Jorge Lorenzo has now won four races in a row and seems to be unstoppable!
MotoGP Catalunya Race Report
This weekend saw Jorge Lorenzo prove, once and for all, that he’s got what it takes to win the MotoGP 2015. Coming first place in Catalunya gives him four consecutive race wins, the first time he’s achieved this feat in his career. Lorenzo has not only broken his own personal record, but has broken the great Casey Stoner’s record, for the most laps led consecutively in a race. He has beaten Stoner’s 83 and upped the total to 103, showing that he is right up there with the top MotoGP racers of all time.
Yamaha are having an excellent year with so much to celebrate, but the battle for the title of MotoGP champion is raging on within their own team. It’s shaping up to be a Mediterranean face-off, and the only question now is: Can Valentino Rossi be knocked off the top of the table? It’s looking more and more likely (unfortunately for Rossi fans), with only 1 point separating the two championship contenders. It’s so tense, we can’t even stand it!
Lorenzo must be ecstatic, but he’s keeping a cool head and is watching his back for the Doctor. He said: “To be honest, the last ten laps of today‘s race were probably one of the most hard and intense laps of my career. Valentino was very fast and knowing that the track was really hot and there was less grip than yesterday, I‘m happy with the results.”
Rossi returned to his natural habitat (the podium) in 2nd place, with only a 0.885 second gap between him and his teammate. He said: “I am happy as I had a good pace, good setting, my speed is equal in the race today to Jorge, that is a good target. After seven races, we have one point difference and a similar pace, so it will be interesting I think!”
The Doctor will have to bring all his skill and experience to win this championship battle and claim a coveted 10th championship title. He needs all the points he can get in the Netherlands on June 27th, with only 11 races to go. Valentino Rossi will have to break with tradition, and focus on his qualifying position, to ensure that he finally cools Lorenzo’s jet-fuelled performance.
Unfortunately for Honda, Marc Marquez crashed out – again – after only three laps. Let’s face it, Marquez’s dream of holding on to his crown are just that – dreams. His unquenchable thirst for victory did not work in his favour this weekend, as he made a braking mistake whilst stuck to Lorenzo’s back wheel. Despite stands full of cheering home fans, Marquez pushed too hard and paid the price.
The recklessness which Marquez shows under pressure, born out of a true passion for the competition, is something which even he is beginning to acknowledge. He said: “I tried to give 100% at my home race but I made a mistake trying to push too much, as I wanted to do well – at all costs – and these things can happen.” Marquez will hopefully have learned his lesson this year, and we hope he comes back with a cooler head and shows us what he’s really made of.
Marquez’s crash left room for his teammate, Dani Pedrosa, who is back on form in third place after a career-threatening arm pump injury. His extra effort was enough to secure him a victory in front of the home crowd, and he returned to the podium for the first time this season.
Pedrosa was delirious about securing this result after so many struggles: “I am very happy because it has been a very long process, we struggle a lot and suffer a lot in the last months, everything looked against me…But finally some good results, especially in front of the home crowd was great.” Hopefully, Pedrosa will just get better and better now he’s firmly back in the running.
One of our best British riders, Cal Crutchlow, has seen his luck go from bad to worse this weekend. He was out of the race in the first lap, after a bump from Aleix Espargaro. This is the third round that Crutchlow has failed to finish the race in a row, and that’s a pretty miserable record.
After coming off the bike this time, Crutchlow did a Marquez and tried to get back on. Unfortunately, the rear brake was gone, and he decided not to take the risk and continue. We can’t express his disappointment any better than in his own words: “I’m angry, because it was the first lap of the race and disappointed about the result because I am sure that we had a chance of the podium.” He’ll get another chance to prove himself in the Netherlands, but he may not make it back to the podium this season.
The other Brits did us proud in Catalunya, with Scott Redding coming in 7th for Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS. Bradley Smith did even better, placing as the top Brit and the top satellite rider in 5th. That’s the second time he’s achieved this feat this season, putting him only one point behind Marc Marquez in the overall championship standings.
These are dizzy heights for Smith, but he isn’t letting it go to his head. He said: “In all honesty, the pace was slow but it was the best that I could do and in the end, consistency is key as this result was great for the championship. Now I am just one point behind Marc and 21 ahead of Cal for the satellite bike battle which is strong from my point of view.” If Crutchlow doesn’t recover, Smith may well end up winning that battle.
Is Jorge Lorenzo man or machine? Can the Doctor stop the unstoppable?
So many questions, so much drama! If you need to let out some tension, or tell us we’re right/wrong/bonkers, get in touch with us by leaving a comment below! Don’t be shy – we’d love to know what you think.
Look back on the season so far
We’ve been reporting the whole season of MotoGP 2015, right here on the Two Wheel Centre blog. Check out our other race reports for Italy, France, Spain, Argentina, The Americas and Qatar. Keep everything crossed for your favourites. We’ll be back to report on MotoGP Netherlands very soon.
Photo courtesy of www.motogp.com
