Dovizioso pips Marquez to win Austrian MotoGP
DUCATI’S Andrea Dovizioso won the Austrian MotoGP on Sunday to slightly close the gap between him and runaway championship leader Marc Marquez.
Italian Dovizioso (pictured, AFP) is still 58 points behind five-time world champion Marquez despite pipping the Honda rider on the final lap to gain his first race win since the season opener in Qatar.
“I didn’t think I could overtake on the last corner but it was the last one and I absolutely had to try,” Dovizioso, 33, said.
“I felt incredibly strong at that point and sometimes you have to try something crazy.”
Marquez, who is yet to win in Austria during his illustrious career, praised Dovizioso’s performance.
“I’m happy because I finished second, of course we missed the last corner but I was sliding a lot on the rear tire,” Marquez told broadcaster BT Sport.
“Dovi did an incredible job and at the moment we are leading by 58 points, so we have to continue on the same way.”
Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo completed the podium and Australian Jack Miller was one of four riders who fell during the race.
Seven-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi was fourth, his best result since finishing second in the US in April, but he is a whopping 127 points behind Marquez ahead of t he Br it ish Gra nd Pr i x at Silverstone on August 25.
Earlier on Sunday South African Brad Binder celebrated his 24th birthday in style with success in the Moto2.
The KTM rider was all smiles after ending a winless spell stretching back to Australia in October last year.
“I can’t imagine a better day than winning on my birthday at KTM’s home track,” the 2016 Moto3 champion beamed.
Binder crossed the line with a 0.330sec advantage over Alex Marquez, who moved on to 181 points at the top of the Moto2 championships standings, a lead of 43 points over Thomas Luthi.
Binder’s success came just after Austrian manufacturer KTM had announced they were withdrawing from the Moto2 championship nship at the end of this season eason to p l o u g h a l l t h e i r r e s o u r c e s i n t o MotoGP in an initial itial five-year deal.
That will suit Bindinder, who is graduating ating to the premier category in 2020.
Marquez’ seccond place on the e podium was hard earned.
The brother o f Mo t o G P world champion Marc Marquez had started from 11th on the grid but managed to avoid void a series of crashes that eliminated Japan’s pole sitter Te t s u t a Na g a s h i ma, Spain’s Xav Xavi Vierge, Australian Remy Re Gardner a n d I t a l i a n duo Enea Bast i a ni ni and Luca Marini.
“The conditions were wer very difficult and t re a c he r o us with a very slipper pery circuit,” he sai said.
T The Moto3 race was won by Italian Rom Romano Fenati for Honda, his f i r s t v i c t o r y s i n c e b e i n g banned f for grabbing a break leaver lea of fellow rider Stefa Stefano Manzi last September September.