MotoGP Indianapolis: Second victory of 2012 for Dani Pedrosa, Lorenzo and Dovizioso on the podium

Dani Pedrosa dominated the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix, the eleventh stage of the 2012 world championship. The Repsol Honda Team rider, after having achieved pole position, won the Grand Prix ahead of world championship leader Jorge Lorenzo on a Yamaha YZR-M1 and our Andrea Dovizioso (fifth podium of the year), who won the duel with the stoic Casey Stoner and who finished fourth despite the serious problem with his right ankle injured yesterday in qualifying. This is the Spaniard's second success of 2012 after the one at the Sachsenring (the seventeenth in MotoGP) and which allows him to reduce the deficit over the Majorcan to 18 points. Ben Spies was also having a great race but saw his dreams fade away when the engine of his M1 abandoned him. Yet another problem for the Texan who doesn't have a problem this year. Finishing at the foot of the podium are the aforementioned Stoner and the Honda RC213Vs of Alvaro Bautista and Stefan Bradl. Yet another race to forget for Rossi, seventh but a lifetime behind (almost a minute from the top).

Race report

Everything is ready for the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix, the eleventh stage of the 2012 MotoGP class world championship which will be held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, famous for the Brickyard which still crosses the straight of the circuit famous for the 500 miles. On pole position we find Dani Pedrosa with the Honda of the Repsol Honda Team. The Spaniard, winner at the Sachsenring, will be joined by his compatriot from Yamaha and world leader Jorge Lorenzo and by our Andrea Dovizioso on the Yamaha SAT of Team Tech 3. Valentino Rossi is only on the fourth row with the eleventh time, while his team-mate Nicky Hayden will not take part in the race (as will Barberà) after yesterday's bad high-side, where in addition to a concussion he had suffered two small non-displaced fractures to the second and third metacarpals of his right hand. Casey Stoner, who also crashed heavily and had suffered microfractures in his ankle and damaged ligaments in his right ankle, will instead take part in the race after testing in the warm up. All lined up, twenty-eight laps to go. The traffic lights go out, poleman Dani Pedrosa gets off to a good start, ahead of Spies, Dovizioso, Lorenzo, Bradl, Bautista, Crutchlow, Stoner and Valentino Rossi.

Spies immediately takes the lead while Mattia Pasini's race ends immediately, having fallen without physical consequences. The first lap ends, Spies leads the race ahead of Pedrosa, Dovizioso, Lorenzo, Bradl, Bautista, Stoner, Crutchlow and Rossi. Meanwhile, Danilo Petrucci retires while on the 2nd lap Lorenzo passes Dovizioso taking third place. Michele Pirro also withdraws due to a problem with his FTR Honda, all Italians with CRTs out!

Meanwhile, Stoner passes Bautista to sixth position while in front Pedrosa takes the lead of the race. Lorenzo recovers a little while yet another problem for Ben Spies! The American breaks the engine of his Yamaha YZR-M1, the bad luck continues for the 2009 Superbike champion who isn't doing well this year! Meanwhile, Cal Crutchlow, who was seventh and ahead of Valentino Rossi, falls.

At the front, Pedrosa pulls ahead of Lorenzo, his lead is now more than two seconds, while Stoner passes Dovizioso to move into third position. A surprising result so far for the stoic Australian driver who we remember has a damaged right ankle (micro fractures and ligament damage) after yesterday's very bad high-side which had put his participation in the Grand Prix in serious doubt.

Behind, Rossi is already 29 seconds behind the first and 15 behind Stefan Bradl, sixth on the RC213V of Team LCR. Another weekend to forget for the nine-time world champion who at this point will be seriously thinking about the future, a future that is called Yamaha. This adventure with Ducati never went the way they both wanted and perhaps at this point the division of their paths can only be good for both of them. Meanwhile there is yet another withdrawal of a CRT, this time it's Randy de Puniet's turn to surrender with the ART of Team Power Electronics Aspar.

Halfway through the race, a wild Pedrosa set the fastest lap in 1'39"088, bringing his lead over Jorge Lorenzo to over four seconds. Stoner is still third and has an advantage over Dovizioso of around eight tenths. Behind them the two Honda RC213V SATs of Alvaro Bautista and Stefan Bradl and Valentino Rossi, seventh and ahead of the sole CRTs of Yonny Hernandez (BQR Team Blusens Avintia) and Aleix Espargarò (ART Team Aspar).

The fight between Casey Stoner, Andrea Dovizioso and Alvaro Bautista was good, fighting for the podium. The physical strength of the Australian could favor the two pursuers who could achieve a highly prestigious result.
With nine laps to go the first two positions seem to be firmly in the hands of Pedrosa and Lorenzo, while behind it there is a fight between Stoner and Dovizioso with the Forlì man managing to pass the Australian. However, the two-time world champion does not give up and will fight until the end.

Last km of the race, Dani Pedrosa goes on to win his second race of 2012, the seventeenth in the MotoGP, reducing the gap to 18 points from his compatriot Jorge Lorenzo who finishes second ahead of Dovizioso who is still on the podium with the Yamaha SAT. A stoic Stoner instead finishes fourth ahead of Bautista and Bradl.