Marc Marquez won his ninth consecutive German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring to extend his world championship lead over Valentino Rossi. The Spaniard eased away in the second half of the race to take a comfortable victory ahead of his nearest title rival, with Rossi now 46 points adrift heading into the three-week summer break.
Marquez had been expected to dominate from pole position but his route to victory was complicated by the fast-starting Jorge Lorenzo who stormed into a first lap lead from Danilo Petrucci. The Pramac rider only maintained second until the start of lap five but Lorenzo’s bravery on the brakes saw him hold on for a further eight laps before giving into the inevitable.
Keen to stop the world champion getting away, Rossi piled the pressure on Lorenzo before an error from the Ducati rider handed second place to the Doctor shortly after half distance. The Yamaha man briefly threatened to chase down the dominant Marquez, closing to within 0.6s, but this merely served as a cue for Marc to up the pace and decisively drop the no.46 by over two seconds.
Not for the first time, Maverick Vinales’ stunning late-race pace paid dividends, the Spaniard denying Petrucci the final spot on the rostrum. By contrast, Lorenzo faded on worn tyres, ultimately losing fifth to the magnificent Alvaro Bautista, while Andrea Dovizioso completed an underwhelming day for the factory Ducati team by finishing a lonely seventh.
Dani Pedrosa finished eighth in his final German Grand Prix with Johann Zarco next up in ninth while Bradley Smith produced his best result of 2018 in tenth, matching KTM’s highest finish of the season so far.
2018 Pramac Motorrad Grand Prix von Deutschland: (Result)
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