Bagnaia wins Italian MotoGP, Quartararo extends overall lead

MUGELLO (AFP) - Francesco Bagnaia won the Italian MotoGP on Sunday while Fabio Quartararo extended his lead at the top of the championship standings.

Ducati rider Bagnaia flew up from fifth in the starting grid to finish comfortably ahead of reigning champion Quartararo on home turf at Mugello.

The Italian took over the lead midway through the race and never let go, finishing over half a second ahead of Quartararo in a controlled display from the front.

"It's incredible I'm really happy to have won at home in front of our fans, it's really great," Bagnaia told Sky Sport Italia.

Quartararo's overall lead over Aleix Espargaro is now 16 points after the Spanish rider finished third behind the Yamaha man.

Bagnaia trails France's Quartararo by 41 points after his second win over the season.

Quartararo called Sunday's race "the best of my career" after he rose from sixth on the grid to finish behind Bagnaia.

"I told myself 'you have nothing to lose' ... I'm super happy to have raced as best as I can," he told Sky.

Six-time champion Marc Marquez finished 10th in his last race before going under the knife to solve problems with his right arm after fracturing it nearly two years ago.