Reigning MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia has won his third straight Spanish Grand Prix to make up ground on Jorge Martin in the world championship standings after the Pramac Racing rider crashed out while leading.
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Jack Miller's miserable season also continued on Sunday with the Australian Red Bull KTM rider also suffering a crash after a collision with Pramac's Franco Morbidelli.
Pole-sitter Marc Marquez, the six-times MotoGP champion, finished second for Gresini Racing at the Circuito de Jerez, with VR46 Racing's Marco Bezzecchi third.
Martin retained the lead in the driver's standings on 92 points after four rounds, with a 17-point lead over second-placed Bagnaia, whose Ducati teammate Enea Bastianini is a further five points behind in third.
Bagnaia, who started on the third row in seventh place, put himself in the mix early on with a series of audacious overtakes on the first lap, zipping past Bezzecchi, Martin and Marquez to take the lead.
Saturday's sprint winner Martin quickly wrested back the lead and was in front for much of the first half of the race, but the Spaniard lost the front-end of his Ducati on the 11th lap and was dumped in the gravel.
"The most important thing was the first lap, after that I just tried to push and Jorge committed a mistake by going too strong on the brakes," Bagnaia said.
"I enjoyed a lot, every time I fight with Marc, I know I have to be aggressive. It was very good."
The second half of the race provided a different challenge for Bagnaia as he went from doggedly chasing the lead to defending it with Marquez pushing him hard in the last few laps.
Marquez, roared on by the fans in Jerez, twice overtook Bagnaia but Ducati's twice world champion made a late surge to claim his first win of the season.
"It was a tight fight, like old times you know," said Marquez, whose shoulder was covered in tyre marks following a particularly close encounter with Bagnaia.
"This is good for racing, he was super good and did the fastest lap of the race I think. I tried to follow him afterwards, but he had a bit more than me.
"I'm super happy for this first podium."
Miller was left unhappy with the move from Morbidelli that he evidently felt had been responsible for the crash, and marshals stepped in to avoid a possible physical confrontation between the riders.
Miller has now fallen to 14th in the standings on 22 points.
Australian Associated Press
