Maverick Vinales took victory in
the French GP at Le Mans after a thrilling duel with Yamaha MotoGP teammate
Valentino Rossi ended with the Italian rider crashing on the final lap of the
race.
What had been a three-way race for honors
between the two factory Yamaha riders and the Tech 3 bike of Johann Zarco had
boiled down to a straight fight between Vinales and Rossi in the closing
stages. It was home hero Zarco, running soft tyres front and rear that led the
opening stages after a great start from third on the grid, with Vinales
slotting into second place ahead of Rossi.
But Zarco was unable to pull away
from the factory Yamaha’s, both running medium tyres all round, and on lap 7
the Frenchman was passed by Vinales at the Dunlop chicane. From there, Vinales
maintained a small advantage over Zarco and Rossi, with the satellite rider
holding on to second until Rossi made his move at the Dunlop chicane on the
23rd lap of 28. The Italian's charge continued as he reeled in Vinales and
passed him at the same location three laps later.
It seemed Rossi had done enough to
seal his first MotoGP win of the season, especially as Vinales cut the track
trying to keep up with the 38-year-old on the penultimate tour. But Rossi ran
wide on the very last lap at Garage Vert, allowing Vinales through into the
lead, before the seven-time premier class champion lost the front end at Turn
11 and crashed out.
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