Bastianini wins Grand Prix of the Americas, leads MotoGP title race
Bastianini wins Grand Prix of the Americas, leads MotoGP title race
Italy's Enea Bastianini won his second MotoGP race of the season at the Grand Prix of the Americas on Sunday to grab the world championship overall lead.
The 24-year-old got past fellow Ducati rider and long-time leader Jack Miller with five laps left to add the Austin win to his maiden victory at the season-opener in Qatar.
Australian Miller finished third after also being passed by the Suzuki of Alex Rins, the winner in Texas in 2019.
Six-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez, who was bidding for an eighth win in nine visits to the Texas circuit, finished sixth, having slipped to the back of the field at lights out on his Honda.
The 29-year-old Spaniard, who missed last weekend's race in Argentina due to double vision after a violent high-side crash in Indonesia, had started ninth on the gird.
That was his worst qualifying performance ever at the Circuit of the Americas.
He stormed back through the field into the top 10 at the midway point, even setting a fastest lap in the process.
Fourth on Sunday was Suzuki's Joan Mir, the 2020 world champion, with Francesco Bagnaia on another Ducati coming home fifth.
Reigning world champion Fabio Quartararo of Yamaha was seventh behind Marquez with pole-sitter Jorge Martin on a Ducati-Pramac having to settle for eighth.
In the Moto2 race, Italy's Tony Arbolino claimed a maiden victory by 3.4sec over Ai Ogura.
Britain's Jake Dixon took third to secure his first ever podium while American pole sitter Cameron Beaubier failed to finish.
(R.Lavigne--LPdF)
