• Peg It on GarageMonkey
MOTOGP: Pedrosa Celebrates Fifth Win Of ‘12
Dani Pedrosa picked up his fifth win and 13th podium of the season today at Motegi.
Media Release  |  Posted October 14, 2012   Motegi (JPN)
Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa (Photo: Dorna Communications)
Repsol Honda's Dani Perosa clinched victory for the second year in a row in Honda's backyard in Motegi, with teammate Casey Stoner holding on to take 5th.

It is Dani's fifth win of 2012 - his record in MotoGP, and he also equals his podium record in a single season (13 in 2004). It is another important points haul as he chases down current championship leader Jorge Lorenzo in the fight for the 2012 MotoGP title, with just three rounds now remaining. With Lorenzo leading from pole, the two Spaniards ran away from the rest of the pack. Dani matched Lorenzo lap for lap, not allowing him to pull an advantage, and recorded a new record race lap of 1'45.589 on lap 4. Then on lap 11 Dani made his move and lead the race to the checkered flag, winning by 4.275 seconds and marking a new record race time of 42'31.569. With this victory, Dani maintains his position as the only rider to record victories at Motegi in all three classes.

In his first race back since surgery, 2011 Champion Casey Stoner started from 7th on the grid. He managed to make up two places on the first lap and rode a strong race to finish 5th with his damaged ankle affecting his riding ability.

There is no rest now as the riders and teams pack up and leave Japan immediately, headed for round sixteen in Malaysia next weekend. Dani, 2nd in the Championship with 282, trails Lorenzo by 28 points. Casey lies 3rd in the Championship with 197 points.

DANI PEDROSA 1st World Championship Standing: 2nd with 282 points

"It was a hard race because the pace was very fast from the beginning. I tried to understand the bike, as yesterday we had a lot of chatter so I didn't know how it would be today. In the beginning it wasn't too bad but then it got a little worse during the race. I managed it as best I could and I stayed with Jorge, I was able to get a better line out of the corner and pass him and then I put in some good laps and controlled the gap. Jorge tried to stay with me, but then decided to settle for the second place. We did what we needed to do and it's just a pity that there is no one else who can stay with us because every race I win, he's been second. But anyway, it's a great feeling to win races and we are doing it now. Thanks to Honda and th e whole team, I'm really happy to win again here in Motegi!"

CASEY STONER 5th World Championship Standing: 3rd with 197 points

"I'm a little disappointed to be honest. We slowly improved over the weekend and got the bike to a point we were pretty happy with in warm up. At the start of the race I felt had the pace to stay with Dani and Jorge and the bike was feeling pretty good. Then as the race progressed my body started to suffer and ache in ways I didn't expect. We had the pace to run a lot higher and be on the podium but unfortunately I couldn't manage it physically today. A big thanks to my team, they gave me a fantastic bike today but I couldn't do anymore in my condition."
media_release's avatar

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Media Release

MORE BY THIS AUTHOR
Advertising | Jobs | Feedback | FAQ | Terms of Use | NEW Privacy Policy | Ad Choices | Site Map
Fox Sports | FUEL TV | FX Network | National Geographic | IGN | AskMen
The Motor Sports Authority, SPEED and associated logos are registered trademarks of Speed Channel Inc.
All Rights Reserved © Speed Channel, Inc. 2013

All external links will open in a new browser window. SPEED.com does not endorse external sites.