2012 MotoGP Championship
Spoiler Alert: 2012 MotoGP Championship results from Mugello, Italy, listed below
The 2012 MotoGP Championship wrapped up its third consecutive week of racing Sunday at Mugello, Italy.
And for the fifth time this season, Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo was first to take the checkered flag on his YZR-M1. Joining Lorenzo on the podium at the 3.259-mile circuit containing 15 turns was Respol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa and Monster Tech 3 Yamaha’s Andrea Dovizioso.
Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing YZR-M1 MotoGP) says: “From the beginning I felt great on this track, the asphalt was completely different to Sachsenring which was a nightmare for us. From the first practice here I felt very strong, very good on the bike and a fast constant pace.
“It was a pity that we had the problem in the last lap of qualifying but the important thing was the race. Today I was hammering a lot to open a gap at the beginning of the race as I thought my competitors would have problems on cold tires. Unfortunately I couldn’t do it immediately. Only hammering every lap and going faster and faster from 1’48.1 then into the 47s could I open a bit to Pedrosa then little by little it got better and I could start to breathe. It’s been a great win for the whole team’s efforts and for Yamaha who have given me such a good bike.”
Pedrosa got his usual great start, getting out front of the 20-rider field (minus Cardion AB Racing Ducati’s Karel Abraham, injury) first. But within a few second, Lorenzo, who started from the pole, took over the lead, and immediately began pulling away for Pedrosa.
Dovizioso then got pass Pedrosa, as Ducati Team’s Nicky Hayden began battling with LCR Honda’s Stefan Bradl. The reigning MotoGP Champion, Casey Stoner, didn’t get a great start aboard the Repsol Honda RC213V, but began pushing ahead, eventually passing Pramac Racing Ducati’s Hector Barbera for sixth. Meanwhile behind, San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Michele Pirro was black flagged due to a cutting the track as he was heading back into pit lane with a technical issue.
By the second lap, Pedrosa found himself in an intense battle with Dovi. Behind, Ducati Team’s Valentino Rossi, who started the race from the 10th position, found himself in seventh, pleasing his home crowd as he battled with Monster Tech 3 Yamaha’s Cal Crutchlow.
With 15 laps to go, Stoner’s special-compound Bridgestone tres had come up to temperature, and the Australian managed to push his way past Hayden into fifth. A lap later Bradl put in a brave move on Dovizioso in turn one to slot into third. This was followed up by big drama as Stoner ran off track into the gravel, managing to keep the bike upright and re-joining in tenth.
Meanwhile behind, Avintia Blusens’ Yonny Hernandez crashed out of 18th place, but managed to walk away unhurt. NGM Mobile Forward Racing’s Colin Edwards also had his race cut short as he retired with a mechanical issue.
With eight laps remaining the grid had spread out, yet Crutchlow was still dicing with Rossi. A lap later Stoner had caught up to the back of San Carlo’s Álvaro Bautista, and put in an aggressive move, pushing the Spaniard wide and moving up into ninth.
The final three laps promised further excitement as Dovizioso went past Bradl on the brakes into third, while Hayden, and the pursuing duo of Rossi and Crutchlow closed in on the podium battle. In the final lap Hayden made his way past Bradl, who fought back with a hard move, which pushed the American wide. This let Rossi through into fifth, with Crutchlow also taking advantage to nip into sixth.
Yet ultimately it was Lorenzo who took the checkered flag for his second successive victory, 5.223 seconds ahead of Pedrosa and Dovizioso, who recoded his fourth podium of the season. Bradl was however one of the happiest riders, as he recorded his best ever finish in the premier class.
Fifth went to Rossi, his best dry finish on the Ducati GP12, the Italian followed by Crutchlow, Hayden, Stoner, Barberá, Bautista and Yamaha’s Ben Spies, who was suffering from food poisoning. Top CRT spot went to De Puniet in 12th.
With his win, Lorenzo now has 185 points, 19 clear of Pedrosa in second. In third with 148 points is Stoner.
The 2012 MotoGP Championship now takes a week break before heading to the United States for the Red Bull Grand Prix at Laguna Seca, Calif.
2012 Mugello MotoGP Results:
| Pos. | Points | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 25 | 99 | Jorge LORENZO | SPA | Yamaha Factory Racing | Yamaha | 173.9 | 41’37.477 |
| 2. | 20 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 173.5 | +5.223 |
| 3. | 16 | 4 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 173.2 | +10.665 |
| 4. | 13 | 6 | Stefan BRADL | GER | LCR Honda MotoGP | Honda | 173.1 | +10.711 |
| 5. | 11 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 173.1 | +11.695 |
| 6. | 10 | 35 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | GBR | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 173.1 | +12.060 |
| 7. | 9 | 69 | Nicky HAYDEN | USA | Ducati Team | Ducati | 173.0 | +12.235 |
| 8. | 8 | 1 | Casey STONER | AUS | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 171.8 | +30.617 |
| 9. | 7 | 8 | Hector BARBERA | SPA | Pramac Racing Team | Ducati | 171.7 | +31.728 |
| 10. | 6 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | SPA | San Carlo Honda Gresini | Honda | 171.5 | +34.589 |
| 11. | 5 | 11 | Ben SPIES | USA | Yamaha Factory Racing | Yamaha | 170.0 | +57.862 |
| 12. | 4 | 14 | Randy DE PUNIET | FRA | Power Electronics Aspar | ART | 169.8 | +59.963 |
| 13. | 3 | 41 | Aleix ESPARGARO | SPA | Power Electronics Aspar | ART | 169.1 | +1’11.200 |
| 14. | 2 | 77 | James ELLISON | GBR | Paul Bird Motorsport | ART | 169.1 | +1’11.458 |
| 15. | 1 | 54 | Mattia PASINI | ITA | Speed Master | ART | 169.0 | +1’11.828 |
| 16. | 22 | Ivan SILVA | SPA | Avintia Blusens | BQR | 164.7 | 1 Lap | |
| Not Classified | ||||||||
| 5 | Colin EDWARDS | USA | NGM Mobile Forward Racing | Suter | 160.4 | 13 Laps | ||
| 68 | Yonny HERNANDEZ | COL | Avintia Blusens | BQR | 167.9 | 14 Laps | ||
| 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | ITA | Came IodaRacing Project | Ioda | 164.4 | 20 Laps | ||
| Excluded | ||||||||
| 51 | Michele PIRRO | ITA | San Carlo Honda Gresini | FTR | 0 Lap | |||
2012 MotoGP Championship Point Standings (after nine of 18 rounds):
| Pos. | Rider | Bike | Nation | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Jorge LORENZO | Yamaha | SPA | 185 |
| 2. | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | SPA | 166 |
| 3. | Casey STONER | Honda | AUS | 148 |
| 4. | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | Yamaha | ITA | 108 |
| 5. | Cal CRUTCHLOW | Yamaha | GBR | 95 |
| 6. | Valentino ROSSI | Ducati | ITA | 82 |
| 7. | Stefan BRADL | Honda | GER | 75 |
| 8. | Nicky HAYDEN | Ducati | USA | 74 |
| 9. | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Honda | SPA | 73 |
| 10. | Ben SPIES | Yamaha | USA | 66 |
| 11. | Hector BARBERA | Ducati | SPA | 60 |
| 12. | Randy DE PUNIET | ART | FRA | 28 |
| 13. | Aleix ESPARGARO | ART | SPA | 26 |
| 14. | Michele PIRRO | FTR | ITA | 16 |
| 15. | Mattia PASINI | ART | ITA | 13 |
| 16. | James ELLISON | ART | GBR | 12 |
| 17. | Danilo PETRUCCI | Ioda | ITA | 9 |
| 18. | Colin EDWARDS | Suter | USA | 8 |
| 19. | Yonny HERNANDEZ | BQR | COL | 6 |
| 20. | Ivan SILVA | BQR | SPA | 5 |
| 21. | Karel ABRAHAM | Ducati | CZE | 4 |
