- 2023-11-20
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Donate to support families affected by the crisis in Ukraine ➔ MotoGP Qatar GP: Fabio Di Giannantonio Takes Maiden Win in Lusail
Qatar Airways Grand Prix of Qatar watched Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Ducati) took his first victory in the premier class at the Lusail International Circuit in Lusail on November 19, 2023.
It is his second podium of the season, following Australian GP, where he took 3rd.
Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo) led the race until lap 18, but was passed by Fabio Di Giannantonio, who got message 'Mapping 8', with 4 laps left. Francesco Bagnaia tried to overtake Fabio di Giannantonio again on lap 20, but he ran wide off the track.
Then he finished 2nd behind Fabio Di Giannantonio by 2.734 seconds. Poleman Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Ducati) was 3rd.
Currently in second place in the World Championship standings, Jorge Martin (Pramac Ducati) failed to start, end up finishing 10th.
This result marks Francesco Bagnaia's lead has extended from seven to 21 points as Jorge Martin in the World Championship.
Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) was 4th. HIs team-mate Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) pulled out on on lap seven.
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) was 5th ahead of Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati), and Fabio Quartararo (Monster Yamaha), while Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo) and Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM completed top 10.
Fabio Di Giannantonio will be replaced by Marc Marquez in 2024 and faces an uncertain future, even though he took his maiden victory.
Fabio Di Giannantonio said, “I want to be honest and say one thing. After Malaysia something about my future happened and it was not a good thing. So I arrived home with a lot of anger but in a positive way. I said two or three times to my family and friends that in Qatar I’m going to win. My friends said ‘don’t say it, go there and work’. But I said ‘no, I am going to win, I am going to do it’. But you have to do things well and make it happen. It was not easy but we made it. It was tough because he is the world champion. He has won many races and knows perfectly how to manage the situation. Also, he is playing for the world championship so I had to be really careful. For sure, I didn’t want to do anything stupid and ruin anybody’s race. I knew that I had something more. At that moment I felt sorry for him because I was taking points from him but I had the chance to win.”
Qatar Airways Grand Prix of Qatar Race Results- Fabio Di Giannantonio / Gresini Ducati / 41m 43.654s
- Francesco Bagnaia / Ducati Lenovo / +2.734s
- Luca Marini / Mooney VR46 Ducati / +4.408s
- Maverick Viñales / Aprilia Racing / +4.488s
- Brad Binder / Red Bull KTM / +7.246s
- Alex Marquez / Gresini Ducati / +7.620s
- Fabio Quartararo / Monster Yamaha / +7.828s
- Enea Bastianini / Ducati Lenovo / +8.239s
- Jack Miller / Red Bull KTM / +11.509s
- Jorge Martin / Pramac Ducati / +14.819s
- Marc Marquez / Repsol Honda / +14.964s
- Johann Zarco / Pramac Ducati / +17.431s
- Marco Bezzecchi / Mooney VR46 Ducati / +17.807s
- Joan Mir / Repsol Honda / +18.673s
- Augusto Fernandez / Tech3 GASGAS / +21.455s
- Franco Morbidelli / Monster Yamaha / +21.474s
- Raul Fernandez / RNF Aprilia / +22.142s
- Pol Espargaro / Tech3 GASGAS / +27.194s
- Takaaki Nakagami / LCR Honda / +27.740s
Photo by MotoGP- source : MotoGP
