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MotoGP
MOTOGP: Noyes’ Notebook: Stoner Vs. Lorenzo
Is the '11 MotoGP season destined to become a showdown between Jorge Lorenzo and Casey Stoner? And what of the hurting Dani Pedrosa, whose fitness is a real concern?
Defending MotoGP champ Jorge Lorenzo and preseason favorite Casey Stoner (Photo: Yamaha Racing)
The expected Honda runaway did not happen under the thousand lights of Losail, Qatar, in the opening round of the 2011 FIM MotoGP World Championship, but there it was clear that the RC212V Hondas had the edge on the Yamaha M1s, both in acceleration and ultimate top speed.
In a nutshell, Casey Stoner, in his first race a factory Honda pilot, and Jorge Lorenzo, in the first race carrying the #1 plate, each left the gulf happy with his results. And although Ducati’s Valentino Rossi probably hasn’t been this pleased about a downfield placing since his rookie year in 125cc back in 1996, his seventh -- considering just how serious an issue his major shoulder operation really is -- was quite good; the start of the long road back.
Stoner was the favorite after his strong run in practice and qualifying. Jorge was expected to finish back of at least two of the four factory Hondas, making his second place so unexpected that the young man from Mallorca, riding on the ragged edge on a couple of occasions, said that “this was the better than any of my wins last year.”
There was some luck involved, however. The predicted Honda 1-2 almost certainly would have happened had not the fast but worryingly fragile Dani Pedrosa not succumbed to a loss of strength and feeling in his clutch hand from half distance.
After dominating the final run of preseason tests, the powerful, three-rider Repsol Honda wrecking crew of Stoner, Pedrosa, and Andrea Dovizioso, backed up by a fourth factory Honda guided by San Carlo Greini's Marco Simoncelli, went into the extended, four-day event with confidence. (In order to insure that practices were run under the relevant nighttime conditions, there were free practices scheduled for Thursday as well.)
Stoner was fastest in all three free sessions with Pedrosa quickest in the warm-up, but when qualifying rolled around Lorenzo produced a fine lap to slot himself into second place on the three-rider front row, sandwiched between Stoner on the pole and Pedrosa in third.
In a nutshell, Casey Stoner, in his first race a factory Honda pilot, and Jorge Lorenzo, in the first race carrying the #1 plate, each left the gulf happy with his results. And although Ducati’s Valentino Rossi probably hasn’t been this pleased about a downfield placing since his rookie year in 125cc back in 1996, his seventh -- considering just how serious an issue his major shoulder operation really is -- was quite good; the start of the long road back.
Stoner was the favorite after his strong run in practice and qualifying. Jorge was expected to finish back of at least two of the four factory Hondas, making his second place so unexpected that the young man from Mallorca, riding on the ragged edge on a couple of occasions, said that “this was the better than any of my wins last year.”
There was some luck involved, however. The predicted Honda 1-2 almost certainly would have happened had not the fast but worryingly fragile Dani Pedrosa not succumbed to a loss of strength and feeling in his clutch hand from half distance.
After dominating the final run of preseason tests, the powerful, three-rider Repsol Honda wrecking crew of Stoner, Pedrosa, and Andrea Dovizioso, backed up by a fourth factory Honda guided by San Carlo Greini's Marco Simoncelli, went into the extended, four-day event with confidence. (In order to insure that practices were run under the relevant nighttime conditions, there were free practices scheduled for Thursday as well.)
Stoner was fastest in all three free sessions with Pedrosa quickest in the warm-up, but when qualifying rolled around Lorenzo produced a fine lap to slot himself into second place on the three-rider front row, sandwiched between Stoner on the pole and Pedrosa in third.
Grand Prix of The Americas
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