Valentino Rossi produced a stunning performance to win his first MotoGP race since 2010 as he came from fourth on the grid at the Dutch GP in Assen.
The Yamaha rider moved expertly past Marc Marquez before overtaking championship leader Dani Pedrosa just before the halfway stage to take the lead.
From there on the seven-time champion looked in complete control, opening up a sizeable gap on his rivals to take the chequered flag.
Behind him, however, the action was only just getting started. Marquez squeezed past his Honda teammate Pedrosa into second whilst British rider Cal Crutchlow was battling with Jorge Lorenzo for fourth, having lost ground early on after starting on pole.
Lorenzo, competing less than two days after undergoing surgery on a broken collarbone, was battling valiantly but Crutchlow was finally able to get past him in his Tech 3 and was soon on Pedrosa’s tail.
The Spaniard was struggling after looking so dominant for most of the weekend and the highly-coveted Crutchlow timed his pass to perfection to move into the podium positions.
The 27-year-old was now the quickest man on the track and looked favourite to pip Marquez for second before a coming together early on the final lap put paid to his chances. Crutchlow did well to keep the bike on the track and had to settle for a well-earned third.
The day, though, was about Rossi as the 34-year-old rolled back the years and proved he is far from finished at the top level.(skyssports)
I’m your biggest fans, since 1998. Just so you know.
I