The Frenchman still retained a slender chance of the world title headed into race day. The Kawasaki rider emerged an initial fourth after the two title candidates had tagged bars out-of-the-gate at the start of race one but he needed just five corners to surge into third. Once again setting the fastest laps of the race he quickly closed down the leaders but overtaking proved as difficult as ever at the Italian switchback. Febvre pulled alongside the rider in second place on several occasions but was frustratingly denied each time. Searching for a pass on the sixth lap he dragged on the solid side-walls of a deep rut before the main climb and was cast off spectacularly. Regrouping quickly after rejoining the race fifth the Frenchman suffered a rare technical issue which caused his withdrawal on the next lap; this was his first DNF in four seasons racing for the Kawasaki Racing Team. It is not yet know what caused the issue but the team will investigate on their return to the workshop; given the proven reliablity of the KX450-SR everyone is confident it will turn out to be something minor. Determined to bounce back in style Febvre shot through the first turn second in the race two to track down the new champion, eventually pouncing for the lead on lap eight to claim his ninth GP moto victory of the season. With one GP remaining he can no longer take the title but the series silver medal is secure as he is eighty-three points clear of third in the series with a maximum sixty points still available.
 
Romain Febvre: “I was happy with my riding and my feeling for the track in the second moto and I finally found a spot to pass Prado to take the lead. Gajser was pushing and I knew that he had some better lines than me as he was closing the gap at one stage but I eventually saw where he was faster so I could change my lines and make a small gap again to win this moto. I think that I could also have found solutions to pass Seewer and Prado in the first race but I made a mistake and crashed while I was chasing Seewer and later I had a problem with the bike. The next GP is in the UK and I like this track as there’s always good grip, deep ruts, and racing there with a 450 is truly a pleasure."