Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia has won the Valencia GP to retain his MotoGP title.

Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia won the season-ending Valencia Grand Prix to claim a second straight MotoGP world championship after closest contender Jorge Martin crashed out in a collision with Marc Marquez.

Bagnaia had the championship within reach and inherited pole position following a penalty incurred by Maverick Vinales due to a technical issue in the warm-up session. 

As the lights went out, Bagnaia bolted off the line, while Martin swiftly zipped past the factory KTMs, positioning himself right behind his chief rival Bagnaia early in the race.

Pramac Racing's Martin, who was 14 points behind Bagnaia going into the final race, made the title race tighter by winning Saturday's sprint but was ultimately unable to thwart the Italian.

Bagnaia, who began the race on pole after Maverick Vinales was handed a three-place penalty, had an excellent start but was matched in the first two laps by Martin, who moved up from sixth into second by turn two of the race.

However, Martin was reckless in his eagerness to overtake Bagnaia, and a coming-together between the two on turn one of the third lap resulted in the Spaniard being forced wide and dropping down to seventh.

Martin threw caution to the wind at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo and tried to surge back up the leaderboard, but clipped Marquez's rear and was left in the gravel on lap six.

The crash ensured a dismal end to six-times MotoGP champion Marquez's tenure at Honda, with his final race for the Japanese manufacturers ending in a non-finish. Marquez will join Gresini Racing in 2024.

"We arrived here with a big distance, so hopefully next year we can work harder and leave Valencia with a championship in our hands," Martin added.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also sent her own congratulations.

"You made us dream again this year. Pride of Italy," she added.