Another pole position for Marquez and there is now talk amongst the MotoGP paddock of racing for second spot this year. Would Le Mans dispel this feeling? A swerve to avoid Lorenzo's rear wheel on lap one punted Marquez well down the order in tenth, a great result for fans of racing if not the Spanish rider!
A first lap altercation dropped Marquez to tenth
With Dovi leading the way, Bradl in second and Rossi third, Le Mans was shaping up nicely for a good old fashioned scrap. And then Rossi took the lead! But behind Marquez was rolling out the fastest laps of the race, while also looking a touch more ragged than usual...
At the front, Rossi was doing his best to make a break, while behind Marc was carving through the field. Could Rossi put enough distance between him and Marc to hold on until the end of the race? The chances looked slim.
Sure enough, with sixteen laps to go Marquez slipped past after Rossi made a mistake and that was the last anyone saw of him. Five out of five and the Marquez domination of MotoGP continues. The race for second was won by Rossi with Bautista third.
But was the result ever in doubt?
Moto2 and a tenth place in qualifying gave Lowes a good shot at a decent result while Rea was further down the order and in danger of a bit of first lap carnage. In the end Kallio took his second win on the bounce with Corsi in second and Rabat third.
The Moto3 race saw Miller take the first chicane beautifully and hit the head of the field, making up for not qualifying on pole. However the man on form in Le Mans was Vazquez, who was tucked in behind the Australian with Rins in third. A fairly heated race saw eight riders stuck together but in the end a superb display of late braking saw Miller make up for a lack of top speed to take the win with Rins second and Isaac Vinales third. What about that one handed victory stand up wheelie by Miller, top work!
MotoGP
1. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team)
2. Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP)
3. Alvaro Bautista (Go&Fun Honda Gresini)
Moto2
1. Mika Kallio (Marc VDS Racing Team)
2. Simone Corsi (NGM Forward Racing)
3. Esteve Rabat (Marc VDS Racing Team)
Moto3
1: Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo)
2: Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0)
3: Isaac Vinales (Calvo Team)
Cal Crutchlow (MotoGP) - 11
Bradley Smith (MotoGP) - 10
Michael Laverty (MotoGP) - 17
Scott Redding (MotoGP) - 12
Sam Lowes (Moto2) - 9
Gino Rea - (Moto2) - 19
John McPhee (Moto3) -8
Danny Kent (Moto3) -13