Maverick Vinales wins MotoGP season opener in Qatar
- 3 years ago
Yamaha rider Maverick Vinales took a stunning victory in the 2021 MotoGP season opener in Qatar on Sunday.
The Spaniard overcame a slow start to take the lead with eight laps to go, and built up a comfortable gap of more than a second and a half going into the final lap - good enough to claim his ninth career MotoGP win.
Behind Vinales, Ducati's Johann Zarco and Francesco Bagnaia battled for the podium with reigning world champion Joan Mir of Suzuki.
But Mir, who came through from 10th on the grid, ran wide at the last corner and was demoted to fourth behind second-placed Zarco and Bagnaia in third.
The Spaniard overcame a slow start to take the lead with eight laps to go, and built up a comfortable gap of more than a second and a half going into the final lap - good enough to claim his ninth career MotoGP win.
Behind Vinales, Ducati's Johann Zarco and Francesco Bagnaia battled for the podium with reigning world champion Joan Mir of Suzuki.
But Mir, who came through from 10th on the grid, ran wide at the last corner and was demoted to fourth behind second-placed Zarco and Bagnaia in third.