MotoGP Grand Prix of Aragon 2016 Results: Winner, Standings and Reaction

Marc Marquez extended his lead at the top of the 2016 MotoGP standings on Sunday after overcoming a sluggish start to emerge as victor in the Aragon Grand Prix. 

Three years after his maiden triumph at the Spanish venue, Marquez thundered back with a vengeance to defeat runner-up Jorge Lorenzo, while Valentino Rossi was forced to settle for third.

Maverick Vinales made a very encouraging start to Sunday's race and held the lead for almost 10 laps before losing his way, ultimately having to settle for fourth, just shy of a place on the podium.

Here's a look at the final 2016 Aragon Grand Prix finishers, where Marquez booked his fourth win of the year and increased his standings lead to 52 points over Rossi, courtesy of the official MotoGP Twitter account:

With a second Aragon win under his belt, Marquez is now in pole position to become world champion for the third time in his career, boasting a massive standings lead with only four races remaining.

Here's how the riders' standings are shaping up after Sunday's result:

Visit the official MotoGP website for a look at the world standings in full.

Recap

Riders took no time at all getting to grips with one another's bikes out of the gate on Sunday, but it was a distraction between two of the race favourites that allowed an early underdog to arise.

That fell after a near-collision between Lorenzo and Marquez opened the door for Vinales to take a surprise lead, as shown by Crash.net, an advantage he would go on to hold for much of Sunday's outing:

Marquez himself was contending for the lead early on, but an odd interchange saw the Spaniard drop as low as fifth, while Rossi and Lorenzo engaged in a battle to round out the top three.

BT Sport MotoGP provided footage of the wild, wide run at Turn 7 that saw Marquez drop his cushion early on:

However, the 23-year-old recovered as only a rider of his class can, and it wasn't long before he passed Andrea Dovizioso and finally Lorenzo to take his Repsol Honda back into the top three.

Vinales managed to stave off the threat of Lorenzo, Rossi and Co. for almost half of his outing, but it was with 14 laps remaining the 21-year-old simply couldn't hold back the storm any longer and caved under pressure:

Further down the places, brothers Aleix and Pol Espargaro dueled to crack their way into the top six, but the efforts of Dani Pedrosa and Britain's Cal Crutchlow were holding their peers at bay for the most part.

While Crutchlow's own impressive display saw him pull ahead into fifth place, Marquez began to apply his own bit of pressure at the top of the order and picked a superb time to up the ante on those trailing:

Rossi needed to be kept on his toes, too, as Lorenzo lined up several attempts at making the pass into second before finally scything his way past the Doctor and into second place.

The Italian veteran made a last-ditch effort to swing wide with three laps to go in a bid to reclaim the spot from Lorenzo, but Rossi's attempt was badly misjudged, allowing Lorenzo to run in for the runner-up finish almost unopposed.

In the end, Marquez's run to the race win was an easy one, with Lorenzo and Rossi's battle for second spot taking enough heat off the starlet for him to take victory at Aragon for the second time in his career.

Riders can now look forward to three weeks of rest before resuming their campaign at the Japan Grand Prix on October 16, where Marquez will be hoping to increase his lead at the top even further, with Rossi and Lorenzo still in pursuit.