Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/534048
56 Sport maltatoday, SUNDAY, 28 JUNE 2015 MOTOGP MOTORSPORTS Rossi beats Márquez in Dutch thriller VALENTINO Rossi extended his MotoGP championship lead to 10 points after prevailing in a thrill- ing battle with Honda rival Marc Márquez at the Dutch TT. Rossi and Márquez remained together throughout the race as they were significantly clear of the rest of the field, before mak- ing contact at the final corner, with Rossi running through the gravel but holding on to claim victory. It was the first time Rossi claimed pole position and the win in the same Grand Prix weekend in six years as he ended Jorge Lorenzo's run of four straight victories. Rossi retained the lead from pole at the start while Márquez soon moved into second, with Lorenzo leaping from eighth to third across the course of the first lap. Rossi maintained the lead de- spite relentless pressure from Márquez, as the pair quickly pulled away from Lorenzo, who occupied a lonely third place. The gap ebbed and flowed be- tween the pair across different parts of the lap, though Márquez remained within half a second of his senior rival. Márquez made the move with seven laps to go following a mi- nor error from Rossi at the chi- cane, though the Yamaha rider regrouped and took back the ad- vantage with three laps remain- ing. Márquez drifted slightly wide at the chicane and spent the re- maining laps closing back to Ros- si, before launching an audacious move up the inside into the final corner. The pair made slight contact, with Rossi going across the gravel and Márquez having to compro- mise his line. Rossi sped through the gravel at high speed and remained upright to emerge ahead and take the win, with Márquez recovering from being off-line to take second. Lorenzo finished a distant third with Andrea Iannone pulling clear of the pack to take fourth. Pol Espargaró was fifth, ahead of Cal Crutchlow, Bradley Smith and Dani Pedrosa, who made a poor start off the back of a heavy crash in warm-up. Suzuki's Aleix Espargaró was ninth while team-mate Maverick Viñales completed the top 10. Jack Miller and Héctor Barberá crashed out on the opening lap while Stefan Bradl and Eugene Laverty also fell later in the race. The next round of the MotoGP season takes place in Germany from July 10-12 Italy's Valentino Rossi held off a determined challenge by defending champion Marc Marquez to win the Dutch TT in Assen and extend his lead in the MotoGP world championship Branson expects FE to overtake F1 by 2020 VIRGIN Group founder Sir Ri- chard Branson says he expects the nascent electric Formula E championship to pass Formula 1 in terms of popularity and appeal by the end of the current decade. Branson's Virgin Group spon- sored Brawn in 2009 prior to run- ning its own team in Formula 1 between 2010 and 2011, before Marussia assumed control of the squad. Branson returned to the motor sport scene last year with his own team in Formula E and believes that the series, which concludes in London this weekend, will sur- pass Formula 1 within the next few years. "I think four or five years from now you'll find Formula E over- taking Formula 1 in terms of number of people [viewing] and more and more, as time goes on, clean energy businesses are go- ing to power ahead of other busi- nesses," Branson told journalists ahead of the London ePrix. "There's still going to be room for Formula 1 for a few more years but I would say there will come a time when Formula E will over- take it. "With Formula E, you can still hear the roar of the cars from the tarmac as they come through a corner, but at least you can have a conversation and a drink when you're watching which you can't do with Formula 1." Branson's squad also announced a tie-up with Citroen Racing's sub-division, DS Automobiles, for the second season of Formula E. Valentino Rossi