Marco Bezzecchi stormed to victory in the Indonesian Grand Prix at a sweltering Mandalika International Circuit, making his move on pole-sitter Raul Fernandez in the final third of the 27-lap race. The Italian, riding an Aprilia, finished 4.26 seconds ahead of Fernandez, who came second after fracturing two fingers in Saturday's sprint but still managed a clean getaway from his first-ever pole. Jorge Martin, also on an Aprilia, finished third, reclaiming the championship lead from Ducati's Marc Marquez, who finished sixth.
The championship standings now see Martin on 355 points, Marquez on 353, and Bezzecchi in third with 309 points, still mathematically alive in the title hunt. Five race weekends remain, with the next round in Australia in a fortnight.
"It's amazing, I'm very, very happy," said Bezzecchi, whose last win came in May. "It was a nice battle with Raul and I think me and all my team deserve a result like this. They have been through tough times with me."
Martin, who started alongside Marquez on the second row of the grid, said: "I did the maximum. At the start I lost a lot of positions but tried to be calm and was overtaking riders step by step. We are still in the fight and still in the lead."
Bezzecchi and Fernandez had clashed and crashed in Saturday's sprint, which was won by Marquez to put him temporarily atop the championship. In the Grand Prix, Fernandez kept Bezzecchi at bay until lap 19, when the Italian made his decisive overtake and streaked away.