Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo continued his recent form by winning his fourth straight MotoGP race at Catalunya earlier today. Lorenzo has now led every lap in each of the last four races. His teammate Valentino Rossi worked his way into second position relatively early in the race, but could not close the gap to Lorenzo and finished second. Honda’s Dani Pedrosa finished third.
Defending champ Marc Marquez (Honda) crashed on the second lap after almost touching Lorenzo’s bike on a corner entry. Marquez is unlikely to defend his championship now that both factory Yamaha riders have a relatively large points lead over him after seven races.
Several other riders crashed out when the very hot track conditions led to grip issues. Lorenzo said after the race that he was on the limit, and sliding quite a bit in his effort to maintain a gap over his teammate.
The Suzuki teammates that qualified so well on a softer rear tire were able to maintain a very competitive race pace. Aleix Espargaro, from pole position, was running fourth near the end of the race when he lost grip and crashed. Maverick Viñales recovered from a very poor start and passed numerous riders before finishing sixth.
Rossi’s championship points lead has now been cut to one point over Lorenzo. For additional details, results and points, visit the official MotoGP site.
| Pos. | Points | Num. | Rider | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time/Gap |
| 1 | 25 | 99 | Jorge LORENZO | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 165.3 | 42’53.208 |
| 2 | 20 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 165.2 | +0.885 |
| 3 | 16 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 164.0 | +19.455 |
| 4 | 13 | 29 | Andrea IANNONE | Ducati Team | Ducati | 163.7 | +24.925 |
| 5 | 11 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 163.5 | +27.782 |
| 6 | 10 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | Suzuki | 163.4 | +29.559 |
| 7 | 9 | 45 | Scott REDDING | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | Honda | 163.0 | +36.424 |
| 8 | 8 | 6 | Stefan BRADL | Athinà Forward Racing | Yamaha Forward | 162.6 | +42.103 |
| 9 | 7 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | Octo Pramac Racing | Ducati | 162.2 | +49.350 |
| 10 | 6 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | Aprilia | 162.0 | +52.569 |
| 11 | 5 | 43 | Jack MILLER | CWM LCR Honda | Honda | 161.9 | +53.666 |
| 12 | 4 | 50 | Eugene LAVERTY | Aspar MotoGP Team | Honda | 161.8 | +55.765 |
| 13 | 3 | 76 | Loris BAZ | Athinà Forward Racing | Yamaha Forward | 161.8 | +55.832 |
| 14 | 2 | 63 | Mike DI MEGLIO | Avintia Racing | Ducati | 161.0 | +1’09.037 |
| 15 | 1 | 15 | Alex DE ANGELIS | E-Motion IodaRacing Team | ART | 160.0 | +1’25.263 |
| 16 | 8 | Hector BARBERA | Avintia Racing | Ducati | 156.1 | 1 Lap |
Dani who???????????? Nothing good ever comes from punting your team mate off the track. The Hayden curse will continue. In the real world Honda would have punted Dani and kept Nicky, and been better off for it.
“In the real world Honda would have punted Dani and kept Nicky, and been better off for it.”
Except that what really happened in the real world is that they punted Nicky and kept Dani. It has served them pretty well, too.
Yea like at Aragon 2013 while battling for the Championship when Pedrosa’s team mate Marquez ran into the back of Pedrosa’s bike cutting his traction control line and putting him out of the race, possibly costing him the Championship (he finished 2nd). But I don’t cry about it and say Marquez “torpedoed” him or “took him out” like the Hayden criers do about Pedrosa, (even though that incident had no bearing on the outcome of the 06 season), I just admit it was a racing incident and things happen on a race track. Bad luck for Dani. It happens.
Indeed, though I have leaned toward being one of those people who holds the diminutive Spaniard responsible for taking out Nicky, his misfortunes in the intervening years have surely more than cost him.
re: “Dani who???????????? Nothing good ever comes from punting your team mate off the track. The Hayden curse will continue.”
this is so old it has to be carbon-12 dated. everybody (yanks included) have moved on. join us won’t you…?
Surely, not that old Norm…Carbon-12 is the stable isotope of the element, so you might just be waiting an eternity for it to decay.
Carbon 14.
Here’s hoping Rossi wins some more.
After the first few races of the year, didn’t anyone tell JL he had the #2 bike in the factory Yamaha garage? I thought he wasn’t allowed to dominate?
JLo got just far enough ahead, by watching in his rear view mirrors, to maintain a lead and score a win.
For those that didn’t like the race or it’s outcome, It is what it is, fortunes in racing are up to fate.
Lorenzo did what he does best, Rossi tried but too little too late. Marquez must be sleeping poorly these days wondering what the heck is going on. Suzuki riders are wondering what if, and the Ducati riders must be thinking, feast or famine.
Good to see Danis arm is better and he is back on the podium.
Were it not for attrition Dani doesn’t get a sniff at the podium. He should send giftbaskets to Mark and Dovi signed, “Thanks, guys!
Your little pal,
Chihuahua”
And as you like to remind me (from the 06 season) , it’s not always the fastest or most qualified that ends up on the steps, even the top one.
Someone would have gone broke sending out thank you baskets that year.
The difference is, one was combined with enough season-long excellence that it led to a world title. The other? It led to yet another invisible third-place that no one will ever remember, amid a wildly privileged career that nevertheless lacked even a sniff of the top-tier title. Even when Dani finished second in the points, he was never a serious threat to win the championship.
Mick had a koala bear. Scott Russell had a screaming chief. Kevin had a huge star and a Texas flag.
Dani’s helmet should sport the Taco Bell dog dressed up in caddie gear.
The real difference is one just got a whole lot luckier than the other one.
One more podium and Pedro moves into the number 2 spot for podiums in MotoGP (all time), behind Rossi and ahead of Mick Doohan.
Somehow I doubt Mick will lose any sleep from fretting over his place in history, vis a vis Dani Pedrosa.
Besides, check their winning percentages. Dani has many more starts and fewer than half the wins. Dani is the Don Sutton of MotoGP.
To be fair Pedrosa has won 3 World Championships to Hayden’s 1.
And where was Mr Hayden Sunday? Oh yea, running off the track and crashing while battling with Barbera and DeAngelis for 18 th place. Such a fall from grace.
Hayden has the equivalent of a Super Bowl/World Series/Olympic Gold/World Cup/Heavyweight Championship title. That’s what happened when he was on truly equal machinery with Dani. Pedrosa won his championships in the minor leagues. Despite having the best bike in the MotoGP paddock for a decade now, all he’s done is cautiously ride the thing well below its capabilities to a series of runner-up finishes, or worse.
Well that we agree on, which is why I don’t watch Moto 2 or Moto3. It’s like watching college football or college basketball or minor league baseball. When I watch sports I want to watch the best of the best on the best equipment. When you watch how many champs from the junior leagues moved up to get absolutely chewed up by the truly gifted you realize how coveted a MotoGP WIN is, much less a World Championship.
It doesn’t take gonads to root for Dani, just an appreciation for the gift he has for riding a beast like a MotoGP missle as well as he does. I’m a fan of all of them, even the guys who finish 18 th for they have talent I can only dream of having
When you watch Moto2 and 3, you get to see the man win more than his machine. The sad truth is that unless you have a Repsol Honda or a full factory Yamaha, you cannot win, you’re just drawing a check to be part of the show.
Haha. I love it when you two get into this.
Yea me too. It’s fun. I hope VLJ knows I mean no ill will. Just sitting here smiling and typing retorts . Great entertainment for an old retired guy.
Ditto. mickey is far and away my favorite guy here. And, hey, I have to admit, it takes serious balls to back Dani Pedrosa. Kudos to mickey for continuing to fight the good fight! 🙂
Thank you VLJ, you and Jeremy are at the top of my list as well. Always put up well thought out answers and questions with no venom, and often give me things to ponder. I like that. Pondering is important, making one question their own stances without being defensive, put down or put upon. Very gentlemanly of you.
Now what Rossi needs is a couple of wet tracks.
His ability to cope with rain and wet tracks is astounding. Even on a slow bike he is faster than anyone else on a wet track.
The confidence that he rides with is way beyond other riders. It
I’m not convinced of that.
What Rossi needs and which he himself re-iterates every race, is a better qualifying position. At minimum he needs to stay off the third row.
2nd row behind the best starter is often as good or better than being in the wrong place on the front row. Follow the rabbit into the hole and stay on his tail until the pack clears out.
May I suggest all members of MM’s team hold up three fingers (one for each DNF this year), with the same smiles as last year? Congratulations!
Here… the price to the most burning comment for this post (trophy depicts a piece of ice on fourth-degree burn skin)
re: “May I suggest all members of MM’s team hold up three fingers (one for each DNF this year), with the same smiles as last year”
LoL, but it’s fairplay, i think we’re going to have to allow it.
Interesting to think that over the distance, VR46 ran a faster race than JL99. By the end of the first lap, Jorge was a few seconds ahead of Rossi, which Rossi had to work hard to make up. If only Rossi could figure out a way to qualify within a spot or two of the race front runners he would have a better chance at a good start and have the option to at least stay with Lorenzo and possibly dice for the win. I think all fans of Valention’s would love to see him qualify better.
Of course Lorenzo fans are delighted that Rossi is qualifying and starting so poorly. At this point it really looks like a battle between the Yamaha teammates but there are still a lot of races left. Great season so far.
Anyone see why Hayden had a a DNF?
“Interesting to think that over the distance, VR46 ran a faster race than JL99. By the end of the first lap, Jorge was a few seconds ahead of Rossi, which Rossi had to work hard to make up. If only Rossi could figure out a way to qualify within a spot or two of the race front runners he would have a better chance at a good start and have the option to at least stay with Lorenzo and possibly dice for the win. I think all fans of Valention’s would love to see him qualify better.”
It truly is maddening. How can a guy who is faster than nearly everyone every race always manage to get out-qualified by five or six mid-pack riders? It’s not just the bike or the tires, either, or Jorge would be having the same issues during qualifying.
Whatever the problem is, Rossi had better correct it very soon or it’s going to cost him the championship.
re:”How can a guy who is faster than nearly everyone every race always manage to get out-qualified by five or six mid-pack riders? It’s not just the bike or the tires, either, or Jorge would be having the same issues”
crewchief then…?
maybe all those ingrateful turncoats who ragged on JB (only the greatest to ever spin a wrench) need to start pointing fingers at their boy Yambusera.
JB will write a book one day and it will be pretty good.
You are spot on. The qualifying position of Lorenzo is why he gets in front early and wins. Clearly if someone can get out front and spoil 99’s lines he can’t run that high corner speed longer arc style of his. He and the Yamaha love that style of riding. Is it the fastest way around the track? It is when he is out front. But Rossi showed us yesterday that the hybrid of getting the bike upright earlier and accelerating faster out of the corner closes the gap. I was hoping MM would get inside of 99 for a few laps to spoil his rhythm and allow Rossi to get into a 3 way battle. It has been a great season of racing. Can’t wait to see what happens at Assen. Rossi has to get better qualifying if he wants to hold his lead in the championship points.
Exactly, when he gets out front early he generally wins. I don’t recall him winning the last season and a half when he didn’t get an early lead. Nobody works an empty track in front of him like Lorenzo. It’s a thing of beauty, his riding is just so smooth. He also has a knack for fast starts. I would love to see Rossi get a great start and really challenge him. Several years ago, Lorenzo more than held his own in those situations against Rossi but, subjectively at least, I feel like maybe Lorenzo has lost that taste for mixing it up in close quarters, lap after lap. I’ve seen articles saying that the older a person gets the less tolerance of fear they have. Rossi seems to be the one major exception to that rule.
Hayden crashed-out halfway through. 2006 was a loooong time ago.
Indeed. I sincerely hope he moves to World Superbike and achieves a triple crown before he’s too old or disheartened by motorcycle racing in general.
Regarding the Suzukis, that’s the difference between super-soft qualifying tires (which the factory Yamahas and Hondas can’t use) and tires that need to go race distance. Ever notice how Marquez rarely mentions the Ducatis or Suzukis as the main threats come race day? He knows they can’t do those same times in the race.
They were fast late in practice sessions and aside from their terrible starts, both were fast over race distance. It’s amazing what they’ve accomplished in the short time since they began is amazing. They are more competitive than when they were years along with their last effort.
No kidding! Where is their knowhow coming from? It’s company that is, or at least recently was, virtually bankrupt. Amazing! With EBR gone, Suzuki just earned the support of all the world’s underdog supporting fans of against-all-odds scrappiness.
Suzuki Japan was never bankrupt, their US branch was, which has zero to do with Moto GP racing.
re: “It’s amazing what they’ve accomplished in the short time since they began is amazing.”
not that amazing. to their credit they did spend 2-3 years focused on R&D, so they’re EXACTLY where they should be for being a major OEM and the inventors of the legendary “GSXR” brand. but remember, they’d have none of this if they didn’t take a further step back (like i told them) and sort that bloody reliability.
Marquez would be smart to be looking out for the Ducati’s, Dovi has already beaten him multiple times this year.
WTF, Suzuki? Ditto, Ducati. Boring race.
If you thought that race was boring, MotoGP just isn’t for you.
Thanks for the advice, Dave. The past few races were actually interesting and competitive. This one was not. I think I’ll continue to tune in with hopes that it becomes more competitive.
So I think I’ll ignore your advice.
I suspect that happens to you a lot.
Watch Moto 3 & Moto 2, then Moto GP will help you settle down.
I thought it was a dull race too, and MotoGP is definitely for me. Marquez’s crash was really the only one that happened in a fury while attempting to stay on Lorenzo. The other crashes were riders just taking themselves out, and there were no great battles for podium positions. Or for any positions for the most part.
The race for 7th was exciting for awhile… and who wasn’t sitting there watching saying C’mon Rossi, C’mon?
I am just glad for Moto3. I actually save that race for last now. Moto3 is a tough act to follow.
Re: “and there were no great battles for podium positions. Or for any positions for the most part.”
I wasn’t going to get up and leave with 8 laps to go. While JL and VR weren’t swapping paint, they were definitely battling, no?
“While JL and VR weren’t swapping paint, they were definitely battling, no?”
That was a race but not a battle.
I guess I don’t see that much of a difference. Two great riders essentially playing “traction-chicken” for several laps. I thought either one could tuck the front at any time. I found it very suspenseful. That’s rare at the end of these races.
“Traction-chicken”…..Hmmmm, I like that description!!
Still beats F1 by miles.
You should try a NASCAR yellow flag, now that’ll get your ticker pounding.
Where are da Suzukis that qualified so well?
One decided he’d rather be playing in the grass with last year’s champ…..
The other one finished just 10 seconds off the pace of the top non-Yamaha finisher.
Lorenzo is just wicked this year. Him and that geezer are just absolutely killing it!
No matter how many times I see this movie, I never like it.