MotoGP Update: Jorge Lorenzo Extends His Lead as Dani Pedrosa Crashes
This weekend saw one of the most important races of the MotoGP season, as the Red Bull US Grand Prix was held in Laguna Seca. This was the half way mark of the season, and as the second place rider, Dani Pedrosa, was starting to look good, this race could have narrowed the gap between the first two places. However, things went in the favour of the Spaniard, Jorge Lorenzo, who won the race comfortably. Dani Pedrosa was leading the race for the most part, but, he crashed out to give a 72 points lead to Lorenzo.
The race started with Lorenzo on the pole position. However, Dani Pedrosa had another remarkable start to the race, as he paced his way to the first position before the first turn. Lorenzo, however, had one of his worst starts of the season, as he moved back to the fourth place. He was overtaken by the Australian, Casey Stoner, and the Italian, Andrea Dovizioso. Lorenzo soon overtook both these riders and was challenging Pedrosa for the first position. However, Pedrosa was keen on retaining the first spot, as he showed exceptional pace on his Rapsol Honda bike.
Two of the riders, Hector Barbera and Alvaro Bautista also ended their races prematurely, as they were finished even before the lap four. At that point, Stoner was in second place, but he was crossed by Lorenzo, who started to build up pressure on the leader. During the 11th lap of the race, Pedrosa crashed out on the turn five, handing the lead over to Jorge Lorenzo. Lorenzo did not have any trouble after that crash, as he crossed the finish line for his sixth victory of the season. This victory has also given him a comfortable lead in the championships.
The third position was taken by the Lorenzo’s team-mate, Valentino Rossi. The Italian found himself on the podium, with an incredible race, his second race after coming back from injury. However, he did not have any easy race, as he had to fight for it throughout the GP. At the time of Pedrosa’s crash, Rossi was in fourth place, two seconds behind Dovizioso. Eventually, Rossi covered that lead and went past his fellow Italian, with five laps to go in the race.
For the fifth position, an incredible battle was fought between the two Americans, Ben Spies and Nicky Hayden, each trying to impress the home crowd. This battle got fiercer by the end of the race, as the tyres grew older and found more road grip. The battle for the top American in the Grand Prix provided immense entertainment to the crowd, who cheered for their fellow countrymen.
In the end, Lorenzo won the race, comfortably, ahead of Casey Stoner. This was Stoner’s best result in 2010, as he finished his fourth consecutive race on the podium. Valentino Rossi also had a remarkable day, as he edged past his fellow Italian, Andrea Dovizioso, for the final spot on the podium. The fifth place battle, and the battle for the top American, was won by Nicky Hayden, as he barely managed to brush off the challenge from Ben Spies. The top ten was completed by Colin Edwards, Marco Melandri, Mika Kallio and Loris Capirossi. Apart from these riders, Roger Lee Hayden, brother of Nicky Hayden, and Alex de Angelis also finished their races. On the other hand, Marco Simoncelli and Aleix Espargaro also crashed out of the race.
After the race at Laguna, Jorge Lorenzo must be feeling very comfortable about the rest of the season. The Spaniard has a very healthy lead on top of the table, while Pedrosa is again under pressure. Above all, Lorenzo’s worst performance in the season is a second place finish, as he has tasted victory in six races out of nine, so far. In addition, this victory has given him his first GP win at Laguna, which is also a great achievement for the young Spaniard.
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