Round twelve on the MotoGP World Championship sees the series return to Europe after two races in the United States. This time, they are in Brno, Czech Republic at the Masaryk circuit in Brno after two consecutive races in the United States. Actually, the name of the track used to be Masarykuv Okruh).
Jorge Lorenzo and Dany Pedrosa are the two championship combatants after Casey Stoner's wreck at Indianapolis last weekend. The winner of the Brno race, more than likely might go on to win the championship. Casey Stoner will not start. He has to have an operation on his injured ankle. He needs surgery ASAP so he can recover and race to the end of the year, before he retires. Stoner will not be able to for the title. But, he'll be back at some point, probably before the Australian round at Philip Island.
On the pole will be Jorge Lorenzo. Karel Abraham is running his home race. His family owns the Brno Autodrome. Nicky Hayden will not start this race either after his injury at Indianapolis. The bikes are on their warmup lap. Brno has been around since 1987 and is 3.3 miles long.
At the start, on this totally green racetrack, Cal Crutchlow gets bogged down as Lorenzo leads while Valentino Rossi gets to fifth. This is a 22 lap race. Dovizioso is fourth. Ben Spies might have more mechanical issues. He's had some dreadful times lately. Alvaro Bautista and Stefan Bradl are doing well, but Ben Spies horrible luck continues. Dani Pedrosa cannot let Jorge Lorenzo get away. Valentino Rossi is having a good race. The Tech 3 Yamaha's are third and fourth. Rossi has smoke coming out of his Ducati on downshifts.
Ben Spies is now thirteenth. Randy de Puniet is the top CRT bike right now. Cal Crutchlow has signed up to race for Tech 3 Yamaha again in 2013. Pedrosa sets fast lap at 1:56.8. Andrea Dovizioso, though, just signed a contract to replace Valentino Rossi at Ducati. Alvaro Bautista is doing well. Karel Abraham is passed by Ben Spies. Spies may be back on the pace. Yonny Hernandez and Toni Elias are also in this fight. Lorenzo runs quicker at 2:06.6. Cal Crutchlow is doing well in this race even though he's just lost a spot to Pedrosa.
Stefan Bradl and Alvaro Bautista are in this scrap, too. They're much more on form and in contention than the were last Sunday at Indianapolis. Lorenzo is still leading. Ben Spies is now ninth. This track in undulating, hilly, and full of grip in the track surface. Ben Spies passes Randy de Puniet. The riders love this circuit. Stefan Bradl is slightly behind Rossi, but he's getting better. Johnny Rea will race Casey Stoner's bike more than likely, as long as there's no conflict with World Superbike. Will Bradl get factory software for his bike? That will be interesting.
Pedrosa brings fast lap down to 1:56.3. Eight laps complete as Jorge Lorenzo sets fast lap and Dani Pedrosa sets a personal best. Rossi and Bradl battle and it looks like Tech 3 is in their won battle. Valentino Rossi tries passing Stefan Bradl, but it didn't work. Crutchlow and Pedrosa crashed in qualifying, so, they'll have some extra caution in this race. Stefan Bradl's dad also won at this track back in 1991. Now, Ben Spies crashes again. He's out. His bad luck continues with his third consecutive crash. Pedorsa might make a move. He can't quite do it.
There's a big rumor that Ben Spies might leave MotoGP. He could stay here and ride a Honda. But, he could also go back to AMA Superbike. So, he's at least got options. Dani Pedrosa will be OK. Now, he can charge after Lorenzo with just eleven laps to run. Dani Pedrosa takes the lead. Lorenzo is going to be glued to Dani Pedrosa until the finish. Lorenzo wants to see where Pedrosa's weak spots are. Crutchlow drops his pace further. Cal Crutchlow runs wide. Crutchlow has another year with Tech 3 Yamaha. He wants to be a factory rider. He will be, someday, maybe.
Pedrosa runs a 1:56.4 and Lorenzo, a 1:56.6. Dani Pedrosa runs wide and Lorenzo is right on top of him now with seven laps to go. They're both running in the 1:56 bracket. Andrea Dovizioso is also running good lap times in the low 1:57s. Pedrosa can take a defensive line, while Lorenzo needs to run a shade wider. He's got a style that suits riding wide lines into corners. Dovizioso is looking for his first MotoGP podium. Dovizioso will have Bradley Smith as his team mate next year. Now, Casey Stoner is out of the championship. It will be a battle between Pedrosa and Lorenzo. Pedrosa hangs on, but Lorenzo will not give up.
Three laps to go now. Colin Edwards is thirteenth. He's the lone American rider left in this race. Cal Crutchlow is some nine seconds behind the top two, but he will get his first MotoGP podium. Just three laps remain. Lorenzo has to pass Pedrosa and block him like crazy to get the win. Crutchlow will become the first British rider to finish on a MotoGP podium in twelve years, since Jeremy McWilliams did it back in 2000. After the end of this race, just six races remain in 2012. Lorenzo still can't get by Pedrosa. It's the last lap now. 3 and 1/3 miles to victory for Pedrosa, maybe.
Will Lorenzo get Pedrosa? Pedrosa pushes it to the limit. Lorenzo tries to be smooth. Into a double apex right hander. Pedrosa blocks but Lorenzo passes for the lead. Can he find the momentum to pass again? Through Schwantz corner, can Lorenzo hold on? This is drama! Who gets it? Pedrosa tries to pass and almost does it, Lorenzo goes back in front. He runs too deep. Pedrosa wins his second consecutive race!
#26 Dani Pedrosa ESP Honda
The next race in MotoGP is the San Marino Grand Prix at the Misano Adriatico circuit, set to take place in three weeks.
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