Lorenzo snatches his first win for Ducati as Marquez crashes out

JORGE Lorenzo secured his first MotoGP victory since he joined Ducati in dominant style in the Italian Grand Prix, while Marc Marquez’s points lead took a hit as he crashed.

From second on the grid, Lorenzo surged into an early lead at Mugello ahead of home pole positioned Valentino Rossi, with Marquez moving up to third place on the opening lap from sixth.

Honda rider Marquez then picked off Rossi’s Yamaha at the start of the third of 23 laps at the first corner, San Donato, before putting pressure on leader Lorenzo.

But on the fifth lap, Marquez lost the front end coming into the Scarperia right-hander, sliding into the gravel trap before remounting.

That left Lorenzo leading Rossi and the second works Ducati of Andrea Dovizioso, who then moved into the runner-up spot on lap seven at the Casanova-Savelli switchback.

At this point, Lorenzo held a slender advantage of 0.7 sec- onds, but as the race progressed, the Spaniard was able to maintain his pace, pulling out a lead of 1.5s by the 13th lap.

The three-time MotoGP champion was able to reel off the remaining 10 laps and ultimately secure his first win since Valencia 2016 and the 45th of his premier class career by a margin of 6.3s.

Rossi’s third place came the hard way, as the 39-year-old was forced to overcome Suzuki pair Andrea Iannone and Alex Rins as well as the Pramac Ducati of Danilo Petrucci.

Leading Race positions MotoGP:

MotoGP Rider Standings: