A wet and wild first weekend comes to an end in Valencia, Stefan Bradl leaves with more points, while Alex Marquez shows top ten potential again.
Sunday in Valencia started on a dry track. The Repsol Honda team worked to refine their dry racing setup in just 20 minutes after a race weekend in the wet. The Repsol Honda Team applies all of its knowledge to get the most out of the morning session.
When the lights went out, Alex Marquez got off the line well again and stormed ahead to gain positions in the first corners. In just one lap, the rookie was in the top ten, battling first Jack Miller and then Dovizioso as he made his way up. Dovizioso would appear behind Alex for most of the race and launch another attack towards the end of the race. Unfortunately, Alex Marquez was caught by the additional speed of the slipstream at Turn 1 after being overtaken by the Italian on the straight, walking away unharmed, but ending the rookie’s race prematurely.
From his best starting position of the year, Stefan Bradl was able to assert himself in the hustle and bustle of the first lap. With a steady series of opening laps, the German made his way forward, quickly overtaking a number of riders to close on his teammate from the Repsol Honda team after a handful of laps. Stefan adapted to the conditions and changes in the front tire, which resulted in a 12th place and in 2020 secured points for the first time in a row.
Takaaki Nakagami recovered from Aragon’s disappointment and returned, battling for a podium spot. Nakagami finally won the fourth and best Honda award, finished eighth in the championship standings and is just 20 points behind second place.
The MotoGP World Championship will be back in action next weekend for the penultimate round of the championship at the Valencia Circuit.