Andrea Dovizioso wins first MotoGP race for seven years in Malaysia
By AFP
Last Updated: 30/10/16 9:41am
Andrea Dovizioso won his first MotoGP race in seven years on Sunday, pulling away from Valentino Rossi late in the Malaysia Grand Prix to take the checkered flag for Ducati.
Starting on pole, Dovizioso fell back early as a number of riders appeared to struggle with a rain-soaked track, but he steadily reeled in his Italian compatriot Rossi, retaking the lead with six laps to go and quickly opening up a gap as Rossi was slowed by tyre issues.
Dovizioso, 30, finished 3.115s ahead of Rossi for his maiden win of the season and first since 2009.
Rossi, meanwhile, clinched second place in the 2016 world championship over his Yamaha teammate Jorge Lorenzo, who finished third at the Sepang International Circuit.
"Well, it was in 2009, a long time," said Dovizioso. "It's really nice to come to this moment. In these conditions I struggled a lot in the race and had some problems, but I really wanted it."
Much of the race was a gripping duel between Rossi and Dovizioso's Ducati team-mate Andrea Iannone, who was returning to the track for the first time since he suffered a vertebrae fracture in a crash in early September.
After Rossi snatched the lead early, it repeatedly changed hands between him and Iannone over the first 10 laps as they aggressively dived under each other with inches to spare on Sepang's tight curves.
But when Iannone crashed out on lap 12, Dovizioso pounced, quickly overtaking Rossi, stretching a sizable lead and holding on for the win.
