2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results: French Grand Prix Recap (Video)

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results Marc Marquez
Honda's Marc Marquez

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results

Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez wasted zero time this past weekend at the Le Mans Bugatti Circuit. He was quick Friday in practice, finishing second overall behind Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP’s Maverick Vinales.

The 26-year-old Spaniard then led the final free practice on a wet Saturday ahead of claiming his 55th premier-class pole – a feat that ties him with Rossi for second overall (Mick Doohan has record with 58).

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results Marc Marquez
Honda’s Marc Marquez

Wet conditions were predicted for Sunday’s 27-lap MotoGP, but the track remained dry. Marquez once again wasted no time; he led all but three laps of Le Mans MotoGP when Pramac Racing Ducati’s Jack Miller was out front.

Marquez earned Honda its 300th premier class victory – the first arriving 53 years ago at Hockenheim with Jim Redman – by 1.98 seconds ahead of two riders that dueled to the very end – Mission Winnow Ducati riders Andrea Dovizioso and Danilo Petrucci, respectively.

Dovizioso and Petrucci fought cleanly for second, crossing paths several times in the final phases until the checkered flag. Dovizioso earned his second podium with Ducati at Le Mans after finishing third in 2015, while Petrucci celebrated his first podium as a factory rider exactly one year after his last top-three finish, when he was second at Le Mans in 2018 with the Pramac Racing Team.

Marquez’s wins now brings him to 47, which ties him with teammate Jorge Lorenzo, who finished 11th Sunday.

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results Dovizioso
Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso

“Of course here in Le Mans it’s always difficult with the temperature and the weather, especially today,” says Marc Marquez, who claimed his second-straight win at Le Mans. “I think this is the first time I have had a race where I had the soft tyre in the front but it was the safest option.

“I was focused on being consistent until I saw the gap increasing, I pushed a little bit more and into the low 32s until I saw I had two seconds. I’m happy with today’s result and it is fantastic to be able to take Honda’s 300th premier class win!

With his win, Marquez now has 95 points and leads Dovizioso by seven after five of 19 rounds. The series now breaks for two weeks ahead of the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello – a race that was last won by Marquez back in 2014 – his sophomore year in the premier class.

Photos by Luciano Bianchetto

Following is from the official MotoGP recap:

There was huge drama on the warm-up lap before the race had even begun. On the brink of his 200th GP start, Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) and Team Suzuki Ecstar’s rookie Joan Mir both crashed – separately – heading into Turn 3. Mir was able to get back to the pits and get back out to join the race, but Abraham was black flagged for coming out of pitlane after the leader had crossed the line on Lap 1.

From the start, poleman Marquez and second place Petrucci went toe-to-toe into Turn 3, with the number 93 just getting the better of the Italian as everyone made it through the tricky left-right in one piece. It was your top three on the grid who held the top three positions in the race as Marquez started to edge out a half-second gap on the field.

Danilo Petrucci finishes third in France
Ducati’s Danilo Petrucci

But Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) then forced his way past his fellow GP19 rider Petrucci and immediately locked his radar on the back of Marquez’ Honda. And it wasn’t long before the 0.5 gap was bridged as Miller slammed in the fastest lap of the race, before chucking it up the inside of Marquez at Turn 3 on Lap 5. Two laps later Marquez went to return the favor, both riders ran slightly wide, Miller got the cutback to lead but Marquez swept under the inside of the Ducati at Turn 6 as Dovizioso and Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) joining the fray at the front.

However, with Marquez back in the lead, he began to get into a rhythm. A tenth here and a tenth there slowly stretched the gap out to half a second as Marquez posted the fastest lap of the race.

Valentino Rossi on Bugatti Circuit
Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi

And the gap to Miller and Dovizioso kept on rising and as Marquez ticked Lap 14 off, the gap was over a second as it soon became a race for second between the three Ducatis, with Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) not completely out of the equation in fifth. With 11 to go Marquez was two seconds up the road as Dovi made his move past Miller for second, the Australian running wide at Turn 7, with Petrucci beginning to build up his speed and close down the podium places.

Petrux was right with Miller and Dovi and with eight laps to go, the number 9 was past Miller as one of the red Bologna bullets set his sights on his teammate. With five laps to go Petrucci went for P2, Turn 3 the corner, but he ran wide and Dovi was able to hold the position – just. The swapping and changing continued in the latter laps but Petrucci couldn’t make a move stick.

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results Jak Miller
Ducati’s Jack Miller

Meanwhile, Marquez had built up nearly a four-second gap as he cruised round to claim his third win of the season, equaling teammate Jorge Lorenzo’s premier class win tally (47) – the joint-fourth highest. Dovi took an important second to hold off Petrucci as the number 04 rider drew level with Mick Doohan on career Grand Prix podiums. Petrucci returned to the rostrum for the first time since his P2 in Le Mans last season.

Miller held off Rossi by a tenth to earn a solid fourth in France, ‘The Doctor’ couldn’t quite keep tabs on the podium battle in fifth. It was the best result of the season for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing and Pol Espargaro, the Spaniard had looked strong all weekend and he proved it in the race, a P6 for him went down very well with the Austrian factory – something for them to build on for sure. Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took seventh to finish just over a second clear of his teammate and home hero Fabio Quartararo. The Frenchman made a bad start and sat outside the points in the early stages, but some great race pace from the mid-point onwards means fast Fabio takes home a very respectable top ten from France.

2019 Le Mans Cal Crutchlow
Honda’s Cal Crutchlow

Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) lost out to Quartararo in the latter stages, the British rider finished ninth. Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Alex Rins loses out in the title race after a P10 finish, a P19 start really hampering the Spaniard’s French GP as he slips from second to third in the standings. Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) earns his best Honda result in 11th, with Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini), home favourite Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and the two Red Bull KTM Tech 3’s of Hafizh Syahrin – the Malaysian’s first points of the season – and Miguel Oliveira completed the points. Oliveira being handed a penalty that dropped him below Syahrin in the standings.

Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) and Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP’s Maverick Viñales collided and crashed out together on Lap 7, with Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) also crashing – riders ok. Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) and Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) retired.

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results

2019 Le Mans MotoGP Results

Pos. Rider Time
1 Marc Marquez 41’53.647
2 Andrea Dovizioso 00’01.984
3 Danilo Petrucci 00’02.142
4 Jack Miller 00’02.940
5 Valentino Rossi 00’03.053
6 Pol Espargaro 00’05.935
7 Franco Morbidelli 00’07.187
8 Fabio Quartararo 00’08.439
9 Cal Crutchlow 00’09.853
10 Alex Rins 00’13.709
11 Jorge Lorenzo 00’15.003
12 Aleix Espargaro 00’29.512
13 Johann Zarco 00’33.061
14 Hafizh Syahrin 00’35.481
15 Miguel Oliveira 00’36.044

 

2019 MotoGP Point Standings (after 5 of 19 rounds):

Pos. Rider Points
1 Marc Marquez 95
2 Andrea Dovizioso 87
3 Alex Rins 75
4 Valentino Rossi 72
5 Danilo Petrucci 57
6 Jack Miller 42
7 Cal Crutchlow 34
8 Franco Morbidelli 34
9 Pol Espargaro 31
10 Maverick Viñales 30
11 Takaaki Nakagami 29
12 Fabio Quartararo 25
13 Aleix Espargaro 22
14 Jorge Lorenzo 16
15 Johann Zarco 10
16 Francesco Bagnaia 9
17 Joan Mir 8
18 Miguel Oliveira 8
19 Andrea Iannone 6
20 Stefan Bradl 6
21 Hafizh Syahrin 2
22 Tito Rabat 2
23 Bradley Smith 0
24 Karel Abraham 0