Marquez eleventh win after brilliant battle with Lorenzo

Marquez and Lorenzo MotoGP action. Photo: Peter Callister

Lorenzo took the initiative to pull out in front in the early stages but Marquez stayed with the front group and took the fight to his Movistar Yamaha MotoGP rival. Marquez had the pace to catch Lorenzo, but made two slight errors, giving Lorenzo the opportunity to retake the lead twice.

The pair battled right to the last lap, even touching at one stage and with Repsol Honda’s Marquez eventually crossing the line 0.732s ahead of Lorenzo. The result sees Marquez become the first rider since Valentino Rossi in 2005 to win 11 MotoGP™ races in a single season and also sees him return to victory after his fourth place at Brno.

Nine-time World Champion Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) was chased hard for third by the experienced pair of Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) and Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team).

Rossi made it onto the rostrum but was trailed by just 0.175s by Pedrosa and 0.544s by Dovizioso. ‘The Doctor’ set a new outright record of 246 starts in the premier class of Grand Prix racing in the Silverstone contest.

Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech3) won a battle for sixth place as his impressive rookie campaign continued. Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP), Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing), Aleix Espargaro (NGM Forward Racing) and top British finisher Scott Redding (GO&FUN Honda Gresini) completed the top ten.

Cal Crutchlow (Ducati Team) was down in 12th, whilst Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) was 22nd after experiencing a rear end problem.

Alvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini) crashed out towards the end of the race, ruining his quest for a top ten finish.

The Moto2 race at the Hertz British Grand Prix was won by Tito Rabat (Marc VDS Racing Team) on the last lap, with teammate Mika Kallio and Maverick Viñales (Paginas Amarillas HP 40) joining him on the podium.

Standings leader Rabat rode brilliantly from fourth on the grid, staying with the front group and making a move on provisional leader Kallio in the final stages, to take maximum points again.

Kallio did his best to hold off his Spanish colleague but was eventually beaten to the line by just 0.063s, whilst Viñales (Paginas Amarillas HP 40) showed his talent once again to finish in third place, only 0.14s adrift of Rabat.

Pole man Johann Zarco (AirAsia Caterham Moto Racing) came home fourth, 2.571s back on the race winner. Thomas Luthi (Interwetten Paddock Moto2) and Franco Morbidelli (Italtrans Racing Team) picked up good points in fifth and sixth.

Home rider Sam Lowes (Speed Up), Hafizh Syahrin (Petronas Raceline Malaysia), Mattia Pasini (NGM Forward Racing) and Axel Pons (AGR Team) completed the top ten.

An early crash ruined the day for Dominique Aegerter (Technomag carXpert) as he clipped the back wheel of Maverick Viñales (Paginas Amarillas HP 40) and ended up in the gravel. The Swiss rider remounted to finish 21st.

Also struggling early in the race was debutant Dakota Mamola, who was forced to pull into the Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2 garage with a technical problem. Substituting for unwell Spanish rider Nico Terol, Mamola rejoined and gathered experience at the back of the field.

Xavier Simeon (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) crashed midrace, whilst fighting for top ten points on his birthday.

A mistake by Jonas Folger (AGR Team) at turn 16 on lap 13 saw him slide out and take Simone Corsi (NGM Forward Racing) with him – causing a DNF for both riders.

On the Taylor Made bike for Brough Superior Racing 50 year-old veteran Jeremy McWilliams rode valiantly, despite a broken nose sustained in a Saturday practice crash and a lap time way off the pace of the rest of the field. He was lapped by the frontrunners with three laps to go but collected crucial data for the team.