The win for the Gresini Racing rider was not only his first in the premier class but marks the first time two brothers have been winners at motorcycle racing’s highest level.
It only came after Sprint race winner Marc Marquez crashed out on just the third lap while running third, a spot ahead of his brother.
That opened the door for Alex Marquez to run down first Francesco Bagnaia and then early leader Fabio Quartararo to take his very first MotoGP win in front of a packed home crowd.
The win means he now also leads the world championship by a point over his brother, who recovered to 12th place in the race.
“Amazing, amazing,” said Alex Marquez. “I cannot ask for more. It was a race where I was really clever. The moment I did it, at the beginning I attacked a little bit too much and I lost a too much time there.
“But with my pace, concentrating, trying to not make any gap and trying not to give any chance to the other ones I was controlling the race perfectly.”
Quartararo finished second, ending a 560-day podium drought for the Yamaha star.
He was also the inaugural Rider of the Day, MotoGP following F1’s lead by introducing a fan vote for the first time at this race.
“It is incredible,” said the Frenchman.
“To get on the podium is something super special. Especially as the gap with Alex is not so big, he had something more, we knew it.
“To keep Pecco [Bagnaia] behind in the race was so difficult. It has been long years, but I’m super happy to be to be back on the podium.”
Bagnaia finished the race third.
Jack Miller started the race in promising fashion, running just inside the top 10 before slowing with a mechanical issue midway through the race.
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