Misano classics: the best of the San Marino GP
Here is the thing about Misano—it simply refuses to give us a boring weekend. As we sit at the penultimate stop before the flyway tour begins, let us take a moment to look back at some of the absolute madness this circuit has handed us over the years.
Take 2012, a race that delivered drama before the lights even went out when Dani Pedrosa had to start from the back of the grid. Pedrosa's day ended in disaster after a crash following an incident with Hector Barbera. Jorge Lorenzo took P1 to stretch his title lead to 38 points, delivered a dream second place with Ducati, grabbed third, and took an honourable mention with eighth on his first MotoGP appearance.
Then came 2015 and its wild flag-to-flag chaos. Jorge Lorenzo started from pole and led early as spots of rain appeared, sending most of the field into the pits on Lap 7 for wet tyres. But the track dried up fast, forcing a second round of stops. stormed to victory, while Bradley Smith's gamble paid off brilliantly as the Brit claimed second ahead of compatriot Scott Redding.
In 2016, Dani Pedrosa carved his way from P8 on the grid and the third row to take victory with a 2.837s advantage over Valentino Rossi, who beat teammate Jorge Lorenzo to second. The post-race press conference brought plenty of off-track tension too, thanks to a disagreement between Rossi and Lorenzo over an earlier overtake. Weather played its usual trick in 2017. started from pole, but a thrilling duel for the win materialized between and Marc Marquez. Marquez pounced at Turn 1 on the final lap, holding firm to the line to win ahead of Petrucci and title rival Andrea Dovizioso.
By 2019, Maverick Viñales was on pole again and grabbed the holeshot, but rookie attacked early. That set up a nail-biting final 10 laps as Marquez moved into striking distance. Marquez made his move at Turn 1 on the final lap, Quartararo responded at Turn 4, and the pivotal pass arrived at Turn 8 to send the crowd to their feet. Marquez secured the win, keeping Quartararo waiting for his first victory, with Viñales taking third.
