PHILLIP ISLAND, Australia (Reuters) – Six-times MotoGP champion Marc Marquez put on a master class to win the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix ahead of world championship leader Jorge Martin at the Phillip Island on Sunday.
Polesitter Martin of Prima Pramac Racing had rocketed off the line while fellow Spaniard Marquez endured yet another disastrous launch, falling rapidly down the order before systematically and ruthlessly finding his way out to seal his third win of the season.
While Martin led most of the 27-lap race, he and Marquez swapped places in the final moments before Marquez came on top. Martin’s second-place finish extended his lead over twice MotoGP champion Francesco Bagnaia at the top of the world championship by 20 points.
Having qualified fifth on the grid, Bagnaia came third to complete an all-Ducati podium.
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)
