English
Russian motorcycle news
Brands Persons Miscellaneous

Pedrosa untouchable at Indianapolis

Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa rode to an emphatic win at the Indianapolis Grand Prix today, expertly piloting his Honda RC212V to victory ahead of home hero Ben Spies and championship leader Jorge Lorenzo. His team-mate Andrea Dovizioso was looking strong in second position in the early laps before finally coming home in fifth place at the end of the 28-lap encounter - held in wilting 35 degree heat at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

From fifth on the grid, an on-form Pedrosa was fourth into the first corner and quickly set about dispatching his rivals, starting with Nicky Hayden on lap two and Dovizioso two laps later. With only Ben Spies now ahead, Pedrosa relentlessly closed down the Texan and passed him at the start of lap eight before easing out a comfortable gap of 5.5s - setting the fastest lap of the race on lap 11 and then controlling the race from the front to come home 3.5s clear at the chequered flag.

Today Pedrosa’s only real threat came from the circuit’s vicious bumps, which had caught out some many riders through the weekend, and the concentration-sapping heat, but the 24-year-old Spaniard was equal to the task and recorded his third MotoGP victory of the 2010 season. This third win was also a personal milestone for Pedrosa, who had scored two victories in each of his previous four MotoGP seasons since his debut in 2006. His 34th GP victory in all classes of Grand Prix racing and his 11th in MotoGP closes the gap by nine points to Lorenzo in the World Championship, his countryman’s lead now standing at 68 points with seven races remaining.

“I’m really happy with this win and it was an especially tough one because of the heat today. I didn’t make the perfect start but I was quite quick through the first few tight corners and stayed close to the leaders. My rhythm was good today and even though Spies was strong in front I was able to close him down and make the pass. I’m really pleased with the performance of my bike because it was fast on the straights and also was working well in the corners. When I was out in front it was quite hard to stay focused and at the end of the race I was really tired - but I’m very happy because last year I crashed when I could have won and now I have made up for it. There were many crashes this weekend and it would have been easy to make a mistake in the race - you only need to go a little off line and you can be on the ground immediately, especially towards the end of the race when the tyres are worn. I’ve gone past the barrier of two MotoGP race wins in a season so I’m very happy. We are doing a good job and I hope we can maintain this momentum next weekend at Misano. I want to thank the team and all the people around me for this win" - Dani Pedrosa.

“I'm really happy to have got my best result in MotoGP in front of the American crowd and at a track as famous as Indianapolis. I always said I wanted my best result in my home race, so it's mission accomplished. After the pole position I got a great start and it felt good to be out front for the first time in MotoGP. But I didn't have the pace for Dani today and he rode a great race. I'm happy because I didn't make too many mistakes when I was out in front and I was consistent for the whole race. When Dani passed me I knew I couldn't follow him, so I let him go and concentrated on keeping a gap to Jorge in third and that's what I achieved. I can't complain because it was a great weekend and to be top Yamaha rider when you look at who else is on that bike is pretty satisfying. It hasn't sunk in yet that I've finished second in my home race. But I'll enjoy it before I hop on a plane and try and do it again in Misano next weekend” - Ben Spies.

"Of course I shouldn't be disappointed with third place but at the same time I'm not happy with my race today, I didn't ride as well as I could have and I didn't get a good start. The conditions were incredibly hard and I simply didn't have the physical strength to push as hard or do the same times I did in practice; it was like a race in Malaysia! The track was so slippery and it was very difficult to use the tyres as you wanted to, I think honestly I'm quite lucky to have finished third today. The good thing is we took some points and now I have to concentrate on recovering before Misano because we don't have much time" - Jorge Lorenzo.

"This was a good race for us after the weekend. Fourth is quite good in the circumstances but the important thing is that my rhythm in the race was strong and I felt much happier on the bike. I did some good laps and I wasn't too far from the other Yamahas, but unfortunately I paid a lot for my lack of fitness in this heat and in the end I had to stop pushing because I didn't have any strength left in my body. I'm happy though because we came back to a good setting and with me riding well, and if you consider I had three small crashes in the weekend, fourth isn't so bad. Now we will look forward to Misano, my home race!" - Valentino Rossi.

MotoGP Indianapolis 2010 Results:
1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 47'31.615
2. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 + 3.575
3. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team + 6.812
4. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team + 12.633
5. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team + 21.885
6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team + 35.138
7. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini + 36.740
8. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP + 36.825
9. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Pramac Green Team + 44.905
10. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team + 51.368
11. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP + 55.386
12. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Interwetten-Honda MotoGP + 57.903
13. Randy de Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP + 1'04.139

NOT CLASSIFIED
Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Green Team 10 Lap
Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 12 Lap
Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 21 Lap
Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 26 Lap

Championship Standings:
1. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 251
2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 183
3. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team 126
4. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 119
5. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 114
6. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 110
7. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 109
8. Randy de Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 78
9. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 63
10. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 61
11. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 57
12. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 54
13. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 41
14. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Pramac Green Team 39
15. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 33
16. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Green Team 31
17. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Interwetten-Honda MotoGP 22
18. Alex de Angelis (ITA) Interwetten Honda MotoGP 11
19. Kousuke Akiyoshi (JPN) Interwetten Honda MotoGP 4
20. Wataru Yoshikawa (JPN) Fiat Yamaha Team 1

Add your comment

Name: Code:
 
 
Rambler's Top100