Aleix Espargaro scythed past Aprilia team-mate late on in the Catalan Grand Prix to secure his second win of the year, while Francesco Bagnaia was injured in a nasty crash.
Espargaro and team-mate Vinales were lucky to avoid a huge crash at the start of the race involving Enea Bastianini, the factory Ducati man taking out Marco Bezzecchi, Fabio Di Gianantonio, Johann Zarco and Alex Marquez after losing the front of his bike at Turn 1 – though it would be Bagnaia who took the headlines.
The series leader high-sided spectacularly on the exit of Turn 2 and hit the ground hard before seemingly being struck on his legs by an unsighted Brad Binder, the pair of incidents facilitating a lengthy red flag period.
The race later restarted minus Bagnaia and Bastianini – both transported to the local hospital for further medical checks – with Vinales quickly establishing himself out in front ahead of Espargaro and RNF Aprilia’s Miguel Oliveira, the trio all quickly dispatching a fast-starting Jorge Martin at the beginning of the re-started 23-lap encounter.
Vinales looked to be in control out in front as he attempted to seemingly look after his rubber as team-mate and Catalan sprint winner Espargaro closed in.
The Spaniard looked to be making a break at around half-distance after opening up a lead of around 1.5s, though Espargaro started to sneak ever closer as the race entered its closing stanza.
By the time the final half-dozen tours came around Vinales looked to be in trouble with his tyres as he snaked around under acceleration, Espargaro tracking his victim before eventually diving through on Vinales at Turn 1 just a few laps from home – Vinales running wide as a result and having to navigate the escape road.
Espargaro then managed things across the remaining distance to take the chequered flag just 0.377s clear of Vinales to secure his second win of 2023 and Aprilia’s first ever 1-2 finish in the premier class.
Pramac Ducati’s Martin crossed the line a lonely third a further 2.5s adrift having moved clear of Oliveira just prior to mid-distance to reduce the injured Bagnaia’s points lead to 50 ahead of next weekend’s San Marino GP, while team-mate Zarco brushed off his original race calamity to claim fourth.
Oliveira thus had to make do with fifth ahead of Gresini Ducati’s Alex Marquez who came out on top of a breathless tussle for the spot between he, Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo and KTM’s Jack Miller – the latter duo coming home seventh and eighth respectively covered by just 0.059s.
Augusto Fernandez got the better of the other Gresini entry of Di Gianantonio at the climax of a race-long battle between the pair, while Luca Marini edged out VR46 Ducati team-mate Marco Bezzecchi for 11th in what was a tough weekend for the Valentino Rossi-owned operation.
Marc Marquez ended up as the highest-placed Honda pilot in 13th overall just ahead of the sister Yamaha of Franco Morbidelli, with Takaaki Nakagami moving past fellow Honda riders Iker Lecuona and Joan Mir late on to snatch the final point for 15th.
While nobody crashed from the restarted contest, KTM RC16 riders Binder and GasGas’ Pol Esaprgaro were forced to pull out with mechanical dramas, as was the sister RNF Aprilia bike of Raul Fernandez.
