🌺Luca Marini looked poised to make a perfect start to the 2020 Moto2 season, leading the way for most of the Qatar Mo𒀰to2 race.

But the Sky VR46 rider will leave Losail pointless after a late dr🔜op in pace was followed by a collision at the final corner.

Marini held the adva🦄ntage from laps 2 to 14 and briefly looked on the verge of breaking clear (pictured). But with six laps remaining he suddenly began to suffer front-tyre issues and was swallowed by the chasing pack.

The struggling Italian had dropped to 14th as he approached the 𝔍final corner, when he was knocked from his Kalex during a pass by Jake Dixon.

Marini was initially seen holding his wrist, but w♏as giv🐠en the all-clear after medical checks.

"Not the ending I wanted," Marini said. "I had a 𓆉great start, felt really comfortable and managed to set a great pace but suddenly I started to lose confidence with the front tyre and was forced to give up many positions. I could not do anything.

"Too bad for the crash on the last lap, I don't know exactly what happened. Fortunately, after a check at the medical centre I🏅’m ok."

Dixon was quick to apologise for the contact.

"I ꦛdidn’t realise Marini went down until we came in afterwards and I saw on the TV that me and him collided," said the Petronas rider.

"First of all, I want to apologise to him and his team because I didn’t intentionally try to hit him. As I committed to go I had to turn in and I had nowhere to go, so apologies to them anওd I hope that he’ll be all right."

Meanwhile, Marin꧟i's team-mate Marco Bezzecchi also suffered the same front-tyre problem.

"6-7 laps from the finish I started to lose faith in the front tyre, mainly on the right side," said Bezzecchi, who featured in the top seven but eventually finishe🐓d twelfth. "A real shame for the whole team because Luca also had a similar problem."

"We need t🐻o analyse the data and understand exactly what happened," added team boss Pa🐷blo Nieto.