VALENCIA, Spain – Franco Morbidelli earned his third MotoGP victory of the season Sunday at Circuit Ricardo Tormo while a seventh-place finish was enough for Suzuki’s Joan Mir to claim his first MotoGP title.
The battle for the victory came down to a last-lap battle between Morbidelli and Jack Miller, which saw Morbidelli lead at the white flag only for Miller to rocket past him into turn one.
The move didn’t stick, however, as Miller ran wide and Morbidelli was able to maneuver his Petronas Yamaha SRT entry back past Miller to regain the lead. Miller made another move in turn four to snatch the lead, only for Morbidelli to return the favor in the next corner.
Miller hounded Morbidelli for the remainder of the lap, but Morbidelli held serve to claim the victory. Miller came home a frustrating second, .093 seconds short of the victory.
Pol Espargaro finished third to complete the podium, followed by Alex Rins and Brad Binder.
Behind the battle for the win, Mir was able to finish seventh to claim his first MotoGP title. It’s the first championship for a Suzuki rider in 20 years, with American Kenny Roberts Jr. the last to deliver a championship to Suzuki in 2000.