Marc Marquez makes contact with Jorge Lorenzo into the final corner of the Spanish Grand Prix. Image: MotoGP.com.

A despondent Jorge Lorenzo has been left to lament leaving the door ajar for Marc Marquez after the pair clashed on the final corner of the Spanish Grand Prix.

Just a day earlier, the same spot was renamed ‘Jorge Lorenzo Corner’, in honour of the Spanish rider’s achievements in MotoGP, though it will surely be remembered for the move in which the Honda rookie stole second place from the off-guard Yamaha rider.

Marquez ranged in on Lorenzo in the closing stages, quickly recovering from an errant passing attempt to line up for a last-chance overtake.

He skated in, making side-to-side contact at a corner infamous for such a move, forcing Lorenzo to sit up and run well wide of the line.

Despite the contact, Lorenzo labelled it as his own mistake, one that sees him go from the potential points lead to third on the ladder.

“I was second for the whole race and then lost the place on the last corner so it wasn’t the perfect race,” said Lorenzo. “The perfect race is a victory and if not possible second, the next is third.

“I think I made two mistakes in the race, in the start I started really badly and in the last corner, I thought Marquez was further behind than he was so I didn’t take a defensive line, this was my second mistake.”

Marquez said he was trying to keep Lorenzo in check and was pleased to find himself on his countryman’s tail in the decisive stages.

“I tried to stick as close as possible to Lorenzo, although it was very difficult,” said Marquez. “I couldn’t quite close the gap, but I didn’t let him get away either.

“It was a very hard race, because if you get one or two seconds difference between you, you relax a bit. I didn’t relax though, and I am very happy.

“I think that, above all, the end of the race was really good for the fans. I want to apologise to Jorge, because it was a racing incident – a last lap move that happens when you are on the limit.

“The most important thing is that we both finished the race, and I hope that that’s the end of it.”

Marquez leaves his home race in the lead of the MotoGP World Championship (61 points), with Pedrosa second (58 points) and Lorenzo slipping to third (57 points).