VR46 Racing’s Fabio Di Giannantonio has claimed victory at the Catalan Grand Prix in extraordinary circumstances, taking the chequered flag after a race that was red-flagged twice due to multiple crashes.

The Italian secured only his second MotoGP victory and VR46 Racing’s first since the Indian Grand Prix in 2023, but Sunday’s triumph was overshadowed by serious incidents that sent Alex Marquez and Johann Zarco to hospital.

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Honda’s Joan Mir finished second ahead of Gresini Racing’s Fermin Aldeguer while pole sitter Acosta crashed on the final lap after contact from Trackhouse rider Ai Ogura, who was handed a three-second penalty.

However, six riders were being investigated for their tyre pressures, leaving the final standings uncertain.

“Today has not been an easy day for everybody. I really hope that Alex is fine,” Di Giannantonio said.

“We’ve been really lucky. We know that our sport is amazing. We try to give an amazing show, but also we are humans and we are in danger. So I really hope that everybody is safe.”

Alex Marquez crashes into Acosta

The drama began on lap 12 when race leader Pedro Acosta’s KTM suddenly lost power on the straight near turn 10 and Gresini Racing’s Marquez, running second, had no time to react as he crashed into the back of the stricken machine.

Marquez and his Ducati careered towards the wall before both cartwheeled through the air as he lost control on the gravel.

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The wheel from Marquez’s bike also struck Di Giannantonio, who went down but managed to nurse his machine back to the pits.

The second red flag came after an even more chaotic restart when LCR Honda’s Zarco braked late on turn one of the first lap and took out Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia and Honda’s Luca Marini in a three-rider pile-up.

Both Marquez and Zarco were taken to hospital for further examinations although the medical team confirmed they were conscious.

Martin crashes in second restart

The second restart in effect transformed what was originally a 24-lap race into a 12-lap sprint.

The chaos continued when Jorge Martin, who started on the front row and looked set to battle for the championship lead, crashed after a collision on lap one when Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez made contact on a turn.

Aprilia boss Massimo Rivola looked furious as he walked over to the Trackhouse garage to have a word with the Italian manufacturer’s satellite team.

With Aprilia’s Marco Bezzecchi finishing sixth, the Italian extended his lead over Martin in the championship to 13 points.

But up front, Di Giannantonio found a way past Mir with four laps to go before hunting down Acosta, taking the lead with two laps remaining to crush the 21-year-old’s dreams of a first MotoGP victory.

Acosta’s nightmare was then complete when he crashed on the final lap.

“It wasn’t an easy one. They should give more points for this,” Mir said.

“But Johann and Alex, wishing them the best and hopefully we see them in Mugello” for the Italian Grand Prix.