MotoGP: Marc Marquez wins in America for seventh time

From third on the grid the eight-time world champion was in a class of his own, leading the field in to Turn 1 and never looking back as he took the chequered flag at the end of 20 tough laps.

Marquez was over four seconds clear of championship leader Fabio Quartararo on the Monster Energy Yamaha with winner of the previous two Grand Prix, Ducati Lenovo Team’s Pecco Bagnaia, third.

Top independent team rider Jorge Martin on the Pramac Ducati didn’t take his long lap penalty for cutting the course until the final lap and lost out to Ecstar Suzuki’s Alex Rins for fourth.

Enea Bastianini on the Avintia Esponsorama Ducati claimed sixth after reigning champion Joan Mir and Jack Miller collided on the final lap.

Mir crossed the line in seventh with Miller eighth, but after the FIM MotoGP Stewards Panel investigated the incident at Turn 15 the result was reversed.

“The plan was exactly how I did the race,” said Marquez.

“Start well, be first at the first corner, slow in the first three laps and then when the tyres drop a bit, start to push. It’s exactly what I did.

“The last few laps I was tired and it was hard to concentrate but Fabio was far away, my instinct said he’d slow down too because he’s fighting for the Championship.

“So today everyone is happy on the podium! Me for the victory, Fabio for second... maybe Pecco no! But for sure he’ll be strong again at Misano.”

It was a delighted Fabio Quartararo in second. “You can imagine how happy I am,” he said.

“I think that we managed to do a really great job. This is the best second place that I’ve ever gotten in my life. It‘s even better than a victory, to be honest, because I‘m getting closer to my dream.

“It was so emotional because there are only three races left, and I have an over 50-point advantage. At least we made this long flight to leave here with a great result,” he added.

“I will now go back home and relax with my family for a few days. I think that we are starting to think in a different way now, because the championship’s end is getting closer.

“This is my first time really talking about it, but things are looking good.”

With championship leader Remy Gardner making a rare mistake and crashing out of the Moto2 race, his Red Bull KTM Ajo team-mate Raul Fernandez took a magnificent seventh win of the season to close the gap in the championship to nine points with three races left.

Fabio Di Giannantonio and Marco Bezzecchi completed the rostrum. Petronas’ Jake Dixon was the top British finisher after Sam Lowes crashed out.

After two red flags in the Moto3 race, 17 year-old Spanish rider Izan Guevara claimed his maiden win for the Solunion GASGAS Aspar Team.

The race was initially red-flagged after an incident involving Filip Salač, before the restarted race was also red flagged following a multi-rider incident between Deniz Öncü, Jeremy Alcoba and Championship leader Pedro Acosta.

Thankfully no one was seriously injured. Öncü, however, was given a two-race suspension for the incident and will sit out the Emilia-Romagna and Algarve GPs.

Dennis Foggia and British Petronas Honda rider John McPhee completed the rostrum.

It was the Scot’s first podium of the season but could have been a win.

After an initial seven laps, the race was restarted as a five-lap sprint which was also red-flagged after two laps when McPhee and team-mate Darryn Binder held first and second positions.

Due to the duration of the restarted race completed, the result was backdated to prior to the first red flag, denying the duo a double podium.

“I’m really, really happy with the performance today,” said McPhee.

“I was in the front three and thought at the restart ‘let’s try and make the most of this’ and managed to pull out a couple of tenths in the lead when it was red flagged.

“To have the first podium of the season, which is crazy to say at this point, I’m really, really happy.

“A win would have been great but rules are rules so it is what it is,” he added.

“I would have been up for having another start, but we can’t be disappointed with that. We were fast enough to win the race but we’ll take the podium.”