Valentino Rossi wins Qatar MotoGP

Valentino Rossi has won the first MotoGP race of the season in Qatar.

Andrea Dovizioso, who started on pole, duelled with Rossi until the end, with the lead changing between the two a number of times.

Rossi, who started in eighth, finally created a gap in the last two laps.

Jorge Lorenzo also led midway through the race but fell away from the front three, as Andrea Iannone claimed third.

World champion Marc Marquez started the race poorly and finished in fifth, but he did record the fastest time ever in MotoGP, reaching 217.66mph.

It was the first time that three Italians were on the podium since the Japanese MotoGP in 2006.