MotoGP Qatar GP: Marc Marquez survives clash with…

Marc Marquez got back on the grand prix winning trail by taking victory in a dramatic Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday. The Spaniard survived a first-lap clash with his brother Alex on his way to a hard-fought win at Losail.

The surprise man to break Alex’s string of second places was Tech3 KTM rider Maverick Vinales, who led the middle part of the race before succumbing to Marc.

Marc’s team-mate Francesco Bagnaia, who started 11th on the grid after a qualifying accident, came home third on the second factory Ducati.

Following the problems experienced by most of the riders who had gambled on a soft rear during the 11-lap Saturday sprint, it was no surprise to see the entire field opt for mediums both front and rear for Sunday’s 22-lap encounter.

While Michelin said ahead of the race that tyre wear was not expected to be an issue, riders including Marc Marquez and Alex Rins predicted that care would be needed to look after the fronts.

Marc Marquez got his usual good start when the lights went green, but Alex was close behind him exiting the first corner. Too close for Marc to cut across him and take up the line for Turn 2, as it turned out. There was contact between the two brothers for the first time this year – which allowed Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) to snatch a surprise early lead.

Marc and Alex slotted into second and third as a frenetic race ensued. Morbidelli built up a small advantage as Marc found his rhythm on a bike with damaged bodywork and Alex succumbed to Fabio di Giannantonio on lap three.

Alex immediately tried to fight back, resulting in clumsy contact with di Giannantonio. This took both of them out of contention as they ran off the road – and Alex received a long-lap penalty for his troubles.

Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing (Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images)

Up at the front, Morbidelli held the lead until lap 10. When he lost it, however, it wasn’t to Marc Marquez. It was in fact the Tech3 KTM of Vinales, a former winner at this circuit, who rocketed past the VR46 Ducati on the main straight. Marc did however follow the charging and surprisingly fast Vinales past in the same move.

On lap 16, however, the inevitable happened as Marc Marquez took a lead he would never lose. The move came when Vinales made a mistake at Turn 6, but it’s unlikely Vinales would have held off Marquez for the remainder of the race – Marc quickly pulled away to win by exactly 1.8s at the flag.

Bagnaia, who was able to get up to speed faster than in the Saturday sprint, was in a perfect position to profit from the Alex Marquez/di Giannantonio incident and was in the leading group until Morbidelli lost the lead. He even cleared Marc Marquez for two laps in this phase of the race before the latter reclaimed the advantage and shadowed Vinales past Morbidelli.

Bagnaia then lost time in a brief battle to pass and subdue Morbidelli, and lost touch with the leading pair. Once he had shaken off the yellow Ducati, however, he enjoyed a relatively untroubled run to the last step of the podium.

Behind Morbidelli, Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) also enjoyed a far better grand prix than his Saturday sprint, coming home fifth ahead of Gresini Ducati rider Fermin Aldeguer.

Alex Marquez recovered from his travails to finish seventh – the first time in all the season’s sprints and grands prix that he has not finished in second position.

Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha), Pedro Acosta (KTM) and Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) rounded out the top 10 after featuring in a frantic, multi-bike midfield battle.

Reigning world champion Jorge Martin, who returned to action at this race after a lengthy injury absence, fell on lap 10.

Qatar GP results

1 - 2
Cla	Rider	#	Bike	Laps	Time	Interval	km/h	Retirement	Points
1	M. Marquez Ducati Team	93	Ducati	22	-				25
2	M. Viñales Tech 3	12	KTM	22	+1.800 1.800	1.800			20
3	F. Bagnaia Ducati Team	63	Ducati	22	+4.535 4.535	2.735			16
4	F. Morbidelli Team VR46	21	Ducati	22	+6.495 6.495	1.960			13
5	J. Zarco Team LCR	5	Honda	22	+6.668 6.668	0.173			11
6	F. Aldeguer Gresini Racing	54	Ducati	22	+7.484 7.484	0.816			10
7	A. Marquez Gresini Racing	73	Ducati	22	+9.764 9.764	2.280			9
8	F. Quartararo Yamaha Factory Racing	20	Yamaha	22	+12.895 12.895	3.131			8
9	P. Acosta Red Bull KTM Factory Racing	37	KTM	22	+14.219 14.219	1.324			7
10	M. Bezzecchi Aprilia Racing Team	72	Aprilia	22	+14.368 14.368	0.149			6
View full results