MotoGP Race Results From MotorLand Aragon

Aragon MotoGP Race Results
1. Marc MARQUEZ (93), Repsol Honda Team HONDA
2. Jorge LORENZO (99) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP YAMAHA
3. Valentino ROSSI (46) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP YAMAHA
4. Maverick VIÑALES (25) Team Suzuki Ecstar SUZUKI
5. Cal CRUTCHLOW (35) LCR Honda HONDA
6. Dani PEDROSA (26) Repsol Honda Team HONDA
7. Aleix ESPARGARO (41) Team Suzuki Ecstar SUZUKI
8. Pol ESPARGARO (44) Monster Tech 3 YAMAHA
9. Alvaro BAUTISTA (19) Aprilia Racing Team Gresini APRILIA
10. Stefan BRADL (6) Aprilia Racing Team Gresini APRILIA
11. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (4) Ducati Team DUCATI
12. Michele PIRRO (51) Ducati Team DUCATI
13. Hector BARBERA (8) Avintia Racing DUCATI
14. Eugene LAVERTY (50) Aspar Team MotoGP DUCATI
15. Nicky HAYDEN (69) Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS HONDA
16. Yonny HERNANDEZ (68) Aspar Team MotoGP DUCATI
17. Danilo PETRUCCI (9) OCTO Pramac Yakhnich DUCATI
18. Loris BAZ (76) Avintia Racing DUCATI
19. Scott REDDING (45) OCTO Pramac Yakhnich DUCATI

DNF: Tito RABAT (53) Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS HONDA

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) equals Mick Doohan's record of 54 wins with a dominating victory at MotorLand Aragon, extending his lead in the MotoGP championship. The Movistar Yamaha MotoGP duo of Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi fought it to complete the podium with Lorenzo taking P2 after the Doctor ran wide.

After a scuffle off the line through Turns 1 and 2 at a dry but cool MotorLand Aragon, it was Team Suzuki Ecstar rider Maverick Viñales who emerged from the melee to turn his front row start into the early lead in the race. With the front group close all the way down through the top ten, Marquez soon struck to take the lead before a wobble through Turn 7 saw the championship leader drop back into the group slightly, down to P5. Lorenzo was the man on the chase behind new leader Viñales, with the number 99's teammate Valentino Rossi in very close company.

The lead began to stretch for Silverstone winner Viñales, before it was Rossi tagged onto the back of the Suzuki rider and looking for a way past, finally making a clever but aggressive move to take the lead with 15 to go and sit the younger Spaniard up. Viñales, pushing to find a way back through, then ran wide and let Marquez through to hunt down his championship rival. With Lorenzo then on the scene, the front group divided into two duels.

Once with rider from Tavullia, former apprentice Marquez moved quickly to overtake the master, through on the inside on the 'Aragon Corkscrew' and making it stick. The championship leader then had the pressure of 9 world titles close behind and trying to hang on, but Marquez kept his head down and the pace up to begin to get the better of the Italian and create a gap. The pace shown by the 2013 and 2014 MotoGP World Champion throughout the weekend on home turf proved to have survived the trip to Sunday, as the number 93 bike started to get smaller and smaller in front of the 46 plated Yamaha - with Rossi then forced to start looking over his shoulder instead as Lorenzo and Viñales threatened.

As the laps ticked on, Lorenzo left Viñales and caught Rossi, with the Movistar Yamahas then locked together in a fight for P2 and the 'Spartan' holding off the Doctor - until the Italian ran wide in the final laps. For Rossi, the missed opportunity is a big one as he fights to close on title leader Marquez - dropping 9 points with the championship leader taking the win. Lorenzo, after a difficult weekend until a last minute front row, recovered well from a crash in morning Warm Up to cross the line in an impressive P2.

Viñales kept his Suzuki in fourth after dropping back in the latter stages of the race, earning another top five for the impressive Spaniard in only his second season. Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) had a solid ride to prove top Independent Team rider in fifth, just ahead of Misano winner Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) - who had a more difficult race at MotorLand but crossed the line in sixth to beat Aleix Espargaro (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in the final stages, with brother Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) behind the Suzuki in P8.

Ducati Team's Andrea Dovizioso had a tough race despite being a frontrunner in the early stages, and was one of the only bikes in the initial group of frontrunners to have chosen both medium compound tires. With six laps to go the Italian veteran was under fire from Aprilia Racing Team Gresini rider Alvaro Bautista, with Bautista taking the Ducati to finish in an impressive P9. Desmo Dovi then found himself taken by the second Aprilia of Stefan Bradl, and ended the race just outside the top ten in P11.

Nicky Hayden's (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS) one off return from WorldSBK to sub for injured Jack Miller was a success for the Kentucky Kid, as the American scored points in P15 despite never having ridden the bike, tires or electronics.

The next stop for the 2016 MotoGP World Championship will be the Twin Ring Motegi in Japan where Marquez will take a 52-point lead to the track of his 2014 title win.