US MotoGP Race Results | Magic Marquez back on top, Quartararo inches to title

Marc Marquez secured both his and Honda’s second MotoGP World Championship victory of the season with a masterful display of precision riding at a tricky COTA to win the Grand Prix of the Americas.

The Spaniard got the jump off the line to grab the hole-shot from third on the grid before easing clear to come home a comfortable winner over Fabio Quartararo.

His second win of the season after the German MotoGP, as well as his second win since returning from his long injury lay off, Marquez’s return to the top will be seen as encouraging in the context of what he hopes will be a revived title tilt in 2022.

When the new season does roll around though, it is likely Marquez will be striving to release Quartararo’s grip from the trophy after the Frenchman put one hand on it with a composed run to second place on the Yamaha Factory Racing M1.

Getting the edge on key rival Pecco Bagnaia into Turn 1, Quartararo was never challenged by the pole man as Bagnaia, who instead found the going tough during the early stages to run as low as sixth place.

However, helped by some team orders ahead from Jack Miller and by Jorge Martin picking up a long lap penalty, Bagnaia limited the damage with a recovery to third. With only three rounds of the season remaining though, Quartararo has a 52 point buffer meaning he heads to Misano with his first ‘match point’ on offer.

With Martin’s long lap penalty - taken on the final revolution - dropping him to fifth, Alex Rins was elevated into fourth for Suzuki, while Enea Bastianini rubber-stamped his status as one of MotoGP’s hot prospects with a third top six finish in a row, achieved from 16th on the grid.

Resplendent with his new typeface and wearing a helmet inspired by Kevin Schwantz, Joan Mir could only take it as far as seventh place but retains third overall in the standings.

Jack Miller started brightly but despite having the harder tyre, ended up going backwards to eighth place unusually, just fending off Brad Binder in ninth and Pol Espargaro in tenth.

Miguel Oliveira enjoyed one of his strongest races in recent events with a run from 18th to 11th, while Alex Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso - scoring his first points since returning to MotoGP -, Luca Marini and Valentino Rossi completed the top 15.

Elsewhere, Takaaki Nakagami, Johann Zarco and Aleix Espargaro were all fallers from points’ paying positions, while Franco Morbidelli also failed to reach the chequered flag.

2021 Grand Prix of the Americas MotoGP | Race RESULTS