MotoGP’s last lap showdowns of 2019

With MotoGP producing arguably its most competitive era of racing, the 2019 season saw plenty of races decided on the last lap and on many occasions the final corner. Here’s a recap of those dramatic moments from last year.

Qatar Grand Prix – Dovizioso wins by 0.023s from Marquez

Starting at the 2019 opener in Qatar, it was a case of déjà vu as Andrea Dovizioso and Marc Marquez duelled for victory on the final lap.

With the pair battling for control throughout almost the entire race, the action truly erupted at the start of the final lap when Dovizioso used his Ducati’s stronger top speed to power past Marquez into the first turn.

But Marquez was far from beaten as the dived up the inside at Turn 10 to regain the lead, only to see the Ducati rider bite back around the outside at Turn 11.

In a repeat of their final corner fight from 2018, Marquez lunged up the inside at the last turn but couldn’t pull off the perfect block pass as Dovizioso skated back inside. In the sprint to the line, the Italian had just enough to hold off Marquez by 0.023s.

The race at the Losail International Circuit also created history as the closest ever top 15 finish in MotoGP, with only 15.093s splitting winner Dovizioso from Johann Zarco in 15^th place.

But further drama was to follow when Honda, Aprilia, KTM and Suzuki protested against Ducati’s aerodynamic device on the rear wheel after the race, which even went to the Court of Appeal in a fight that rolled on all the way to the next round in Argentina.

Italian Grand Prix – Petrucci takes emotional maiden win

Danilo Petrucci took on both Ducati team-mate Andrea Dovizioso and Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez to secure his maiden MotoGP win with a dramatic final lap at his home race at Mugello.

With Dovizioso and Marquez attacking in a last of the late brakers, Petrucci seized his opportunity by cutting to the inside of the pair on the exit of the first corner to regain the lead.

Petrucci then produced a perfect final lap to fend off attacks from Marquez to clinch his first MotoGP victory by just 0.043s with Dovizioso in third place just 0.338s back.

Emotional celebrations followed for Petrucci with nobody in Mugello begrudging the Italian who had stepped up as replacement for Jorge Lorenzo in the factory Ducati squad over the winter and delivered when he needed to.

Austrian Grand Prix – Dovi sees off Marquez at the final corner again!

Much like the Qatar GP, the Austrian race had a sense of familiarity as Dovizioso fought off Marquez in a final lap thriller once again.

After Dovi tried to outbreak Marquez into Turn 1, the Repsol Honda rider cut back inside to retain the lead on the long straight up the hairpin bend and put in a near-perfect middle sector to pull out space between himself and the Italian.

But the Ducati rider wouldn’t give up the win and in a roles reversal of 2018, Dovizioso ducked into the inside of Marquez at the final corner but avoided running wide, as the Spaniard did the year before, and kept the power down to win by 0.213s to trigger wild celebrations for the Italian and his team.

British Grand Prix – Rins mugs Marquez on the line

Just two weeks later, Marc Marquez found himself the loser in a last-corner tussle again but this time to Suzuki’s Alex Rins.

At the end of the penultimate lap, Rins lined up a move going around the outside of leader Marquez but the Repsol Honda rider pushed the Suzuki man wide to keep the lead over the line.

Learning from his first attempt, Rins impressively closed the gap to Marquez around the final lap of Silverstone to line up a last corner attack. This time the Suzuki rider dived up the inside of Marquez, pulling off a stunning move while sliding around the bend to reach the chequered flag by just 0.013s in front of Marquez to take the fourth-closest win in premier class history.

San Marino Grand Prix – Marquez gains final lap revenge

Marc Marquez faced off for a final lap fight for victory for the third consecutive race and against a third different rival, this time taking on Petronas Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo.

Using the superior power of his Repsol Honda, Marquez initially bolted past Quartararo on the home straight at the start of the lap before seeing the MotoGP rookie bite back at Turn 2 and then regaining the lead at Turn 5.

But his lead lasted three corners as Marquez charged back in front under braking for Turn 8 heading into the fast and flowing final section.

Wise to the Yamaha’s strengths in the sector, Marquez used a wide line and blocked Quartararo’s path to force him to yield which allowed the Spaniard to win by almost a full second.

Thailand Grand Prix – Marquez sees off Quartararo again to clinch title

It was round two of Marc Marquez vs Fabio Quartararo on the final lap in Thailand, but this time the Repsol Honda rider had the opportunity to seal the 2019 MotoGP world title at the same time.

Despite knowing he could finish in second place and still seal the world championship, Marquez was relentless and took on Quartararo for victory on the final lap.

Having sized up his rival for most of the race, Marquez made his move on the long straight to the hairpin using the power of his Honda to pass Quartararo on the Yamaha. To the French rider’s credit he never gave up with a maiden MotoGP win in sight, and dived up the inside of Marquez braking into the final corner but couldn’t stop his Yamaha sufficiently which allowed the reigning champion to skate back by and clinch victory by 0.171s.

Australian Grand Prix – Marquez forces mistake from Vinales

With the 2019 MotoGP world title safely secured, Marc Marquez didn’t hold back in his hunt for more wins and following a late breakaway it was a straight fight between him and Yamaha’s Maverick Vinales who had claimed victory at Phillip Island 12 months previous.

Having stalked his rival for a number of laps before the final battle, Marquez unleashed the Honda’s power down the home straight to charge into the lead like he did against Fabio Quartararo in Misano.

But in an all-or-nothing fightback, Vinales lined up a move around Lukey Heights but lost control of his M1 which sent him down and allowed Marquez to ease to victory.