Marc Marquez took his third win of the 2019 season with another dominating performance as teammate Jorge Lorenzo took his best finish of the season with 11th.
Cold conditions from morning Warm Up carried through until the start of the French Grand Prix at 14:00 local time, a track temperature of just 18°C made for treacherous opening laps.
Marc Marquez was able to keep clear of trouble to open a small advantage, Jack Miller the only rider able to stay with him. Miller was briefly able to get past, but the Repsol Honda Team rider responded to the challenge on lap six and retook the lead. Steadily building his lead lap-by-lap, Marquez crossed the line 1.9 seconds clear of Dovizioso, claiming Honda’s 300th win in the premier class.
The win is also Marquez’s 47th in the premier class, drawing equal with Jorge Lorenzo in third on the all time premier class wins list. Marquez now extends his lead in the MotoGP World Championship to eight points, Honda maintaining a healthy advantage in the Constructor Championship.
With his best start of the year, Jorge Lorenzo was able to immediately insert himself into the group battling for the top ten. Able to attack multiple times, Lorenzo found himself as high as seventh. Ultimately crossing the line in 11th, Lorenzo takes his best finish of the season as he continues his adaption to the Honda.
The MotoGP World Championship now prepares to head to the iconic Mugello circuit for the Italian Grand Prix, May 31 – June 02.
Marc Marquez – 1ST
“Of course here in Le Mans it’s always difficult with the temperature and the weather, especially today. I think this is the first time I have had a race where I had the soft tyre in the front but it was the safest option. I was focused on being consistent until I saw the gap increasing, I pushed a little bit more and into the low 32s until I saw I had two seconds. I’m happy with today’s result and it is fantastic to be able to take Honda’s 300th premier class win!”
Jorge Lorenzo -11TH
“11th place is not where we want to be but I saw progress. This makes me happy and gives me even more enthusiasm for the next races. It was the first weekend I finished a day in the top five, qualified in the top eight and you know, apart from Qatar where it was a slow race, this is the race where I finished closest to the winner. We’re learning more each weekend and race, it is just a matter of time. Thanks to the Repsol Honda Team for continuing to work hard and congratulations to Honda for 300 wins.”
Rider Standings
| Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Points | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MARQUEZ Marc | 93 | SPA | 95 | Repsol Honda Team |
| 2 | DOVIZIOSO Andrea | 4 | ITA | 87 | Mission Winnow Ducati |
| 3 | RINS Alex | 42 | SPA | 75 | Team Suzuki Ecstar |
| 4 | ROSSI Valentino | 46 | ITA | 72 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP |
| 5 | PETRUCCI Danilo | 9 | ITA | 57 | Mission Winnow Ducati |
| 6 | MILLER Jack | 43 | AUS | 42 | Pramac Racing |
| 7 | MORBIDELLI Franco | 21 | ITA | 34 | Petronas Yamaha SRT |
| 8 | CRUTCHLOW Cal | 35 | GBR | 34 | LCR Honda |
| 9 | ESPARGARO Pol | 44 | SPA | 31 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing |
| 10 | VINALES Maverick | 12 | SPA | 30 | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP |
| 11 | NAKAGAMI Takaaki | 30 | JPN | 29 | LCR Honda |
| 12 | QUARTARARO Fabio | 20 | FRA | 25 | Petronas Yamaha SRT |
| 13 | ESPARGARO Aleix | 41 | SPA | 22 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini |
| 14 | LORENZO Jorge | 99 | SPA | 16 | Repsol Honda Team |
| 15 | ZARCO Johann | 5 | FRA | 10 | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing |
| 16 | BAGNAIA Francesco | 63 | ITA | 9 | Pramac Racing |
| 17 | OLIVEIRA Miguel | 88 | POR | 8 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 |
| 18 | MIR Joan | 36 | SPA | 8 | Team Suzuki Ecstar |
| 19 | BRADL Stefan | 6 | GER | 6 | HRC Test Team |
| 20 | IANNONE Andrea | 29 | ITA | 6 | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini |
| 21 | SYAHRIN Hafizh | 55 | MAL | 2 | Red Bull KTM Tech 3 |
| 22 | RABAT Tito | 53 | SPA | 2 | Reale Avintia Racing |
Words and Photos: Honda Racing Corporation
