Source: MotoGP

Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez has secured a third consecutive MotoGP victory in Argentina, becoming the first rider since Giacomo Agostini in 1971 to win the first three races from the pole.

The first ever MotoGP race at the refurbished Termas de Rio Hondo was a thriller, highlighted by a re-ignition of the battle between Marquez and sparring partner, Movistar Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo.

Lorenzo swept into the lead early and was tasked with controlling the pace. The Spanish rider held his own for much of the duration but it was merely a case of Marquez biding his time, easily moving past and down the road for a 1.827-second win.

Three perfect results see Marquez pile on more points at the head of the field, an imposing start to his second season in the top-tier class.

Honda stamped its authority on the closing stages of the grand prix, with Marquez’ teammate Dani Pedrosa making a late charge to displace Lorenzo to third place.

Valentino Rossi ran as high as second in the race but found himself running wide on a number of occasions in the midst of battle, losing ground in the process.

Rossi stabilised for an eventual fourth place finish, with LCR Honda MotoGP’s Stefan Bradl solid in fifth. Ducati’s Andrea Iannone was competitive early but had to settle for sixth, followed by Monster Tech3 Yamaha teammates Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaro.

Andrea Dovizioso faded for ninth aboard the second Ducati, while a late move on teammate Nicky Hayden secured Drive M7 Aspar’s Hiroshi Aoyama 10th place overall, and top Open class entrant.

Broc Parkes’ Paul Bird Motorsport machine lacked the legs it required to fight off its rivals, seeing the Aussie drift back from his stellar 18th place grid position to an eventual 21st.

Marc VDS Racing Team’s Esteve Rabat ran rampant in the Moto2 ranks, taking the early lead from pole position to seal the win by 2.094 seconds from Federal Oil Gresini’s Xavier Simeon and Pons HP 40’s Luis Salom, a first-time podium placer.

Dominique Aegerter secured fourth after being bumped back a placing by Salom, with Simon Corsi completing the top five places.

It was another strong showing for Australia’s Anthony West who eventually finished in 12th despite running within the top eight for some time.

The QMMF Racing Team rider holds down a solid eighth place on the standings after three competitive grands prix to open the season.

A third consecutive Moto3 win for Australia’s Jack Miller was thwarted by an ambitious bump pass from eventual winner Romano Fenati on the final corner of the race.

Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Miller rode a spectacular race at the front of the field, executing countless clean passes as the lead switched between he, Sky VR46’s Fenati and SaxoPrint-RTG’s Efren Vazquez early.

The Hondas of Alex Marquez and Alex Rins joined the fight for the podium in the decisive stages, thought it would be Miller, Marquez and Fenati in the final scrap for the win.

Miller made a deft pass to secure crucial track position but was slammed into by Fenati and run wide on the run to the chequers, demoting him to third behind Marquez.

Fenati was later penalised a point for ‘irresponsible riding causing danger to other competitors’, but held on to the winner’s trophy.

Miller holds a 17 point lead over Fenati after round three, with Vaquez a further seven points in arrears.

Arthur Sissis showed solid pace in the race but the Mahindra Racing rider’s momentum was halted early when he was forced to run off track to avoid an accident ahead of him.

Sissis pushed forth for an eventual 22nd place finish in what has been a difficult start to his 2014 campaign.

2014 MotoGP World Championship
Round three – Termas de Rio Hondo, Argentina

MotoGP race results:
1. Marc MARQUEZ
2. Dani PEDROSA +1.837
3. Jorge LORENZO +3.201
4. Valentino ROSSI +4.898
5. Stefan BRADL +15.029
6. Andrea IANNONE +19.447
7. Bradley SMITH +24.192
8. Pol ESPARGARO +29.118
9. Andrea DOVIZIOSO +33.673
10. Hiroshi AOYAMA +43.279
21. Broc PARKES (AUS) +1m16.722

MotoGP championship standings (after round three of 18):
1. Marc MARQUEZ 75
2. Dani PEDROSA 56
3. Valentino ROSSI 41
4. Andrea DOVIZIOSO 34
5. Andrea IANNONE 25
6. Stefan BRADL 24
7. Jorge LORENZO 22
8. Aleix ESPARGARO 21
9. Bradley SMITH 20
10. Pol ESPARGARO 18
20. Broc PARKES (AUS) 1

Moto2 race results:
1. Esteve RABAT
2. Xavier SIMEON +2.094
3. Luis SALOM +3.702
4. Dominique AEGERTER +4.868
5. Simone CORSI +5.010
6. Alex DE ANGELIS +8.564
7. Mika KALLIO +13.157
8. Sam LOWES +19.756
9. Sandro CORTESE +20.308
10. Jordi TORRES +20.378
12. Anthony WEST (AUS) +21.499

Moto2 championship standings (after round three of 18):
1. Esteve RABAT 70
2. Mika KALLIO 42
3. Maverick VIÑALES 38
4. Simone CORSI 33
5. Dominique AEGERTER 29
6. Thomas LUTHI 26
7. Xavier SIMEON 20
8. Anthony WEST (AUS) 20
9. Luis SALOM 18
10. Sam LOWES 18

Moto3 race results:
1. Romano FENATI
2. Alex MARQUEZ +0.099
3. Jack MILLER (AUS) +0.540
4. Livio LOI +0.624
5. Alex RINS +5.530
6. Efren VAZQUEZ +5.653
7. Isaac VIÑALES +8.965
8. Niklas AJO +14.985
9. Danny KENT +15.043
10. Enea BASTIANINI +17.310
22. Arthur SISSIS +1m00.029

Moto3 championship standings (after round three of 18):
1. Jack MILLER (AUS) 66
2. Romano FENATI 49
3. Efren VAZQUEZ 42
4. Alex MARQUEZ 40
5. Alex RINS 35
6. Alexis MASBOU 24
7. Jakub KORNFEIL 21
8. Danny KENT 18
9. Livio LOI 17
10. Isaac VIÑALES 17

Click here for detailed results