MotoGP: Andrea Dovizioso gets taste of sweet victory at Malaysian Grand Prix

Ducati rider Andrea Dovizioso took advantage of the pole position to become the ninth different race winner in MotoGP's current season at Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday.

Rain put a bit of dampener on Sepang track. Early in the race, Dovizioso  dropped to third but he recovered and overhauled Valentino Rossi when last five laps were left to be covered, reports BBC Sports

Win it Sepang marks only second victory in 159 races for the Italian.

"Well, it was in 2009, a long time," Dovizioso said of the extended wait for a win. "It's really nice to come to this moment. In these conditions I struggled a lot in the race and had some problems, but I really wanted it."

Valentino Rossi finished second and Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo finished third. World champion Marc Marquez, who skipped Friday's second practice after suffering from a bout of gastroenteritis , crashed out early on and finished 11th.

Six-times MotoGP world champion Rossi leads Lorenzo, last year's champion, by 24 points in the race for second place in the standings behind Marquez.

Rossi told the reporters that he began suffering problems as the track gradually dried over the course of the race.

"When the water (became) less, I had a problem with the front tyre and had to slow down. It's a shame because we would have liked to win but it's good to get second place in the championship."

(With AFP inputs)