News Summary
- Marc Márquez has never completed the Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika, recording three retirements and one non-start.
- His previous visits ended with accidents in 2022, 2023 and 2025, and an engine failure in 2024.
- He returns for the 2026 round just two points behind Jorge Martín after winning both races in Japan.
Marc Márquez arrives at Mandalika with the championship lead within reach and an unusual gap in his racing record: he has never finished the Indonesian Grand Prix. Across four visits, the circuit has delivered a missed start, two race-ending crashes and a mechanical failure.
The contrast with his latest weekend could hardly be greater. Márquez won the Sprint and Grand Prix in Japan, collecting the maximum 37 points and reducing Jorge Martín’s championship advantage to just two. Martín heads to Indonesia with 333 points, while Márquez has 331.
That brings a different significance to the next MotoGP round. Completing a Sunday race at Mandalika would be a first for Márquez, but his immediate objective is to continue the title challenge strengthened at Motegi.
The statistic applies specifically to the Grand Prix. Márquez has finished Sprints at the Indonesian circuit, including a podium in 2024. His Sunday record also needs a distinction: he has retired three times, while the 2022 race ended for him before he could take the start.
2022: a violent warm-up crash prevents him from starting
Márquez’s first Indonesian Grand Prix weekend with Repsol Honda ended with a severe highside at Turn 7 during Sunday’s warm-up.
He was taken to hospital for examinations and diagnosed with a concussion. Although he returned to the circuit, medical staff declared him unfit to race, leaving him absent from the grid.
The consequences extended beyond that weekend. Márquez subsequently suffered another episode of diplopia, or double vision, following the accident.
His first visit therefore produced a DNS rather than a race retirement. He had participated in the weekend’s sessions, but never started the Grand Prix.
2023: crashes in both the Sprint and Grand Prix
The following year, Márquez returned with Honda and qualified eighth. He was able to take the start this time, but neither race brought a finish.
On Saturday, he lost the front at Turn 11 on the opening lap of the Sprint. Sunday brought another fall and another retirement, leaving him without points from either race.
It was a different kind of setback from 2022. Rather than being withdrawn after a warm-up injury, Márquez started the Grand Prix but could not bring the Honda to the chequered flag.
His departure from the manufacturer had already been announced. Mandalika became another difficult weekend during the closing stages of that long partnership.
2024: a Sprint podium followed by an engine failure
Moving to Gresini and Ducati changed Márquez’s prospects, and the 2024 Indonesian weekend demonstrated that he could achieve a strong result at Mandalika.
After a difficult qualifying session left him 12th on the grid, he recovered to third in the Sprint. That podium is why describing him as a rider who has never finished any race at the circuit would be incorrect.
Sunday brought a separate problem. Márquez was running seventh, behind Francesco Bagnaia, when his Ducati suffered an engine failure. The bike caught fire, ending his race before he could convert the weekend’s improved competitiveness into Grand Prix points.
“The engine broke during what was my fastest lap of the race,” Márquez said in Gresini’s post-race statement. “These things happen and it’s nobody’s fault,” he added.
The mechanical failure made it three visits without a Sunday finish, but the Sprint podium had already shown that the record could not be explained simply by an inability to race competitively at Mandalika.
2025: Bezzecchi collision leaves Márquez injured
Márquez returned in 2025 as the newly crowned world champion, having secured the title at the previous round in Japan. He was now riding for Ducati’s factory team.
His Grand Prix lasted less than a lap. Marco Bezzecchi, who had started from pole, made contact with the rear of Márquez’s Ducati while attempting an overtake. Both riders crashed.
Subsequent medical examinations confirmed a fracture at the base of the coracoid process and a ligament injury to Márquez’s right shoulder. The injury ultimately kept him out of the remaining races of the season.
It was his most recent Sunday setback at Mandalika and another episode with a cause distinct from the previous visits: contact with another rider, rather than the engine failure that had stopped him in 2024.
Marc Márquez’s Indonesian Grand Prix record
| Year | Team | Grand Prix outcome | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Repsol Honda | DNS | Declared unfit after a warm-up crash caused a concussion |
| 2023 | Repsol Honda | DNF | Crashed during Sunday’s race |
| 2024 | Gresini Ducati | DNF | Engine failure while running seventh |
| 2025 | Ducati Lenovo | DNF | First-lap collision with Marco Bezzecchi caused a shoulder injury |
Grand Prix results only. Sprint finishes are excluded.
Why Mandalika matters more in the 2026 title fight
Márquez’s record is striking, but the four weekends do not establish a single recurring weakness. They include a medical withdrawal, a riding accident, a mechanical failure and a collision.
His 2024 Sprint podium provides an important counterpoint. He has already demonstrated that he can finish near the front at Mandalika, even though a Sunday result remains missing.
The championship now adds urgency. After sweeping Motegi, Márquez needs to sustain his scoring against Martín at a circuit that has repeatedly interrupted his previous campaigns.
The Indonesian Grand Prix takes place from 9–11 October. With only two points separating the leading riders, both the Sprint and Sunday’s Grand Prix can change the championship order.
MotoGP returns this weekend, from 9–11 October, for the Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika. GRANDE PRÊMIO will cover all the action.
MotoGP today: FAQ
Who won the Japanese MotoGP race today?
Marc Márquez won the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, finishing 1.363s ahead of Jorge Martín. Marco Bezzecchi completed the podium, while Márquez secured a weekend double after also winning Saturday’s Sprint.
Who leads the MotoGP championship after the Japanese GP?
Jorge Martín remains the MotoGP championship leader with 333 points, just 2 ahead of Marc Márquez on 331. Márquez’s two victories in Japan reduced the gap from 12 points at the start of the weekend.
When is the next MotoGP race?
The next MotoGP race is the Indonesian Grand Prix at Mandalika on Sunday, 11 October 2026. The weekend runs from 9–11 October.
