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MotoGP, Márquez 2, The Spaniard's Revenge, snatching the win from Dovizioso at Buriram

At Motegi number 93 will have his first championship match ball, Viñales and his Yamaha also on the podium at Chang ahead of Rossi's, Petrucci 9th

MotoGP: Márquez 2, The Spaniard's Revenge, snatching the win from Dovizioso at Buriram

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Marc Márquez and Andrea Dovizioso, the story continues… After the head-to-head two weeks ago in Aragón, the challenge between the two was renewed in Buriram. It was a heated battle between the Italian and the Spaniard, which was ignited less than ten laps from the end and was concluded only on the final turn. The almost 100 thousand fans in the stands, as well as viewers around the world, benefited from the show, including Jorge Lorenzo who Tweeted from his hotel room during the race: "Who will win?".

Márquez-Dovizioso truly seems to be a never-ending story, made up of extremely late braking with overtakes and counter-overtakes, no less than eleven times in the final four laps of the GP of Thailand. Just look at number 93’s magic move on the final lap when, on turn 5, he snatched the lead with his Honda’s rear wheel drifting and the front wheel off the asphalt, or the Italian’s attempt to take back the lead on the final corner. It was a move reminiscent of the Spaniard’s in Austria, Japan and Qatar, but as on those occasions, it was in vain. In fact, Márquez won in Thailand and in Japan he is gearing up to don the emperor’s crown for his seventh world championship title.

In a race where strategy once again played a key role, since no one attempted to pull the pin and run away at the front until the final ten laps, each rider trying to save the tyres, Yamaha is also on the podium. It was the one ridden by Maverick Viñales, coming out of the shadows in the finale after an initial stage managing the situation. The Spaniard managed to gain the upper hand against Valentino Rossi after slight contact on the last turn with the Italian.

The Doctor finished at the foot of the podium, but from what was seen over the weekend, this performance is a confidence booster, since the problems of Aragón and Misano seem to be a distant memory. Did it depend on the track? Probably. The fact is that in Thailand, number 46 stayed in contact with the leaders in a way that we have not seen for some time. Only in the finale did his pace drop a bit, perhaps because of tyre wear.

Johann Zarco’s M1 also stands out in the top five, followed by Alex Rins, the best of the Suzuki riders, given Andrea Iannone’s eleventh place due to a disappointing start. Ahead of him was the Pramac duo made up of Danilo Petrucci and Jack Miller. Noteworthy was Cal Crutchlow’s seventh place ahead of Alvaro Bautista, whereas Dani Pedrosa ended up in the gravel on the final laps, just as he was battling for a podium finish. Aleix Espargaró’s Aprilia was only thirteenth ahead of Franco Morbidelli.        

Translated by Jonathan Blosser
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