The factory Ducati rider held off sprint race winner Marco Bezzecchi to avenge Saturday’s contest, in which Bagnaia had had to settle for second.
As Bagnaia celebrated an increased points lead of 35 points over Jorge Martin and 36 over Bezzecchi, Aprilia enjoyed a podium finish for Aleix Espargaro.
The Sunday race began in similar fashion to Saturday’s sprint, with Bezzecchi once again failing to convert his pole position to an early lead.
Again it was KTM’s Brad Binder who leapt into the lead ahead of Bagnaia and Bezzecchi, until the factory Ducati man demoted the South African early on.
This time, however, Binder hung on far longer in second place, with Bezzecchi holding watch behind him. Despite the hot track surface, Binder had opted for a soft rear tyre. This went against the other frontrunners, with a medium rear being the mainstream choice.
It was lap 17 before Bezzecchi finally made his move on Binder. At that point, Bagnaia was a second up the road – and the gap immediately crept up towards a second and a half.
Bezzecchi had plenty of pressure from behind to consider, with Binder, Espargaro and Pramac Ducati’s Martin all showing a keen interest in second place.
Source: Autosport