There was no change in the top five places until Lap 20, when Bastianini regained second place as his trademark late race pace came to the fore. ‘The Beast’ was carving into Bagnaia’s lead out front as he left Viñales in his wake, and with just a couple laps remaining, a split second separated the front two. Searching for a passing manoeuvre, Bastianini was late on the brakes at Turn 4 but he was out of shape, narrowly avoiding contact. The Italian regrouped and by the time Turn 10 came around, the gap was back to nothing. No pass came into Turn 14 and neither into the final corner, but Bastianini hooked his GP21 up on the exit and threatened to snatch victory away from Pecco’s grasp at the chequered flag. It wasn’t to be though as Bagnaia won by 0.034s – a stunningly close finish between two phenomenal riders.
