Ducati’s Enea Bastianini took his first race win of the season in Sunday’s British Grand Prix, the Italian rider capitalising on a late-race error by Spaniard Jorge Martin to become the 10th different winner at Silverstone in the past 10 years.
Bastianini, who won a half-distance sprint race for the first time in his career on Saturday, came on strong late in Sunday’s 20-lap race at Silverstone, the 26-year-old passing Ducati teammate and reigning world champion Francesco Bagnaia with seven laps remaining to hunt down Martin, who had deposed Bagnaia from the lead on lap 12.
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Bastianini slashed Martin’s one-second advantage to 0.1secs with two laps left before Martin ran wide at Turn 3, Bastianini pushing through and clearing away to win by 1.931secs from Martin, with Bagnaia fading late to finish 5.866secs behind his teammate.
Martin, who also finished second to Bastianini in Saturday’s sprint, reclaimed the lead of the world championship by three points over Bagnaia, who crashed from the 10-lap sprint and had his four-race Grand Prix-winning streak broken.
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“It has been a very difficult race because I commit some mistakes at the start and I was in fourth place,” Bastianini said after his sixth Grand Prix victory, and his first since Malaysia in November last year.
“After, I was confident to do better again and I close the gap to [Aprilia rider] Aleix [Espargaro] and I close the gap to Pecco [Bagnaia]. The last four or five laps Jorge pushed a lot, but at the end, the last two or three laps, always I have something more. Today has been the same.”
Australia’s Jack Miller (KTM) faded late in the race after running inside the top 10 for all but the final three laps to finish 12th, 25.767secs behind Bastianini.
Compatriot Remy Gardner, substituting for injured test rider Cal Crutchlow as a wildcard entry for Yamaha, was 18th and last of the classified finishers, 59.137secs from first place.
Martin (241 points) leads Bagnaia (238) after 10 of the 20 rounds this season, with Bastianini’s maximum points haul at Silverstone putting him back in title contention with 192 points ahead of the next round in Austria from August 16-18.
British Grand Prix, race report, Francesco Bagnaia, Jorge Martin, Marc Marquez, Jack Miller, Remy Gardner, Silverstone – MASHAHER
Ducati’s Enea Bastianini took his first race win of the season in Sunday’s British Grand Prix, the Italian rider capitalising on a late-race error by Spaniard Jorge Martin to become the 10th different winner at Silverstone in the past 10 years.
Bastianini, who won a half-distance sprint race for the first time in his career on Saturday, came on strong late in Sunday’s 20-lap race at Silverstone, the 26-year-old passing Ducati teammate and reigning world champion Francesco Bagnaia with seven laps remaining to hunt down Martin, who had deposed Bagnaia from the lead on lap 12.
Every MotoGP qualifying, practice and race LIVE and ad-break free from lights out to the chequered flag. New to Kayo? Start Your Free Trial Today >
Bastianini slashed Martin’s one-second advantage to 0.1secs with two laps left before Martin ran wide at Turn 3, Bastianini pushing through and clearing away to win by 1.931secs from Martin, with Bagnaia fading late to finish 5.866secs behind his teammate.
Martin, who also finished second to Bastianini in Saturday’s sprint, reclaimed the lead of the world championship by three points over Bagnaia, who crashed from the 10-lap sprint and had his four-race Grand Prix-winning streak broken.
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“It has been a very difficult race because I commit some mistakes at the start and I was in fourth place,” Bastianini said after his sixth Grand Prix victory, and his first since Malaysia in November last year.
“After, I was confident to do better again and I close the gap to [Aprilia rider] Aleix [Espargaro] and I close the gap to Pecco [Bagnaia]. The last four or five laps Jorge pushed a lot, but at the end, the last two or three laps, always I have something more. Today has been the same.”
Australia’s Jack Miller (KTM) faded late in the race after running inside the top 10 for all but the final three laps to finish 12th, 25.767secs behind Bastianini.
Compatriot Remy Gardner, substituting for injured test rider Cal Crutchlow as a wildcard entry for Yamaha, was 18th and last of the classified finishers, 59.137secs from first place.
Martin (241 points) leads Bagnaia (238) after 10 of the 20 rounds this season, with Bastianini’s maximum points haul at Silverstone putting him back in title contention with 192 points ahead of the next round in Austria from August 16-18.
Source Agencies