12.09.2026
MotoGP 2026 - Round 14 of 22, Misano – Qualification and Sprint
Pedro Acosta delivered Saturday points for Red Bull KTM with 6th position at a sunny Misano in the San Marino Grand Prix Sprint. The Spaniard earned the result after making 7th in qualification for the fourteenth fixture of the season. Brian Uriarte shone for the KTM GP Academy on the Rimini coastline with the 2nd best lap in Moto3 Q2.
Highlights and key moments from Misano:
- Pedro Acosta leads the line on the KTM RC16 with a bustling charge to 6th in Italy
- Pol Espargaro catches the eye with a bright qualification run. The Spaniard entered Q2 directly on his third substitute appearance of the season
- Brad Binder recovers five positions in the Misano Sprint to stand 14th while Enea Bastianini is close behind in 15th
- High Moto3™ potential for Sunday thanks to Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Brian Uriarte with P2 after Q2 but also for Red Bull KTM Tech3’s Valentin Perrone in P4
45 years after Misano first hosted a Grand Prix, the FIM World Championship arrived at the flat facility close to Rimini for the second event on Italian soil this term. MotoGP reached lap record pace once again on Friday with less than one second dividing the 15 fastest riders. In a bright and mild climate, Pedro Acosta was again the reference on the KTM RC16 and defied a Turn 1 crash on Friday to sit 6th after Practice. The Spaniard was joined by countryman Pol Espargaro (filling-in for Maverick Viñales for the third race in a row) in Q2. Enea Bastianini missed out on Q2 by a hundredth of a second and Brad Binder also went into Q1.
An early rainstorm on Saturday meant the track was drying just in time for Free Practice 2 and was back to blue skies for qualification. Acosta was 0.6 from Pole Position after Q2 and occupied the first slot on the third row of the grid in P7. Espargaro rested with a very decent P12. Bastianini moved to P16 and Binder was P19 after Q1.
The Sprint rounded Misano for 13 laps. Acosta survived some exciting moments of close overtaking in the first laps but then found the limit of his speed with a rear soft tire choice and finished in 6th. Binder powered up to mid-pack and entered a KTM scrap with Bastianini and Espargaro. The trio crossed the finish line together - less than a second covering the three KTM RC16s - and with Brad in P14, followed by Enea in P15 and Pol in P16.
The 27-lap MotoGP contest starts at the customary time of 14.00 CEST.
Pedro Acosta, 7th in qualification, 6th in the Sprint: “Quite frustrating. A lot of battling in the beginning and it cost us a lot of time otherwise we could have been closer to the podium. It is what it is. The pace between the medium and the soft tire is quite similar but I’m struggling a bit more to stop the bike here. It’s not normally a weak point but it is here but, anyway, happy with the P6. Tomorrow will be a new day, a new challenge. We’ll see.”
Brad Binder, 19th in qualification, 14th in the Sprint: “The Sprint went better than the beginning of the day but I’m missing some serious speed in the third sector. A couple more tenths of a second there will change our weekend. That’s my homework tonight; if we can figure out then we’ll be much better tomorrow.”
Enea Bastianini, 16th in qualification, 15th in the Sprint: “I thought we would have something different today because yesterday I was quite strong on the pace but it was difficult to put temperature into the front tire this morning. In the Sprint it was complicated to overtake and we did not make my target. The start is very important and then it is hard for me to do something with the braking. We need to do something better tomorrow.”
Pol Espargaro, 12th in qualification, 16th in the Sprint: “Overall not a bad race for the rhythm. I was there for the pace of P11 with other riders. I was almost chilling there because I still miss the aggression to overtake in the way it was needed. Anyway, I feel I am back into a racing mode and we’ll see how it goes tomorrow. It will be tough; long, hot and physical…but I’ll try to manage!”
Aki Ajo, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team Manager: “A bit of a bittersweet feeling today. Top six for Pedro, and all the riders reached the finish, but the qualification was quite challenging. We were able to make a small comeback in the Sprint but it is not enough for us. We need to analyze why we could not use our good work from Friday, but on the other hand tomorrow is another day and the longer race. We have to invest everything we have and go again.”
Grand Prix of San Marino photographs can be found HERE
Results Qualifying MotoGP Grand Prix of San Marino
1. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA) Aprilia 1:29.982
2. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati +0.198
3. Fermin Aldeguer (ESP) Ducati +0.368
7. Pedro Acosta (ESP) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +0.658
12. Pol Espargaro (ESP) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +1.198
16. Enea Bastianini (ITA) Red Bull KTM Tech3 1:31.113 (Q1)
19. Brad Binder (RSA) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1:31.552 (Q1)
Results MotoGP Sprint Grand Prix of San Marino
1. Marc Marquez (ESP) Ducati 19:48.519
2. Marco Bezzecchi (ITA) Aprilia +1.068
3. Jorge Martin (ESP) Aprilia +3.538
6. Pedro Acosta (ESP) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +6.944
14. Brad Binder (RSA) Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +18.181
15. Enea Bastianini (ITA) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +18.476
16. Pol Espargaro (ESP) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +18.752
KTM GP Academy
Moto3 began brightly for the KTM GP Academy collective with three of the four Red Bull KTM Ajo and Red Bull KTM Tech3 riders clocking laps in the top ten during Friday’s Practice and ensuring a calm Saturday morning for Brian Uriarte, Valentin Perrone and Rico Salmela; who all focused directly on Q2 while Alvaro Carpe, who was 18th fastest on Friday, needed to find a few more tenths during Q1.
The decisive session for grid positions saw Uriarte again in the ascendancy. The rookie was just 0.2 of a second from Pole Position and found a lap around Misano good enough for P2 on the grid. Perrone was not far away. The Argentine took P4 for the first berth on the second row. Salmela was 8th fastest from a top ten divided by one second and Carpe recovered to P9.
Collin Veijer was in fast form in Moto2™. The Dutchman initially topped the Friday Practice sheets and rested P4, a quarter of a second away from P1. On Saturday he moved through Q2 with more progression of his speed and locked in 6th place on the grid. Jose Antonio Rueda suffered a crash during Practice and had to improve for Saturday. The rookie was able to take 29th.
Misano hosted the sixth and penultimate date of the 2026 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. The first of two races for the pack of eager youngsters from countries across the globe took place on Saturday afternoon. The 15-lap contest was won by Fernando Bujosa (his first 25 points of the season) although the Spaniard had a multitude of rivals chasing the exhaust pipe of his KTM RC 250 R ROOKIES. The next dash happens Sunday morning.
Results Qualifying Moto3 Grand Prix of San Marino
1. David Almansa (ESP), KTM 1:40.612
2. Brian Uriarte (ESP), Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.217
3. Joel Kelso (AUS), Honda +0.397
4. Valentin Perrone (ARG) Red Bull KTM Tech3 +0.499
5. Maximo Quiles (ESP) CFMOTO Aspar Team +0.515
8. Rico Salmela (FIN), Red Bull KTM Tech3 +0.894
9. Alvaro Carpe (ESP), Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.944
14. Marco Morelli (ARG) CFMOTO Aspar Team +1.354
Results Qualifying Moto2 Grand Prix of San Marino
1. Senna Agius (AUS) 1:33.718
2. Daniel Holgado (ESP) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team +0.193
3. Angel Piqueras (ESP) +0.264
6. Collin Veijer (NED) Red Bull KTM Ajo +0.381
17. David Alonso (COL) CFMOTO Inde Aspar Team 1:34.275 (Q1)
29. Jose Antonio Rueda (ESP) Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:36.393 (Q1)
PRESS CONTACT
Evangelia Sissis
PR Manager MotoGP
+43 676 665 2742