MotoGP News - Incredible Donington finale lands Dovizioso his first premier class victory
July 26, 2009
The boys of MotoGP did not disappoint today in Germany. The race was a battle among the top four riders in the championship series - and there is no doubt why they are the 4 fastest men on two wheels. With only 28 points seperating first from third in the standings and half a season of racing to go, the claws are coming out.
Casey, Jorge and Rossi each shared the pressure of leading the race today at some point. Rossi led off the start and was eventually overtaken by Stoner, who volleyed the lead back to Vale, only to have Jorge Lorenzo swipe it again. Dani Pedrosa held his ground like a champ and ended up with the third place position over the line. Casey was remanded to fourth.
The last three laps of the race were a balls-out battle between Rossi and Lorenzo which ended in Rossi claiming victory with Jorge only 0.099 seconds behind him - or next to him as it were. It was indeed 30 laps of full-on entertainment.
Nicky Hayden got shut out and swallowed up at the start, backing him up to 13th position at the end of the first lap. He battled his way up to 8th by race end.... with some very impressive riding and aggressive overtakes.... looks like the Nikcy of yore may be on his way back. Yesterday during a wet qualifying session, Nicky suffered a tremendous high side and took Nicola Canepa out from behind.... with body to body contact. If you can find the clip, it's worth watcing. Canepa said later that he had no idea what hit him - I guess not!
Randy De Puniet made a brilliant start, finding himself in 4th position for nearly a whole lap before he duffed it. If you blinked, you missed it... one second he was right there behind Pedrosa, and the next second there was nothing but sparks and parts.... no Randy. Amazingly enough he didn't take anyone out with him.... and everyone else remained on two for the rest of the race. Andrea Dovizioso retired from the race early due to a tire problem.
The drama will continue next weekend in Donington followed by a short summer break. After the first half of the season, these guys will certainly be looking forward to that.... if for no other reason than to heal their wounds.
| 1 | V. Rossi | Yamaha |
| 2 | J. Lorenzo | Yamaha |
| 3 | D. Pedrosa | Honda |
| 4 | C. Stoner | Ducati |
| 5 | A. de Angelis | Honda |
| 6 | T. Elias | Honda |
| 7 | M. Melandri | Kawasaki |
| 8 | N. Hayden | Ducati |
| 9 | C. Edwards | Yamaha |
| 10 | J. Toseland | Yamaha |
| 11 | L. Capirossi | Suzuki |
| 12 | N. Canepa | Ducati |
| 13 | C. Vermeulen | Suzuki |
| 14 | M. Kallio | Ducati |
| 15 | G. Talmacsi | Honda |
Until next time....
Rubb'er Down
Kristen