Raúl Fernández won the British MotoGP at Silverstone on Sunday, leading from the opening minute to claim his first Sunday victory of the season and the second of his career.
Fernández had crashed out of Saturday's Sprint race and used that frustration to build an early lead of almost four seconds before controlling the race to the finish. He said afterward that his rear tyre began to complain only on the final lap, but by then the win was already secured.
The victory came on the same day Fernández had announced a two-year contract renewal with Trackhouse, Aprilia's satellite team, following months in which strong results had not guaranteed him a spot on the 2027 MotoGP grid. He said he had not understood the delay in closing the negotiation, which was finally resolved and allowed him to race freely.
Fernández wore a commemorative helmet marking Spain's victory at the World Cup in the United States, a design he wanted as tribute to Luis de la Fuente's squad. The helmet featured the names of the 26 footballers who were crowned champions in New Jersey, his own number 25, and a cartoon of the players lifting the trophy.
Fernández reflects on his form
Spain thrashed Argentina in the World Cup final, and Fernández said he did something similar in England. Speaking to Dazn, he said that achieving a result you have dreamed of since childhood takes time to sink in, and that although he could see Trackhouse was winning, he still could not quite believe how positive the run had been. He added that he still had to overcome a mental barrier before truly seeing himself able to fight for the title, saying that as long as the numbers allowed it, the team would try to score maximum points each weekend, while acknowledging he was young and still far off the pace.
Martín closes in before falling back
Jorge Martín finished closest to the winner and at one point thought he might be able to launch a chase, cutting the gap to three and a half seconds before Fernández pulled away again. Martín, riding for the factory Aprilia team, was still pleased, since the 20 points for second place were a strong haul. Fernández told him afterward that the championship had turned in his favor, to which Martín replied that they were all very evenly matched. It was the weekend Martín began to feel like championship leader both on the timesheet and on track.
Martín extended his lead in the standings to 31 points over Marco Bezzecchi, who defended the podium despite being physically at his limit, 37 points over Ai Ogura, who had a poor Silverstone, and 40 points over Marc Márquez, who lost ground. Martín said he was the leader with much of the season still to go, adding that being top of the table did not carry much value right now, that what mattered was who wins at the end of the year, and that everyone was there to win, which meant he had to keep improving and keep working. He said he did not want to put pressure on himself.
Difficult weekend for Márquez
Marc Márquez had a complicated Sunday, in keeping with a weekend in which he had already warned he would need to switch to survival mode. His race faded as it went on, much like the Sprint, and he was unable to respond to a series of overtakes as the laps passed. He was passed by his brother Álex, by Pedro Acosta and by Di Giannantonio, finishing the race with nine points. In total he took ten points from Silverstone, which pushed his deficit to the championship lead from 18 to 40 points.
