Quartararo dominates the British MotoGP, Marquez wipes out Martin

Fabio Quartararo has extended his championship lead thanks to a thoroughly dominating British MotoGP win.

Pol Espargaro made a sensational start as he kept the lead into turn one, however, drama soon followed as Marc Marquez took out Jorge Martin. 

The two Spaniards made contact into turn seven as Martin moved Marquez wide, but the main incident came two corners later when Marquez aggressively cut across Martin on the exit of turn nine and lost the front. 

The first overtake attempt for the lead came on lap two as Aleix Espargaro challenged his brother Pol into turn seven. 

The Aprilia rider got alongside the Honda down the Hangar straight before outbraking himself which allowed Pol back through. 

Quartararo then began his charge to the front as he passed Francesco Bagnaia, Aleix and Pol Espargaro in consecutive laps.

Quartararo immediately pulled clear of Aleix Espargaro to the tune of 1.3 seconds in just a lap and a half. The Yamaha rider’s gap then became 1.8s with 13 laps remaining. 

The two Suzuki’s of Alex Rins and Joan Mir impressively moved up the order after getting ahead of Miller and Bagnaia. 

While Quartararo continued to extend his lead, Rins then turned fourth into third with a lovely move on Pol Espargaro. 

The top five then stabilised itself for a few laps before a mistake from Aleix Espargaro allowed Rins through at turn seven. 

While the Suzuki man completed the move for second, team-mate Mir went backwards as Miller repassed the Spaniard.

With six laps remaining Miller moved up to fourth after Pol Espargaro made the same mistake as Aleix earlier on by running wide at turn seven.

Quartararo remained on a level nobody else could match as the gap increased over Rins to four seconds.

As the checkered flag dropped, the front two remained the same with Quartararo safely coming across the line first from Rins. 

Despite a late move from Miller on Aleix Espargaro for third, the Aprilia man performed a well timed switch-back to regain that position and claim Aprilia’s first MotoGP podium.  

Fifth was Pol Espargaro, while the fast charging Brad Binder and Iker Lecuona claimed sixth and seventh. Alex Marquez finished eighth, Mir ninth and Danilo Petrucci in tenth.