Le Mans sprint: Martin dominates, Marquez stars, woe for Bagnaia

MotoGP championship leader Jorge Martin completely controlled the French Grand Prix at Le Mans, as Pecco Bagnaia's race immediately fell apart and Marc Marquez pulled off an astounding charge from 13th to second.

Second-place starter Bagnaia immediately tumbled down the order off the line and finished the first lap in 15th.

He made no progress, had a trip through a gravel trap and then retired in the Ducati garage.

Marquez - only 13th on the grid having struggled through the weekend so far - went in the opposite direction.

His Gresini Ducati scorched off the line and was instantly into the top six before establishing himself in fourth.

A jump-start penalty for early third-place runner Aleix Espargaro's Aprilia moved Marquez onto the podium and then he gained second when Marco Bezzecchi crashed his VR46 Ducati out of a clear runner-up spot late on.

Pramac driver Martin was completely untroubled out front, winning by 2.3 seconds.

Maverick Vinales got the second Aprilia on the podium in third, albeit under pressure from late charger Enea Bastianini on the second works Ducati.

Espargaro ended up fifth after his penalty.

Rookie sensation Pedro Acosta dropped from seventh to 11th on the first lap but then produced characteristic fireworks to recover to sixth - saving a late near-fall against the odds along the way.