Franco Morbidelli quickly put the disappointment of Jerez behind him by winning the French Grand Prix at Le Mans. The championship leader crashed out of the lead in Spain two weeks ago but made no such mistake this time despite race-long pressure from the sensational rookie Francesco Bagnaia.
Given his previous record around Le Mans, many were expecting Thomas Luthi to convert pole position into victory and the Swiss rider took the fight to Morbidelli in the early going. His chances faded on lap eight though when he was forcefully pushed aside by the Italian at La Chapelle, opening the door for Bagnaia and Alex Marquez to follow through.
With Luthi now embroiled in a battle for the final rostrum spot with Marquez, Morbidelli’s only remaining threat came from his compatriot on the Sky VR46 Kalex and to his credit, Francesco matched the race leader stride for stride as they pulled clear of Luthi and Marquez. Ultimately though, ‘Pecco’ was forced to give best as Morbidelli eased to his fourth win in five races.
Luthi won his battle with Marquez for third with the Jerez winner settling for fourth, a strong result having broken a bone in his foot on Saturday morning. Mattia Pasini finished a lonely fifth ahead of Dominique Aegerter on the leading Suter with Takaaki Nakagami recovering from eighteenth on the grid to finish seventh, edging out Speed Up’s Simone Corsi and Tech 3’s Xavi Vierge.
Moto2 HJC Helmets Grand Prix de France – Race Result
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