Round five of the MotoGP World Championship is the Italian Grand Prix at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello, located near Florence, Italy.
Ferrari owns the race track. It is also home to Ducati, and the fans will demand nothing less than a victory this weekend. Will it come? Andrea Dovizioso is on pole, but he had a huge crash in practice, and he's somewhat hurt. He's going to go for it. The track has been repaved. It has 14 corners. Less than ten minutes before the race starts. Qualifying highlights, and the race, are on tap.
Former Grand Prix racer Max Biaggi is at the track to watch. Dani Pedrosa is on pole for the race with a new record time of 1:47.157. Valentino Rossi starts seventh. Andrea Dovizioso starts third. Nicky Hayden will start on row three, and Marc Marquez, on row two, despite the fact that he had a huge crash in practice. Will he race to the limit today? Bradley Smith has had two wrecks. One in practice, and one, today in the warmup. Andrea Ianonne is also going to be one to watch. It is his first home Grand Prix at the top level, in MotoGP.
The bikes are on trhe grid, ready for the start. Ben Spies is not racing today. But, he's not quite ready yet. Yhis track has been around since 1974. There are fifteen corners, and it's really fast. 215 miles an hour on a MotoGP bike. Ben Spies is a guest commentator for the race today. The bikes are on their warmup lap. They form up and are ready. 23 laps scheduled. Let's go MotoGP racing!
At the start, it's clean, and Dovizioso blocks Cal Crutchlow right away as Marc Marquez tries getting through and Jorge Lorenzo shoots into the lead! Valentino Rossi crashes right away! Oh no! Alvaro Bautista is also out of it! The bikes race through San Donato. Bautista is groggy. The airbag inside his racing suit, protected him, fortunately. That was a scary wreck. Alvaro either went too wide and they touched tires, or Rossi leaned too far on the outside. Whoa. Scary. The front tires might be worked quite a bit. Andrea Dovizioso is holding off Cal Crutchlow.
In Arrabiata, they continue to battle. They are former team mates. Jorge Lorenzo leads with Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez following through the final corner at Bucine, back through San Donato to start another lap. Cal Crutchlow pulls away from Dovizioso as Stefan Bradl passes Nicky Hayden, back to San Donato again. Valentino Rossi returns to the garage. He hasn't said anything, and people seem to be in shock. Rossi is not happy at all. It's a racing incident. Alvaro Bautista probably didn't even see Rossi.
Each rider's style fits the bikes they ride. The Honda behaves differently than the Yamaha does, comparing Lorenzo's and Pedrosa's riding styles. Lorenzo is into the 1:48 bracket, running a 1:48.2. Most riders are in the 1:48s as Stefan Bradl makes a pass. Alvaro Bautista is not happy either, even though it's a racing incident. The leaders race back into Arrabiata. Lorenzo continues running down consistent laps, and holds off Pedrosa, six laps into the race.
Dani Pedrosa has had the opportunity to make a pass, but he's also watching Lorenzo to see where he is. Lorenzo is trying to wear Pedrosa down. This is a chess game on two wheels. Michele Pirro is running the wildcard Ducati #51, and he's chasing Aleix Espargaro. Stefan Bradl runs fifth, and needs a good result as his season has not been the best. These riders work their way through Casanova. Dovizioso's injury is a stiff neck. Some thought he wouldn't race at all. But, he's in the race today.
The Bautista/Rossi crash is under investigation by the stewards. Marquez is hanging on pretty well. Pedrosa is still sizing up Lorenzo for the lead battle here, and Marquez is also in it. How much does Jorge Lorenzo have in the bag? The marshals may have to talk to both Bautista and Rossi after the race. Aleix Espargaro is trying to hang on. He's riding well and is holding off Andrea Ianonne. Randy de Puniet and Hector Barbera are also there. Pedrosa and Marquez tussle, and Lorenzo continues to stretch his lead. Andrea Ianonne is losing spots. He's 19th. Has he crashed?
Jorge Lorenzo runs a 1:47.9. New fast lap. He's continuing to gap the two Repsol Honda's. Lorenzo looks to be untouchable here. Marquez wants by his team mate, but he can't quite give there, even though he's really applying the blowtorch to his team mate. But, Lorenzo is checking out. Nine laps to go. Nicky Hayden passes Andrea Dovizioso on the inside. Colin Edwards is also moving up. He moves from 17th to 15th. Jorge Lorenzo is having a totally different race than he did last time out in France. Marquez is still trying Pedrosa, and Cal Crutchlow is also running consistently.
Marquez tries the outside into San Donato. But, he can't quite get by Pedrosa. Marquez tries the outside through Casanova. No dice. Marquez is fearless. He is pushing hard, and won't do things that fans expect. Hiroshi Aoyama has trouble, and is in the pits. Marquez passes into Casanova, and then, Pedrosa tries through the esses. Dovizioso passes Hayden. Stefan Bradl is also still pushing. But, Jorge Lorenzo has ridden the perfect race with just four laps left. Hiroshi Aoyama retires as he's sore from injuries. Andrea Dovizioso passes Nicky Hayden.
So, the hometown fans won't get a triumph here. But, Ducati's performance is still noteworthy. Cal Crutchlow is trying to catch Dani Pedrosa. Will he be able to make that work? Bradley Smith sets his personal best lap. But, Marc Marquez has crashed! He is furious! He's crashed four times this weekend. He had a gap, but took a huge tumble in Casanova. He was close to getting a fifth consecutive podium. But, it didn't happen. Marquez has had a fraught weekend. Cal Crutchlow is now on the podium as it looks like Lorenzo will sail to a win here.
Dani Pedrosa is second, 1.8 seconds behind. This is Marquez's first retirement in MotoGP. It will be a weekend he'll want to forget. It's the last lap. Lorenzo is going to win. The championship points table, will take a turn with Marquez's retirement, and Crutchlow getting a podium as Andrea Dovizioso wants by Stefan Bradl goin g into Savelli. It's the last lap now. Andrea Dovizioso passes Stefan Bradl for fourth. Lorenzo is going to win this race! He's done it!
#99 Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha
This is the second win for Lorenzo in 2013. Marquez could have been the first rookie to ever have five consecutive podium finishes. But, that didn't happen. The next race sees the MotoGP racers return to Spain, and it will take place at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain, in two weeks.
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