Misano MotoGP: Morbidelli bags maiden win, Quartararo retires
Franco Morbidelli dominated a dramatic San Marino Grand Prix to claim his first MotoGP victory, while Petronas Yamaha teammate Fabio Quartararo crashed twice and retired from the race.


Morbidelli nailed his launch from second on the grid to lead Valentino Rossi on the factory team Yamaha into the first corner, while poleman Maverick Vinales dropped to third and Quartararo fifth.
Rossi tried to take the lead from his protege at the Quercia left-hander, but Morbidelli slammed the door in his face, while Jack Miller demoted Vinales to fouth two corners later.
Morbidelli and Rossi opened up a half-a-second gap to Miller, with Quartararo eventually finding a way through on Vinales with a hard move at the Carro hairpin on lap seven.
As he tried to get close the gap to the front Quartararo crashed at the Rio corner at Turn 4.
He rejoined down in 20th, and after a trip to the pits on lap 20, Quartararo crashed for a second time on a cold front tyre at Turn 6 to cap off a miserable Sunday.
By lap nine, Morbidelli started to eke away from Rossi, with his lead up to over a second by the 14th tour.
Morbidelli continued to ease away from Rossi, his lead standing at two seconds by lap 18.
Miller’s run in third faded as Alex Rins on the Suzuki found a way through on lap 14, with Miller’s injured Pramac teammate Francesco Bagnaia in his first race since the Andalusian GP moving ahead on the same tour.
Bagnaia’s charge continued with Rins on lap 20, before he scythed through on his mentor Rossi at the fast Curvove Turn 11 right on lap 21.
The battle for second closed up in the final laps, with Bagnaia, Rossi, Rins and Joan Mir on the sister Suzuki all gunning for the podium.
Rossi ran a defensive line at Turn 2 to keep Rins at bay lap after lap before Mir demoted his teammate at the start of the final lap after Rins made a mistake at the penultimate corner.
Mir then went after Rossi, bravely carving his way up the inside at Turn 10 to grab third, with the Yamaha rider unable to find a way back through.
Morbidelli eased across the line having backed off his pace in the last laps to become the fourth new winner of 2020, while Bagnaia secured his maiden MotoGP podium in second.
Mir completed the rostrum, denying home hero Rossi his 200th podium finish.
Rins completed the top five ahead of Vinales, whose gamble to run the hard rear tyre appeared to backfire as he quickly faded from the podium battle and ended up sixth.
Andrea Dovizioso was seventh on the factory Ducati and takes a six-point lead in the standings after Quartararo’s crashes, with Takaaki Nakagami top Honda rider in eighth on the LCR bike ahead of Miller and KTM’s Pol Espargaro.
Nakagami was subsequently docked a place for exceeding track limits, promoting Miller to eighth place.
Miguel Oliveira worked his way up to 11th after a poor start on his Tech 3 KTM ahead of works rival Brad Binder, with Aprilia’s Aleix Espargaro, Iker Lecuona (Tech 3) and Avintia’s Johann Zarco taking the final points.
Lecuona was handed a long-lap penalty for failing to start from pitlane after stalling his KTM on the grid on the warm-up lap.
Tito Rabat (Avintia) crashed out late on, while Aprilia’s Bradley Smith was 19th after an early tumble.
San Marino GP - Race results:
Cla | Rider | Bike | Gap | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | | ![]() | Yamaha | |
2 | | ![]() | Ducati | 2.217 |
3 | | ![]() | Suzuki | 2.290 |
4 | | ![]() | Yamaha | 2.643 |
5 | | ![]() | Suzuki | 4.044 |
6 | | ![]() | Yamaha | 5.383 |
7 | | ![]() | Ducati | 10.358 |
8 | | ![]() | Ducati | 11.155 |
9 | | ![]() | Honda | 10.839 |
10 | | ![]() | KTM | 12.030 |
11 | | ![]() | KTM | 12.376 |
12 | | ![]() | KTM | 12.405 |
13 | | ![]() | Aprilia | 15.142 |
14 | | ![]() | KTM | 19.914 |
15 | | ![]() | Ducati | 20.152 |
16 | | ![]() | Ducati | 22.094 |
17 | | ![]() | Honda | 22.473 |
18 | | ![]() | Honda | 37.856 |
19 | | ![]() | Aprilia | 1'18.831 |
| ![]() | Ducati | 5 Laps | |
| ![]() | Yamaha | 9 Laps | |
View full results |

Crutchlow still wants Aprilia seat amid retirement suggestions
Morbidelli "not aiming" at title bid after maiden MotoGP win

Latest news
Why Honda and Yamaha have been left behind in MotoGP's new era
OPINION: The once all-conquering Japanese manufacturers are going through a difficult period in MotoGP this season. With Suzuki quitting, Honda struggling to get near the podium and Yamaha only enjoying success courtesy of Fabio Quartararo, Japanese manufacturers have been left in the dust by their European counterparts. This is why.
How in-form Quartararo is evoking Marquez in MotoGP 2022
OPINION: Fabio Quartararo has seized control of the 2022 MotoGP world standings after another dominant victory as his nearest rivals faltered. And he is very much heading towards a second championship echoing how the dominator of the last decade achieved much of his success.
Why Marquez's surgery is about more than just chasing on-track success
OPINION: Marc Marquez will likely sit out the remainder of the 2022 MotoGP season to undergo a fourth major operation on the right arm he badly broke in 2020. It is hoped it will return him to his brilliant best after a tough start to the season without a podium to his name. But it’s the human victory that will far outweigh any future on-track success he may go on to have
Why Ducati holds all the power in its MotoGP rider dilemma
OPINION: The French Grand Prix looks to have made Ducati’s decision on its factory team line-up simpler, as Enea Bastianini stormed to his third win of the campaign and Jorge Martin crashed out for a fifth time in 2022. But, as Ducati suggests to Motorsport.com, it remains in the strongest position in a wild rider market
The seismic aftershock of Suzuki's decision to leave MotoGP
Suzuki's sudden decision to leave the MotoGP World Championship at the end of the season has acted as a stirring element in a market that had already erupted. We analyse what this means for the grid going into 2023
How the real Ducati began to emerge in MotoGP's Spanish GP
Ducati’s 2022 MotoGP bike has had a tough start to life and the expected early-season title charge from Francesco Bagnaia did not materialise. But the Spanish Grand Prix signalled a turning point for both the GP22 and Bagnaia, as the 2021 runner-up belatedly got his season underway after a straight fight with Fabio Quartararo
How praise for Honda's MotoGP bike has given way to doubt
In a little over two months, Honda has gone from setting the pace in MotoGP testing with its new RC213V prototype to being at a crossroads - caused by the discrepancy in its riders' feedback. After a Portuguese GP that underwhelmed, serious questions are now being asked of Honda in 2022
Why Quartararo's win was vital not only for his title hopes
Fabio Quartararo got his MotoGP title defence off the ground in the Portuguese Grand Prix as a dominant first win of 2022 rocketed him to the top of the standings. While a significant result in terms of his title hopes, it has come at an even more important time in terms of his 2023 contract negotiations