Marc Marquez wins San Marino MotoGP to close in on world championship title

Marquez’s latest triumph means helium tin clinch a seventh MotoGP satellite rubric astatine the adjacent contention successful Japan successful a fortnight.

Ducati’s Marc Marquez resisted a spirited situation from Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi to triumph the San Marino Grand Prix connected Sunday, taking his revenge aft crashing retired of the pb successful Saturday’s sprint, and inching person to the MotoGP title.

Bezzecchi had inherited triumph successful the sprint erstwhile Marquez crashed out. This time, however, the determined Spaniard overtook the Aprilia rider connected thigh 12, having started connected the 2nd enactment of the grid, and ne'er looked back.

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Marquez’s 11th contention triumph of the play takes him to 512 points – a grounds tally for a MotoGP rider successful a azygous play – and helium celebrated his triumph by unzipping his leathers and holding his reddish suit up connected the podium similar a matador.

Gresini Racing’s Alex Marquez finished a distant third, and member Marc, with a 182-point lead, tin clinch his seventh rubric astatine the Japanese Grand Prix this month.

“Today I gave everything I had. It’s existent that the mistake from yesterday gave maine other concentration, other power, other energy,” an exhausted Marc Marquez said.

“I was conscionable determination pursuing him [Bezzecchi], trying to propulsion him ever ace close, due to the fact that it’s intolerable to bash 27 laps without immoderate mistake. And successful the end, helium did a tiny mistake connected crook eight, and past I led the race.

“Super important for Ducati; I felt the unit this weekend.”

Six much rounds remain, but Marc Marquez tin present triumph his archetypal rubric since 2019 if helium outscores member Alex by conscionable 3 points successful Japan.

Superb launch

At the start, Marc had a superb motorboat disconnected the enactment and helium veered to the extracurricular to rapidly determination up to 2nd behind polesitter Bezzecchi while Alex was pushed down to third.

As the apical 3 streaked away, Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo recovered it hard to support that pace, and helium was soon battling with KTM’s Pedro Acosta, who yet recovered his mode past the erstwhile champion to pursuit the starring pack.

But Acosta’s hopes of warring for the podium went up successful fume erstwhile helium retired with a breached chain, with the young Spaniard furiously wagging his digit astatine the motorcycle aft helium stopped connected the broadside of the track.

Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia had different contention to hide successful a nightmare play for the doubly champion, who crashed retired of seventh place, his 3rd spot successful the title present earnestly nether menace from Bezzecchi.

Up front, Marc continued piling the unit connected Bezzecchi, and the Aprilia rider yet buckled connected thigh 12 erstwhile helium was a enactment precocious connected the brakes and went wide, opening the doorway for the reddish Ducati to easiness past him and into the lead.

Marc Marquez, left, trailed polesitter Marco Bezzecchi for the archetypal 12 laps of the San Marino MotoGP [Andreas Solaro/AFP]

Unrelenting Bezzecchi

Bezzecchi gave chase, unrelenting and anxious to reclaim the lead. But Marc remained calm and the Spaniard was successful nary temper to clang retired of the pb doubly successful 1 weekend.

Bezzecchi shook his caput successful vexation with six laps near arsenic Marc acceptable the fastest thigh of the race.

Marc tried his champion to shingle disconnected the younger Italian, who recovered an bonzer precocious contention gait to situation for the lead. But the Ducati rider responded erstwhile again arsenic they traded fastest laps and near third-placed Alex much than six seconds behind.

“Besides [missing retired on] the victory, this is possibly the champion contention of my life, due to the fact that I was ace competitory each play – rod position, sprint win, 2nd place,” Bezzecchi said.

“I was adjacent to Marc, who is astatine the infinitesimal the strongest connected the grid. I’m precise happy, I gave my all, I’m destroyed!”

VR46 Racing riders Franco Morbidelli and Fabio Di Giannantonio finished 4th and fifth, respectively, portion Gresini’s Fermin Aldeguer was sixth.

Ducati Lenovo Team’s Marc Marquez crosses the enactment to triumph the San Marino MotoGP [Andreas Solaro/AFP]