2021 Algarve MotoGP, Portimao Circuit - Race Results

Francesco Bagnaia takes his third MotoGP victory in a red-flagged penultimate round at Portimao.

The race stopped with two laps remaining due to an accident involving KTM riders Iker Lecuona and Miguel Oliveira, which saw Oliveira carried away on a stretcher after being taken out by the Tech3 rider at Turn 13.

The home star was conscious after the accident.

Meanwhile, Bagnaia won in dominant style, being joined on the podium by Joan Mir and Jack Miller.

The result also means Bagnaia and Mir are confirmed as second and third behind Fabio Quartararo in the 2021 world championship, on a day when the Frenchman crashed out for the first time this season.

That accident also helped hand the 2021 constructors' title to Ducati, while the battle with Yamaha for the teams' world championships will be decided at Valencia next weekend. 

After briefly being passed by team-mate Miller at Turn 1, Bagnaia promptly retook the lead and never looked back. 

Mir also squeezed though for second and initially kept pace with the Italian as they pulled a slight gap over the field. But the factory Ducati pace proved too much for the Suzuki rider, who began losing touch with Bagnaia and falling back into the clutches of Miller from lap 8 of the planned 25.

The Australian wasn't alone with LCR Honda's Alex Marquez, Pramac Ducati rookie Jorge Martin, Quartararo and Repsol Honda's Pol Espargaro also in tow.

Marquez, the top rider on the hard rear tyre, produced his best race of the season to pass Miller for third just before the halfway stage. However, the Australian dug in and began dicing with his former Moto3 rival with a scheduled 7 laps remaining and ultimately retook the position.

Quartararo struggled to make progress through the pack, slipping to seventh after a scare at Turn 13 before starting the closing stages stuck behind the Pramac Ducatis of Zarco and Martin.

But for the first time this season the Frenchman didn't see the chequered flag, lowsiding out of sixth place with five laps to go.

Marc Marquez, winner of the past two MotoGP rounds, missed the event after still feeling 'unwell' several days after sustaining a 'slight concussion' while training on an off-road bike. Marquez was replaced by test rider Stefan Bradl.

The hard front tyre option was changed from the disliked asymmetric version selected for April's Portimao round, to a symmetric hard compound (which was harder than the 2020 front tyre). But the cool temperatures meant all riders raced the medium front, with a roughly equal split between the medium and hard option rears.

The 2021 season finale, also be the last MotoGP race of Valentino Rossi's career, will be held at Valencia next weekend.

* Rookie