Yamaha Factory Racing rider Jorge Lorenzo wrapped up a season of domination today with second on the podium in the Grand Prix of Australia to claim his second MotoGP World Championship title, becoming Spain’s first ever double premier-class Grand Prix Champion. Starting from second on the grid, Lorenzo took the hole shot from the start line, but dropped to third initially behind Championship rival Dani Pedrosa and race leader Casey Stoner. As the leading pack ran through turn four Pedrosa crashed out, leaving Stoner and Lorenzo to break away. The Championship leader delivered a textbook race of inch perfect laps, maintaining the gap to Cal Crutchlow chasing in third, eventually crossing the line to claim the 2012 MotoGP Rider’s title.
The win puts Lorenzo on 350 points, 43 clear of Pedrosa going into the final round. Over the season The World Champion amassed an impressive six race wins and ten second place finishes to secure the title. He now heads to his home race free from the pressure to win and happy to deliver one last race of the year in front of his home crowd.
Jorge Lorenzo
Position 2nd – Time +9.223
“What a day! I’m very happy, it was easier than I expected because Dani made a mistake in a corner and crashed. I wanted to keep with Casey but he was so strong. Today all I had to do was finish the race and I have become World Champion for the second time. It’s such a sweet feeling! I want to thank all the team, Yamaha, my family, my friends, sponsors and fans who support me. Today is an amazing moment. We’ve been very patient, very concentrated and finally the World title arrives!”
Wilco Zeelenberg – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“It was a very exciting start to the Phillip Island race, we knew we had to beat Dani and of course he knew as well so he pushed really hard in the beginning. In the end it was a bit too hard, but chapeau to him for trying. We knew we had good pace and think we maybe could have beaten him anyway on consistency. From that point Jorge only had to bring it home. He’s had a great season of wins or second places and now the world Championship title!”
Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
“Jorge has really delivered an amazing season for Yamaha and again today we saw his trademark consistency and dedication to deliver second on the podium. From the first race in Qatar his consistency and dedication have been that of a champion so we fully expected he could achieve the best result possible. I want to thank the whole Team who have also been responsible for the success, working as hard as him to make sure he has had a competitive bike to fight with his rivals at each round. It has been a pleasure to watch him ride this year, he is a worthy champion.”
Masahiko Nakajima – General Manager Motorsport Development Division, Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd
“I am very happy to be able to congratulate Jorge Lorenzo for taking his second premier class MotoGP World Championship title with Yamaha whilst still in Phillip Island and with one round remaining.
This would not have been possible without the hard work of the Team, YMC MotoGP Group and all Yamaha Motor Racing staff so I have to thank them all for their efforts.
All of us at Yamaha are proud to have witnessed his performance from the beginning of the season to now, always pushing at the front and fighting to this point to become 2012 World Champion. This season’s results add to his already successful career with Yamaha, I believe we can look forward to more success in Valencia in two weeks time.”
Lin Jarvis – Managing Director, Yamaha Motor Racing
“I congratulate Jorge on his second MotoGP World Championship title with Yamaha. He has been faultless all season. To be able to achieve 1st or 2nd in every race he finished is an extraordinary performance of a dedicated perfectionist and a true champion.
To be able to produce these performances Jorge relies upon the support of a huge network of people. I would like to give my thanks and congratulations to the Yamaha Motor group, all Yamaha Factory Racing Team staff, our technical partners and suppliers, our sponsors, and also to Jorge’s personal staff. Without the efforts of all of these people this fantastic result would not have been possible.
Having won the championship with one race to spare we go to Valencia to try to crown this already excellent season with a race victory in front of his home fans and to enjoy a much deserved celebration all together.”
Crutchlow grabs early birthday present with Phillip Island podium
Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider Cal Crutchlow gave himself the perfect early birthday present when he scorched to a stunning podium finish in this afternoon’s AirAsia Australian Grand Prix. The British rider turns 27 tomorrow (Monday) and he kicked off the celebrations early after a fantastic ride to third position in front of a record crowd of 53,100 fans packed into the spectacular Phillip Island track. After Dani Pedrosa’s early crash out of the lead on the second lap, Crutchlow brilliantly kept Monster Yam aha Tech 3 teammate Andrea Dovizioso, Alvaro Bautista and Stefan Bradl at bay in an exciting early battle for third place.
Eight laps had been completed when Crutchlow commenced a devastating attack that saw him comfortably streak away from the chasing trio. At the end of lap eight he pulled a 1.050s advantage over Dovizioso, but just four laps later his red-hot pace had seen him establish a gap of more than 3.5s.
Crutchlow was still feeling below 100% after being struck down by a nasty bout of bronchitis earlier in the weekend, but he was able to maintain a fast and consistent pace in sunny but cool conditions to bring his YZR-M1 machine in a richly deserved third position.
It was Crutchlow’s second rostrum finish off a fantastic second season in MotoGP and today’s result means he still has an o utside chance of claiming a top five finish in the overall World Championship standings with one round remaining.
With Crutchlow riding off into the distance in third, it was left to Dovizioso to provide the most entertaining battle of the 27-lap race. His pulsating fight with Bautista and Bradl went right down to the wire, with Dovizioso starting the final lap at the tail of the group in sixth.
The Italian’s race craft and experience came to the fore though and in the decisive final moments he was able to pass both Bradl and Bautista to finish fourth. It was the 15th time in 17 races that Dovizioso has finished inside the top five and he heads to the final round in Valencia optimistic that he can end the season with a strong finish.
Cal Crutchlow
Position 3rd – Time +14.570
“I am really happy with this result because it is a great way to finish this period of three races in a row. After the disappointment of running out of fuel while battling for the podium on the last lap in Japan and then crashing in Sepang, I really needed a positive result here and that’s what we’ve got. Considering how ill I’ve felt with the fever and bronchitis, to be back on the podium is a fantastic feeling and we definitely deserved it. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team gave me a great bike all weekend and I was very confident and calm when in front of Andrea, Bautista and Bradl. I knew I could go faster and pull away and once I opened up a comfortable gap, I just stayed relaxed and consistent because I wasn’t going to catch Jorge. Another podium is a great result and we’ve backed up the third in Brno. It’s great too because it is my birthday tomorrow and this is a good way to kick off the celebrations. It was a big thrill to be on the podium here with Casey winning. The fans gave him a great reception and I’m glad I could be part of it. I want to say big congratulations to Yamaha and Jorge too for winning the World Championship. They have done an amazing job and they both deserve this success.”
Andrea Dovizioso
Position 4th – Time +23.303
“I knew that it was going to be a tough race because I didn’t had the same pace as Cal. All I could do was to try during the first laps to get in front of him or to put him under pressure but it was not possible. He was riding very well so I decided the best strategy was not to take too many risks. The battle with Bradl and Bautista was really exciting and I had a lot of fun. I’m sure the fans appreciated it as well because we were pushing and changing places for the whole race. I am satisfied to fi nish in front of the group and it was a strong battle right to the chequered flag. My next race in Valencia is the last for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team, so I go there with high motivation and determination to get a strong result to end our successful relationship in a positive way.”
Hervé Poncharal – Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team Manager
“That was an incredible afternoon because Cal finished on the podium, the local hero won in front of a record crowd and Jorge and Yamaha clinched the World Championship. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team did a really good job. They both made a really strong start and it was impressive to see Cal pull away from the group with Andrea, Bautista and Bradl. His pace was very close to Jorge and after the disappointment of Japan and Malaysia this was a great way to bounce back. Cal was very consistent for the whole race and he never made any mistakes. He maintained his concentration and I think he deserved this result because he kept on pushing all weekend when he was far from his physical best because of the illness. Andrea also had a strong race and it was definitely an epic fight with Bautista and Bradl. The crowd certainly got entertained but Andrea was very smart on the final lap. He showed his experience, cleverness and coolness to pass both of them and fourth place is another incredibly strong result. Today’s stunning race ensured we have secured third position in the Team World Championship and this is an outstanding achievement for a non-factory team. It highlights the incredible job Cal and Andrea have done as well as the great support we get from Yamaha. I also want to congratulate Yamaha and Jorge for the World Championship. Together they really did a fantastic job during the season and I’m delighted to see them win the first 1000cc title.”
2012 MotoGP Australia
Phillip Island 28/10/2012 27 Laps
race I
1 Casey Stoner Honda AUS 41’01.324
2 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 0’09.223
3 Cal Crutchlow Yamaha GBR 0’14.570
4 Andrea Dovizioso Yamaha ITA 0’23.303
5 Alvaro Bautista Honda ESP 0’23.432
6 Stefan Bradl Honda GER 0’23.467
7 Valentino Rossi Ducati ITA 0’37.113
8 Nicky Hayden Ducati USA 0’38.387
9 Karel Abraham Ducati CZE 0’52.613
10 Aleix Espargaro ART ESP 1’00.299
11 Randy De Puniet ART FRA 1’00.342
12 Hector Barbera Ducati ESP 1’21.951
13 Danilo Petrucci Ioda ITA 1’27.857
14 Michele Pirro FTR ITA -1Laps
15 Ivan Silva BQR ESP -1Laps
MotoGP World Standing
Rider Standings After Race 17 of 18
1. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 350
2. Daniel Pedrosa Honda ESP 307
3. Casey Stoner Honda AUS 238
4. Andrea Dovizioso Yamaha ITA 208
5. Alvaro Bautista Honda ESP 165
6. Valentino Rossi Ducati ITA 157
7. Cal Crutchlow Yamaha GBR 151
8. Stefan Bradl Honda GER 135
9. Nicky Hayden Ducati USA 122
10. Ben Spies Yamaha USA 88
11. Hector Barbera Ducati ESP 83
12. Aleix Espargaro ART ESP 69
13. Randy De Puniet ART FRA 58
14. Karel Abraham Ducati CZE 50
15. Michele Pirro FTR ITA 32
16. James Ellison ART GBR 28
24. Katsuyuki Nakasuga Yamaha JPN 7
Circuit Length:
4445
Temp:
15
Crowd:
53000
Weather:
Dry
Lap Record:
1’30.059
(Nicky Hayden, 1/1/2008)
Fastest Lap Ever:
1’28.665
(Casey Stoner, 10/5/2008)
Last Years Winner:
Casey Stoner
Manufacturer Standings
28/10/2012
1 Honda 387
2 Yamaha 366
3 Ducati 183
4 ART 93
5 FTR 32
6 BQR 32
7 Suter 25
8 Ioda 19
10 Kawasaki 2
11 BQR-FTR 2
Team Standings
28/10/2012
1. Repsol Honda Team 562
2. Yamaha Factory Racing MotoGP Team 438
3. Monster Yamaha Tech3 359
4. Ducati Marlboro Team 279
5. San Carlo Honda Gresini 197
6. LCR Honda MotoGP 135
7. Power Electronics Aspar 127
8. Pramac Racing Team 93
9. Cardion AB Motoracing 50
10. Avintia Blusens 41
11. Paul Bird Motorsport 28
12. NGM Mobile Forward Racing 25
13. Came Ioda Racing Project 19
14. Speed Master 13
