Johann Zarco scored a sensational and emotional victory in a chaotic, mixed-weather edition of his home MotoGP French Grand Prix.
While the LCR Honda rider streaked to victory by almost 20 seconds on a bizarre day at Le Mans, factory Ducati star Marc Marquez consolidated his championship lead with a steady second place.
The six-time champion’s chief title rivals, Alex Marquez and Francesco Bagnaia, both crashed out of the race, leaving Marc with a 22-point lead over his brother in second.
Zarco’s win also meant Ducati fell at the final hurdle in its bid to break the record of 22 consecutive MotoGP grand prix victories.
There was irony in Honda halting that run, as it was the Japanese marque that would have lost the record it set in the 1990s. Ducati and Honda will now share the record into 2026 at the earliest.
Behind Marc Marquez, Fermin Aldeguer took his first MotoGP grand prix podium, which followed the Gresini Ducati rider’s first top-three sprint result on Saturday.
