ASSEN, Netherlands: Italy’s Francesco Bagnaia won the Dutch MotoGP on Sunday to reignite his title challenge after championship leader Fabio Quartararo crashed out of an incident-packed race.
Frenchman Quartararo fell twice, flipping spectacularly over his handlebars in the second incident although he walked away afterwards, shaking his fists in anger at his error.
Bagnaia, in contrast, stayed out of trouble on his Ducati to record his third victory of the season and a welcome full points score after failing to finish in the last two races.
“I am so happy after two difficult races,” the Italian said.
In a great day for Italian riders, Marco Bezzecchi on a Ducati for Valentino Rossi’s VR46 team was second while Spanish rider Maverick Vinales rounded out the podium in the 11th race of the 20-season.
Quartararo heads into the summer break with a 21-point lead over Aleix Espargaro, who was fourth on Sunday.
The Frenchman fell on the fifth then on the 13th lap out of 26 in front of an enthusiastic crowd in the Netherlands.
Even if he quickly got back on his feet, he had to give up after this second accident.
The Frenchman got off to a bad start and was quickly overtaken by Aprilia rider Espargaro.
It was while he was trying to recover second place, in an attempt on the inside of a bend, that Quartararo lost control of his Yamaha, ending up in the gravel although he was soon back in the saddle, albeit in last place.
But a few laps later, his race was over after an acrobatic tumble.
“I made a rookie’s mistake. I attacked as it was the last lap and the last bend,” Quartararo said of his first fall, which he said had left something feeling “not right” with his bike.
As soon as the race was over he apologized to Espargaro for forcing him off the track in the fifth lap.
This was the first time since 1994 that Yamaha have failed to score a point at Assen.
For Bagnaia, taking the chequered flag was a welcome change of fortune.