Although the Valencia finale provided a fittingly dramatic conclusion to this most exceptional of MotoGP seasons, it wasn't quite the fairytale ending for Andrea Dovizioso and Ducati for which many fans had been hoping.
It was always going to be a tall order for Dovizioso to beat Marc Marquez, faced with that mammoth 21-point deficit and a Ricardo Tormo circuit around which Honda held a decisive edge over Ducati's Desmosedici. He inevitably fell short.
Plenty has been made over Jorge Lorenzo's refusal to obey team orders and let through Dovizioso, but the reality is that even if the three-time premier class champion had moved over when he was given the coded instruction 'Suggested Mapping 8' on his dashboard, it would have made no difference to the outcome.