Only four laps were undertaken by the 125cc riders at the Losail International Circuit before rainfall saw the first race of the year red flagged, with Andrea Iannone declared as the winner having held the lead at the time of the interruption.

The Italian Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. rider got away from third on the grid and battled over the four laps with Bancaja Aspar’s Julián Simón who was second when the red flag came out. Spanish poleman Simón crashed after the flags were shown but was still awarded second place, and as the riders take half points Iannone leaves Qatar with 12.5 points, whilst Simón takes home 10.

Completing the podium was Ajo Interwetten’s Sandro Cortese who started fifth and had made it up to third before the rain entered the equation. Also in the top five were Derbi Racing Team’s Pol Espargaró and Bancaja Aspar’s Bradley Smith who made a poor start from second on the grid.

The top ten was completed by rookie Jonas Folger (Ongetta Team I.S.P.A.), Nico Terol (Jack & Jones Team), Stefan Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer Racing), Danny Webb (DeGraaf Grand Prix) and Esteve Rabat (Blusens Aprilia).

A huge highside crash for Marc Márquez just before the red flag saw him miss out on the points, despite being placed in the top five when he suffered the accident.