PHILLIP ISLAND: Marc Marquez extended his world championship lead with a commanding victory in the Australian MotoGP at Phillip Island on Sunday.
Marquez fought off a group of riders to clear out and win the race by 1.799 seconds from Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales.
The victory extended Marquez’s lead on the world standings to 33 points over Andrea Dovizioso with two races remaining in Malaysia and Spain.
It was the 24-year-old Spaniard’s 35th MotoGP win from 88 starts after he claimed his 44th premier class pole on Saturday.
Dovizioso struggled to keep up with the main pack and finished 13th.
It was Marquez’s sixth win of the season and he was starting off the pole for the fourth successive year in Australia.
It was the second MotoGP win for Marquez at Phillip Island after his victory in 2015, while he has crashed out twice when leading the race.
Marquez took charge of the race seven laps from the chequered flag and steadily pulled away from the pack, leaving Rossi, Vinales and Johann Zarco to fight for the other podium places.
Vinales dived past Frenchman Zarco in the home straight to snatch third place.
His team-mate Rossi, who has six wins in the premier class at Phillip Island, used all of his experience to take the runner-up spot.
The legendary Italian only resumed racing last month just three weeks after double leg fracture surgery.--AFP