Marc Marquez has taken the lead in the MotoGP standings and an eighth sprint win of the season in Indonesia has strengthened the Spaniard’s grip on the championship.
However, title rival Jorge Martin is a big price to hit back in the main race and the Aprilia Racing rider rates the standout bet at Mandalika.
MotoGP Indonesia Tips Summary
Best Bet - Jorge Martin each-way @ 10/3
Alternative Bet - Ai Ogura each-way @ 14/1
MotoGP Indonesia Prediction
Best Bet: Jorge Martin each-way @ 10/3
Saturday’s Indonesia sprint race provided plenty of drama with Raul Fernandez and Marco Bezzecchi crashing out at turn one.
Fabio Di Giannantonio, Marquez, Fernandez and Bezzecchi were four abreast going into the first turn.
Di Giannantonio went slightly wide into the corner, forcing Marquez and Bezzecchi to sit up, which in turn saw Fernandez run into his Aprilia teammate and take them both down.
Trackhouse boss Davide Brivio immediately blamed Marquez and Martin for the crash and the incident has led to a muddied main race.
Fernandez looked the pick in practice and qualifying, but concerns have emerged after the sprint race spill.
The Spanish star has suggested he may not compete in the main race after injuring his braking finger in the crash, and while that may have been a heat-of-the-moment reaction in anger after the sprint, it is hard to back the Trackhouse rider after those comments.
Race favourite Bezzecchi looks pretty short for a rider, who has failed to win any of the last nine MotoGP races and it is worth remembering that Marquez was absent for a large chunk of the campaign.
That record is a concern, considering the Italian had the best pace at Assen and Misano, and was close to the speed at numerous other tracks, but failed to convert that into a victory.
Marquez has not had the pace this weekend and it looks like a case of championship damage limitation for the Ducati Lenovo rider.
Of course, it is difficult to completely dismiss the chances of the Spanish magician, but the price on offer about the greatest rider of all time claiming Indonesian glory looks quite tight.
Martin rates the solid each-way play. The Aprilia Racing man had a front-tyre issue on Friday and could not show his true pace.
The 28-year-old would have likely won Saturday’s sprint, had it not been for a tyre pressure issue and there has been continued improvement from the Madrid maestro throughout the weekend.
Barring a crash, it is extremely unlikely that three riders will finish in front of Martin and the Aprilia rider rates a cracking each-way bet.
Alternative Bet: Ai Ogura each-way @ 14/1
At a bigger price, Ai Ogura could hold some each-way value. There are clear concerns over Bezzecchi, Marquez and Fernandez, who are dominating the market and there is enough in the place part of the price to punt the Japanese star.
The Trackhouse speedball has not had the pace of his rivals this weekend, but the 25-year-old is always stronger in the closing main race.
Ogura landed his fourth sprint podium of the campaign on Saturday and he has landed one main-race win and one runner-up spot from his three previous top-three sprint finishes.
Tyre degradation has not been that high in Indonesia this weekend, but any increase would make Ogura a huge runner.
Key Race Stats
Marc Marquez has won three of the last four MotoGP races
Marquez has eight sprint race wins this season
Marco Bezzecchi has failed to win any of his last MotoGP races
Eight of the last nine MotoGP races have been won by Trackhouse or the Ducati Lenovo Team
Eight of the last nine MotoGP races have been won by a Spanish rider
Marc Marquez finished 0.509s ahead of his nearest rival in the Indonesian sprint race
Read more MotoGP betting tips and predictions on site.
This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
