San Francesco
The MotoGP moved to San Marino (Misano) for another round of intense Grand Prix racing. Who would take 25 points here?
We were at Misano for the Italian Grand Prix and an exciting one it was billed to be. The race for the 2021 championship looks to be a little heated up with Ducati Lenovo Team rider Francesco Bagnaia closing a little distance with leader Fabio Quartararo of Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team.
MotoGP
At the lights, pole setter Bagnaia had a great start and began to take a commanding lead on the first lap. He had spent the whole of last winter practising this very move at Misano. He was followed by his teammate, Jack Miller, on the second Ducati Lenovo Team bike. On the other hand, Quatararo had lost a couple of places and was fighting back to catch the two Ducatis.
Meanwhile, Marc Marquez of Repsol Honda Team had also got off to a great start and fought within the lead rider group. However, Misano being a track with demanding right turns, this enthusiasm would have a shelf life.
Team Suzuki Ecstar rider Alex Rins was also having a great start to the Italian GP. However, in tune with a fair bit of the season, the Spanish rider crashed out midway through the race. His teammate and current world champion, Joan Mir of Team Suzuki Ecstar, seemed to be struggling with the conditions at Misano.
Soon, however, Quartararo found his groove and started to make his way into second place in a confident manner. A little later, with less than 10 laps to go, Bagnaia’s rear tyre started to show signs of wear, especially on the left side. This caused the Italian’s lap-time to drop, bringing Quartararo closer and closer with each lap. An exciting race end was on the cards; however, the San Marino GP did have a surprise in the form of Avintia Esponsorama rookie Enea Bastianini rampaging his way through the grid. Bastianini was now consistently setting the fastest laps and soon found himself closing in on Quartararo and Bagnaia.
However, it was a little too late for Bastianini and the race win would go down to the final lap between Quartararo and Bagnaia. With Quartararo on his rear wheel, Bagnaia put in a stunningly fast last lap to win his second MotoGP race, making it two in a row for the Ducati rider. Quartararo finished in second, losing just five points in the championship to Bagnaia, and a stunning rise from Bastianini gave him the final position in the podium. We now head to Austin, Texas for the United States GP.
Moto2
At the lights, Sam Lowes of Elf Marc VDS Racing Team had a blistering start, taking an early lead. However, the two championship leaders, Raul Fernandez and Remy Gardner, both of Red Bull KTM Ajo, would have their way at Misano. The Red Bull boys would take the lead, followed by Inde Aspar Team rider Aron Canet fighting with them for the win.
Home boy Marco Bezzecchi of Sky Racing Team VR46 could only manage a fifth-place finish with the victory going to Fernandez, Gardner coming in second, Canet in third, and Sam Lowes making up the top four. Gardner still leads the championship and Fernandez is a close second.
Moto3
Moto3 would have Romano Fenati of the Sterilgarda Max Racing Team take a commanding lead at the get-go. The Italian rider would have an easy win in his home Grand Prix. Unfortunately, Fenati would have a toss, destroying his chances.
The win would be a fight among three Italian riders: Niccolò Antonelli of Avintia VR46, Andrea Migno of Rivacold Snipers Team, and Leopard Racing’s Dennis Foggia. Foggia kept true to his championship hopes and won at Misano with Antonelli taking second and Migno coming in third.