Portimao was the stage for the first, spectacular sprint race ever, which also marked the opening encounter of 2023. After a disastrous qualifying, with Alex Marquez only 13^th and Fabio Di Giannantonio all the way down in 21^st place, both Team Gresini Racing MotoGP riders managed to make amends by finishing the race – with the Spaniard also able to score a point thanks to a ninth-place finish. 
 
A mistake towards the halfway point of the race prevented the Spanish rider from battling with today’s fastest riders, but Marquez still did a good job to attack and at the same time to fend off Quartararo’s attacks – as he wrapped up the Sprint Race point-scoring top nine.
 
Fabio Di Giannantonio also did a good job as he tried to recovered the lost confidence as he made up several positions while also staying upright aboard his Ducati #49. The first full race of the season will get underway tomorrow at 14:00 local time (GMT +1).