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MotoGP
MOTOGP: Lorenzo Wins, Rossi Runner-Up At Wet Le Mans
2010 MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo took command of the 2012 title fight with a one-sided victory in the wet at Le Mans.
Yamaha Factory Racing's Jorge Lorenzo (Photo: Dorna Communications)
Jorge Lorenzo powered off into the distance to win his third French Grand Prix at Le Mans in the wet on Sunday, leaving all the drama far behind him.
The Spaniard made a couple of well-judged maneuvers in the race's formative stages and raced off in the rain essentially unchallenged. The Yamaha Factory Racing star managed a multi-second advantage throughout en route to claiming his second victory of the 2012 season while reclaiming the title lead.
While Lorenzo did his best to make for an uneventful Sunday, the treacherous conditions made for considerable excitement down the order.
Home race favorite Randy de Puniet crashed his ART CRT off the line as the riders lined up on the far right side of the grid all fishtailed as they accelerated from a standing start at the start. That group included American Ben Spies, who nearly crashed from his sixth-place starting position, dropping all the way down to 18th as he regrouped.
Spies' race only got worse from there, as he nearly crashed again while racing his way up the order. He later went into the pits before returning to the contest only to finish outside the points as his nightmare of a season continues.
Meanwhile, Ducati Team's Valentino Rossi took full advantage of the wet conditions just as he did a year ago in Le Mans to score the only podium of his '11 campaign.
Rossi immediately found himself in the thick of the podium hunt, zapping poleman Dani Pedrosa early and chasing after reigning champ Casey Stoner (with the Monster Yamaha Tech3 M1s of Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow on his GP12's rear wheel).
Stoner shook the challengers in second -- or so it seemed -- as Rossi, Andrea Dovizioso, and Cal Crutchlow seesawed back and forth over third position.
Crutchlow was the first to falter, crashing from fifth as Rossi made his way back by Dovi into third. Dovizioso would crash a short while later as he attempted to keep pace with the rejuvenated Rossi who quickly made up ground on runner-up Stoner.
Rossi arrived on the Aussie's rear wheel with four laps remaining. Stoner countered one attempt at the position with three to go, but had no answer when Rossi overhauled him for second on the final lap, securing his best-ever finish on the Desmosedici.
Stoner held on for third as his Repsol Honda teammate, Pedrosa, was fortunate to finish in fourth. MotoGP rookie Stefan Bradl notched up an impressive fifth on the LCR Honda, followed by Rossi's teammate, Nicky Hayden in sixth.
Dovizioso and Crutchlow remounted to finish seventh and eighth, respectively, while Pramac Racing's Hector Barbera and San Carlo Honda Gresini's Alvaro Bautista rounded out the top ten.
The 2012 MotoGP World Championship will pick up in two weeks time at Catalunya.
The Spaniard made a couple of well-judged maneuvers in the race's formative stages and raced off in the rain essentially unchallenged. The Yamaha Factory Racing star managed a multi-second advantage throughout en route to claiming his second victory of the 2012 season while reclaiming the title lead.
While Lorenzo did his best to make for an uneventful Sunday, the treacherous conditions made for considerable excitement down the order.
Home race favorite Randy de Puniet crashed his ART CRT off the line as the riders lined up on the far right side of the grid all fishtailed as they accelerated from a standing start at the start. That group included American Ben Spies, who nearly crashed from his sixth-place starting position, dropping all the way down to 18th as he regrouped.
Spies' race only got worse from there, as he nearly crashed again while racing his way up the order. He later went into the pits before returning to the contest only to finish outside the points as his nightmare of a season continues.
Meanwhile, Ducati Team's Valentino Rossi took full advantage of the wet conditions just as he did a year ago in Le Mans to score the only podium of his '11 campaign.
Rossi immediately found himself in the thick of the podium hunt, zapping poleman Dani Pedrosa early and chasing after reigning champ Casey Stoner (with the Monster Yamaha Tech3 M1s of Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow on his GP12's rear wheel).
Stoner shook the challengers in second -- or so it seemed -- as Rossi, Andrea Dovizioso, and Cal Crutchlow seesawed back and forth over third position.
Crutchlow was the first to falter, crashing from fifth as Rossi made his way back by Dovi into third. Dovizioso would crash a short while later as he attempted to keep pace with the rejuvenated Rossi who quickly made up ground on runner-up Stoner.
Rossi arrived on the Aussie's rear wheel with four laps remaining. Stoner countered one attempt at the position with three to go, but had no answer when Rossi overhauled him for second on the final lap, securing his best-ever finish on the Desmosedici.
Stoner held on for third as his Repsol Honda teammate, Pedrosa, was fortunate to finish in fourth. MotoGP rookie Stefan Bradl notched up an impressive fifth on the LCR Honda, followed by Rossi's teammate, Nicky Hayden in sixth.
Dovizioso and Crutchlow remounted to finish seventh and eighth, respectively, while Pramac Racing's Hector Barbera and San Carlo Honda Gresini's Alvaro Bautista rounded out the top ten.
The 2012 MotoGP World Championship will pick up in two weeks time at Catalunya.
Grand Prix of The France
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