Zarco emerges victorious in history-making French MotoGP
Agencies
Le Mans (France)
For the first time since 1954, 71 years ago, a French MotoGP rider wins on home turf after a wet tyre gamble as Johann Zarco emerged victorious at Le Mans on Sunday to become the first home winner of the French MotoGP in 71 years.
Riding in his 150th MotoGP, the 34-year-old Honda LCR rider hit the front after eight laps and held his position through to the end of the race to become the first Frenchman to take the chequered flag in the top category race since Pierre Monneret in 1954.
In front of the biggest-ever attendance at a MotoGP event and with his mother watching him for the first time ever, Zarco finished 19.907 seconds ahead of six-time world champion Marc Marquez (Ducati) with 20-year-old rookie Fermin Aldeguer (Ducati-Gresini) claiming a first podium in just his sixth race.
Zarco was in tears before he was even off his bike and immediately celebrated with his team and, after the crowd had offered an impromptu rendition of La Marseillaise, he performed a back flip off a wall, his favourite celebration since his two Moto2 world titles in 2015 and 2016.
'It's incredible, I can hardly believe it,' said an emotional Zarco whose only previous MotoGP win came in Australia in 2023. I always give my best but I never thought I'd win. The way I won was very special. I had to be in control and almost wait for victory to come.'
There were no points for Alex Marquez, Marc's younger brother, who went sliding off four laps from the finish, the last of the day's six non-finishers, all victims to the weather which made the track so treacherous.
Marc Marquez, who won Saturday's Sprint, now has 171 points in the championship, increasing his lead at the top of the championship to 22 points ahead of his brother.
With the rain coming down, there was mayhem from the opening lap as the riders struggled with their slick tyres, Francesco Bagnaia and Joan Mir sliding off on turn 4.
Mir was out but Bagnaia, the 2022 and 2023 world champion, rejoined the race. Ahead of him, however, there was plenty more trouble as pole-sitter Fabio Quartararo, another home favourite, tangled on lap 5 with Brad Binder sending both of them into the gravel.
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