay to secure his eighth victory of the season.

Here is the video:

Executing the masterplan 👌@PeccoBagnaia takes victory number #8 of 2024, slashing the gap to Martin to 10 points 🔥#JapaneseGP 🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/SZcxAhP81P

— MotoGP™🏁 (@MotoGP) October 6, 2024

The race, however, was marked by drama. Acosta, who had led the opening stages and was eager to make up for his Sprint crash, once again suffered a critical error. The KTM rider slid out of second place on just the third lap, leaving his team frustrated and Acosta himself labelling it a "stupid" mistake.

Marc Marquez completes the podium

Acosta's misfortune handed Martin an easy pass into second, but it wasn't enough to catch Bagnaia. After the race, Martin graciously gave Bagnaia a thumbs-up during the cool-down lap, acknowledging his rival’s dominant performance.

Marc Marquez, returning to form, completed the podium in third, mirroring his Sprint result from the previous day. Marquez faced intense pressure from Enea Bastianini in the latter half of the race but managed to hold on to the final podium spot.

The excitement didn’t end there. With dark clouds looming and a surprise rain shower affecting the earlier Moto2 race, MotoGP organizers issued a 'flag-to-flag' warning after 10 laps, allowing riders to swap bikes due to potential rain. Fortunately, the rain passed without much impact, allowing Bagnaia to cruise to a comfortable victory.

Here are the final race results: