MotoGP

Rd.11 08/29 Indianapolis GP

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RACE DATA

Round: 11- Indianapolis(Classification after 28 laps = 118.048 km)
Circuit: Indianapolis, U.S.
Date: 29 August 2010
Circuit Length: 4.216 km
Practice condition: Dry
Air: 35 C
Ground: 56 C
PP: B. Spies(1'40.105/Yamaha)
FL: D. Pedrosa(1'40.896/Honda)

REPORT

Third and fourth for Fiat Yamaha in intense Indianapolis heat

Rookie Tech 3 rider Ben Spies took a superb second at Indianapolis today, whilst Jorge Lorenzo finished third and Fiat Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi fourth, in a punishingly hot race won by Dani Pedrosa. Some 63,000 fans packed into the world famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway and cheered on home-hero Spies to his best result yet.

It was in beautiful sunshine that the MotoGP paddock returned for a third year in Indianapolis, the second US stop of the season after Laguna Seca. Lorenzo made his usual strong start and finished the first practice just two tenths off Stoner in second. Rossi was disappointed to find he was struggling for grip and finished fifth, with Edwards close behind him in sixth and Spies, who it was confirmed will move up to the Factory Team next year, was eighth.

Another hot day in Indiana on Saturday brought about tricky conditions on the bumpy asphalt for qualifying, with surface temperatures in excess of 50 degrees during the session. Despite the hindrance Lorenzo looked in fine fettle and as the minutes ticked down he abandoned race set-up to concentrate on qualifying times, being rewarded soon after with provisional pole. However Spies had other ideas today and the Texan edged Lorenzo into second by two tenths. The Championship leader was left sandwiched by two Americans when Nicky Hayden qualified third.

Rossi suffered a torrid day on track, unable to find a comfortable set-up and hitting the gravel in the morning's free practice session, in which he finished ninth. Some major set-up changes before qualifying left him and the team hopeful of improvement in the afternoon and his race pace was considerably better, although he still lacked some grip. Inside the final minutes and with a softer Bridgestone tyre fitted he was ready to push for a fast time but he lost the front when he hit a bump on the track and slid out for the second time today, with not enough time left in the session to go out again on his second bike. The Italian was relieved to discover he was not further down than seventh and he was still hopeful that he could charge through the field come race day.

Meanwhile Spies thrilled his home crowd with a startling performance at the historic 4.216km circuit, topping the timesheets with an incredible late attack to claim his maiden pole position, the first for the Tech 3 squad since the China Grand Prix in 2008 .He  had spent most of the qualifying session concentrating on a crucial race set-up but as the field switched to the softer compound Bridgestone rear  he was in devastating form and always looked like challenging for a second successive front row start. But in the final minutes he produced an immaculate lap of 1.40.105 to beat Lorenzo into second and taking a thrilling first pole. Edwards was quick on race tyres but couldn't translate it to qualifying pace on the softer tyre and was left ninth.

Race day was even hotter and Spies, running a special US GP livery on his M1, was starting from pole for the first time and the American led for the first six laps to the delight of the partisan crowd. On the seventh lap a thundering Dani Pedrasa passed him, the Spaniard's pace seemingly unmatchable, but Spies did brilliantly to keep pushing and stay ahead of the rest of the crowd. He was unchallenged to the finish and took his second podium finish of the season to stand alongside Lorenzo, with whom he will share a garage next year when he joins the Factory Team.

Lorenzo meanwhile had dropped three places on his grid position at the start and finished the first lap in fifth with his team-mate close behind. On lap three of 28 the championship leader made it past home favourite Nicky Hayden and he set off in pursuit of Andrea Dovizioso, arriving within striking distance by the eighth lap. The Italian did not make it easy for Lorenzo however and it took the Mallorcan several more laps to pass him, which he did on the brakes into turn one on lap 12. By that time Spies was too far ahead for Lorenzo to make much headway on second place so he settled for third and 16 points to add to his already hefty season tally.

Rossi had jumped from seventh to fifth at the start and looked more comfortable on the bike than he had all weekend, during which he had struggled for grip and rhythm. On the fourth lap he overtook Hayden and settled in fifth, a few tenths off the Lorenzo-Dovizioso battle. Once Lorenzo was past Dovisioso the World Champion too began to close down his compatriot and with eight laps remaining he passed him for fourth place. By then however his lack of fitness following his injury had caught up with him in the searing heat and he was unable to push any more, coming home some six seconds behind his team-mate.

Spies' Tech 3 team-mate Colin Edwards had a terrible day, plagued by a tyre issue and coming in for a change when dead last half way through the race. He restarted but a few laps later things were no better and he eventually retired, a huge disappointment for the Texan at his home race.

Lorenzo continues to sit comfortably at the top of the standings, with a 68-point lead over Pedrosa. Rossi remains fifth but has moved to within five points of Casey Stoner and fourth. Spies climbs to sixth and is just four points off Rossi, whilst Edwards remains 11th. The MotoGP paddock now has just a few days rest before it reconvenes at Misano in Italy for round 12 of the World Championship.

RESULT

RIDERS RANKING

CONSTRUCTORS RANKING

COMMENT

Jorge Lorenzo (Position: 3rd   Time: +6.812 )

"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."

Wilco Zeelenberg, Team Manager

"These were terribly hard conditions for the riders and considering this we have to be very happy with third. It was so hot and so easy to make a mistake so before the race we told Jorge to just try to bring it home on two wheels! Unfortunately he had a bad start which didn't help because he then had a hard task to get past Dovizioso, but considering the conditions and the championship we're just as happy with this as with one of our seven wins."

Valentino Rossi (Position: 4th   Time: +12.633 )

"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!"

Davide Brivio, Team Manager

"This was a really positive race for us and Valentino showed us that he could keep the pace of the front runners. Unfortunately he's still not in peak condition after his accident and with the heat he wasn't strong enough to keep the same pace for the whole race, but he fought at the top end, stayed close and showed us that he's okay. It gives us confidence for our overall set-up and our package for the next races. We came out well from a difficult weekend so well done to everyone."

Ben Spies (Position: 2nd Time: +3.575)

"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."

Colin Edwards (Position:DNF)

"I went for the hard tyre because I'd done a 41.6 on that tyre on Friday and felt pretty comfortable and confident. I'd not been able to make the soft tyre last close to race distance. I'd started to have a problem after eight or nine laps with it, so with the temperature and humidity coming up I was getting excit ed about using the hard tyre. But I had a problem with edge grip from the start and I was having an issue turning. I was riding on the limit but way off the pace so I pulled in for the softer tyre and did a few laps and my lap times were immediately better. The tyre choice cost me today but congratulations to Ben. He's just riding at an amazing level and second in this field is something to be proud of."

Herve Poncharal, Team Manager

"That was a fantastic weekend from Ben and he delivered an unbelievable performance for the American fans. We could not have hoped for more and he showed why we are so sad to see him leaving us to join Yamaha's factory team next season. But I'm happy for him though because clearly with the factory team he will be with the top four. His pole position yesterday was incredible when you consider how tough it is to achieve that against such a h igh level of competition. He got an incredible start and he was very strong at the beginning of the race. Only Dani could match him and pass him but Ben rode immaculately and it never looked like Jorge was going to catch him. It wasn't the race Colin was expecting and unfortunately his decision to run the hard tyre didn't pay off. Conditions were very demanding but it was clear when he switched to the softer tyre that he had the pace to have scored possibly his best result of the season."