A pre-race downpour soaked the Le Mans Bugatti Circuit just minuted before the MotoGP grid lined up to take the green flag—the first wet race since Valencia in 2018. And, as you’d expect, the wet track made for some chaos and unexpected results—resulting in Ducati rider Danilo Petrucci’s win. He’s the seventh different winner in nine Grands Prix in the 2020 season.
Cal Crutchlow shot to the lead at the start of the race, but Jack Miller found himself in the lead by turn three. Valentino Rossi had a crash at that same corner, ending his race. Petrucci, Andrea Dovisioso, and Miller took the toppositions, making it a Ducati 1-2-3 to kick off the race.
But nothing has been guaranteed this year in MotoGP. With eight laps to go, Miller’s Ducati began to smoke, Alex Rins went down at turn three, and Crutchlow crashed. Petrucci’s lead was untouchable, and in the midst of chaos, rookie Alex Marquez, who had started 18th, suddenly found himself in a podium position and challenging for a win.
And while Marquez didn’t make the final push to the lead, he can rest easy knowing he gave a drive that lives up to his family name.
With such a chaotic race, there were certainly some championship implications. Polesitter Fabio Quartararo dropped back to finish ninth, but he still leads the championship with 115 points.
Joan Mir, though, sits just 10 points behind him, despite an uncharacteristically poor 11th-place finish. It’s possible for him to eat up the gap, but he’ll have work to do in these last five races.
Andrea Dovisioso and Maverick Vinales are separated by a single point in their battle for third overall (97 to Vinales’ 96).
Top 10:
1. Danilo Petrucci
2. Alex Marquez
3. Pol Espargaro
4. Andrea Dovizioso
5. Johann Zarco
6. Miguel Oliveira
7. Takaaki Nakagami
8. Stefan Bradl
9. Fabio Quartararo
10. Maverick Viñales
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