Marc Marquez knows that the Spanish Grand Prix is a race that he wants to win. Marquez is 30 points adrift of Valentino Rossi, and he, of course is the defending champion. Turn 13 is thee wildest corner on this track, named after Jorge Lorenzo. This is a flowing track, that the riders know. History repeats itself here. In 1996, Alex Criville and Mick Doohan battled through turn 13. A crash, put Criville out. Valentino Rossi and Sete Gibernau crashed in 2005. Rossi won. Gibernau wasn't happy. In 2013, Marc Marquez beat Jorge Lorenzo through the corner that now bears Lorenzo's name.
In 2010, Lorenzo also was beaten by Dani Pedrosa. Of course, last time out in Argentina, Rossi benefited, while Marquez, crashed. Jorge Lorenzo has had an indifferent start to 2015. But, Lorenzo is returning to form. After Marc Marquez had an injury to his pinky finger, he is starting to come back, too. The hand is still giving him some grief. Four mechanics work on MotoGP bikes. These people are all part of the big factory teams. Valentino Rossi is especially appreciative of his mechanics.
The Jerez track in southern Spain, is 2.7 miles and was built in the mid 1980s. The weather is always great. Watch out for Dry Sac (turn six) and Jorge Lorenzo corner (turn 13). These corners are quick and tight. Most of these corners, depending on your gear ratios are taken in second, third, or fourth gear. Into Dry Sac, it's a good passing spot. Lift the throttle, brake slightly. Feel the front of the bike. Set the bike up lower. Take turns nine and ten as one corner. Turns eleven through thirteen, are going to be medium speed.
No ideal line through the last corner. Brilliant stuff. In qualifying, Jorge Lorenzo and Marc Marquez were the two to watch. Lorenzo stole the show with pole, and a new track record. Marc Marquez wrecked in free practice four. He'll be second. Andrea Dovizioso wasn't able to get to the most from his tires. Pol Espargaro also had a good run. So did Aleix Espargaro on the Suzuki. Valentino Rossi is sandwiched between the Espargaro brothers.
Fifth is Rossi's best qualifying result of 2015 so far. Further down are other good riders. Hiroshi Aoyama continues to fill in for Dani Pedrosa. Tire wear is going to be big. The Spanish crowd loves their home riders. Also, be in it to win it in the last turn. We're ready for MotoGP round four in Spain, folks. Let's go racing! 27 tough, hard laps are ahead of us.
The bikes are on their warmup lap. Jorge Lorenzo starts from pole. Suzuki are on the softer rear tires. Rossi, Dovizioso, Ianonne, Lorenzo... the top four in points. Here we go. We're back in Europe. Go! Lorenzo makes a good start. Marc Marquez is second with Pol Espargaro third. Lorenzo had the perfect start. Valentino Rossi picks up a spot. Aleix Espargaro gets a good start. But, Andrea Ianonne got swamped. He's down in midfield now. They fly towards the stadium part of the course.
Pol Espargaro holds third. Iannone is now 11th. We run from Criville corner, to Ferrari corner, to Lorenzo corner. Jorge Lorenzo (the namesake of that corner), still leads. Cal Crutchlow closes on Aleix Espargaro. It's Honda vs. Suzuki going to Dry Sac. Crutchlow can't pass. Andrea Dovizioso wants by. No dice. Ducati seems to be having issues. Lorenzo leads. But, Dovizioso has dropped down to 25th place. He's surely out of contention.
Lorenzo sets a new lap record at 1:38.735. Valentino Rossi wants by Pol Espargaro while Aleix Espargaro is fending off Cal Crutchlow. Cal Crutchlow wants by. Into turn nine (Angel Nieto corner), Crutchlow passes for fifth. Here comes Valentino Rossi. He's third now, past Pol Espargaro. Rossi is only 1.9 seconds behind Jorge Lorenzo. Through turn two (Michelin corner). Lorenzo can turn laps at this pace, all day.
This is the best Marquez has felt all weekend with his broken pinky finger. He had no painkillers or injections until just before the start of this race. 122,000 fans are here at Jerez. Lorenzo is really strong in the last sector of this course. 23 laps to go. Four have been completed. Marquez has won this race once. Lorenzo, has won it, four times. Andrea Dovizioso has an uphill battle to get by other riders. Mike DiMeglio and Karel Abraham have crashed, while Dovizioso passes Marco Melandri on the Aprilia.
Valentino Rossi is half a second slower than Lorenzo. Lorenzo is going for it. Marquez and Rossi cannot maintain the pace. Andrea Ianonne is now eighth. Aleix Espargaro on the soft tire is running well, and so is Danilo Petrucci. Lorenzo is still trying to pull away from Marquez. Lorenzo's gap is increasing over Marquez. Marquez is still pushing hard, giving it a heroic ride. Marquez and Rossi are 2.8 seconds apart. Twenty laps still to run as we work lap seven. Marquez had a spill yesterday and thankfully, protected his bad hand.
Marc Marquez is lapping faster than Valentino Rossi as Cal Crutchlow wants to chase Rossi down, pulling away from Aleix Espargaro. Andrea Ianonne moves past Bradley Smith for seventh spot. Lorenzo is 4/10ths of a second quicker than Marquez and Rossi. Lorenzo has won two 250cc races here, and two MotoGP races, making his debut here in 2002. He turns 28 years old, tomorrow. He'll have a good birthday present to himself, if he can hang on and win this one. Loris Baz on the Forward Racing bike #76, has crashed. Game over for Baz.
Andrea Ianonne runs a 1:40.3 and Lorenzo runs a 1:39.5. The gap grows between Lorenzo and Marquez as we finish lap ten. Three laps to halfway. This race is going down at a tremendous clip. The Yamaha runs better in cool conditions, whereas, it's the opposite for Honda. Honda can run well in the heat. How are the bikes? How are the riders? Will the drop-off be handled well? Lorenzo runs through one of the left hand corners at 170 kilometers an hour. That's 106 miles an hour
Marquez moves through Dry Sac and is now three seconds behind Jorge Lorenzo. Valentino Rossi has taken a tenth out of Marquez on this lap. Rossi will be on Marquez's rear wheel again, just like Argentina. 15 laps still to run. Rossi is going for it, trying to close down on Marquez. Marquez wants to be the hunter, and not, the hunted. Marquez gains a tenth through sector one. Andrea Ianonne has sunk like a stone.
Lorenzo continues to lead this event, and of course, he got a new track record... the fastest lap at Jerez on a motorcycle. Marquez is under pressure. Valentino Rossi is really applying the blowtorch. Thirteen laps still to run. Hiroshi Aoyama is on a harder rear tire. He is the Honda test rider. But, it's game over for Aoyama. He's crashed into the Sito Pons corner. Eugene Laverty is the final rider in the points paying positions.
Eleven laps now remain. Andrea Ianonne and Pol Espargaro are fighting for sixth place. We're now on lap 17. Ten laps to go. Can Rossi pressure Marquez for second? Rossi is 1.9 seconds behind. It's a small advantage, that won't be enough, to catch Marquez, with ten laps left. 1:39.980 for Marquez and 1:39.893 for Rossi. Rossi claws back 2/10ths of a second. How much is Marquez suffering with his broken pinky finger? Only he knows. He's still hanging on. Lorenzo is on a Sunday ride. Andrea Dovizioso has made it back into the top ten, passing Yonny Hernandez and Scott Redding. The gap is now 1.6 seconds.
The Yamaha runs really well into the final sector on the track. Lorenzo and Marquez run into Dry Sac, as Rossi is closing up on Marquez. We saw Rossi pretty determined two weeks ago in Argentina. We know the Yamaha runs really well in the final part of this course. Will it be deja vu for Marc Marquez? Rossi is now 1.3 seconds behind. He's gaining. Seven laps to go as we work lap 20. Is the adrenaline fading? Are the painkillers wearing off for Marquez? Is this a replay of Termas de Rio Hondo two weeks ago?
The gap is 1.1 seconds with Rossi chasing Marquez. Lorenzo has checked out at the front. Now, Yamaha wants a 1-2. Cal Crutchlow is now securely in fourth, stretching away from Pol Espargaro. Rossi is eking out space over Marquez. But, Marquez is gaining. Jorge Lorenzo comes through his own namesake corner. Marquez takes a tenth out. Rossi is not close enough. If this order remains the same, Lorenzo would go to third in points, and Valentino Rossi would remain points leader, while Marquez would drop to fourth.
Marquez can't yield to Rossi again. Five laps to go in the Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix. Lorenzo has disappeared. He's going to win this without doubt. Andrea Dovizioso is now back into the top ten, in ninth. He's close behind Bradley Smith, doing damage control. Jorge Lorenzo continues to dominate. 122,000 fans are watching a clinic. Danilo Petrucci, Yonny Hernandez, Maverick Vinales, Scott Redding, and Hector Barbera, all battle for the lower places. This is a battle for tenth. Redding moves by Vinales. Alvaro Bautista is 15th. He will get a good result for the new Aprilia.
Bautista is a former 125cc class winner. Pramac Ducati team mates Hernandez and Petrucci have had a good battle. Meanwhile, Marquez has gained and come clear of Rossi. Jorge Lorenzo is clearly the class of this field, though. Cal Crutchlow puts his knee down, and gets on with it in fourth spot. He will equal his best result here, with a fourth place, which he also secored in 2012. Jorge Lorenzo has hit his form for 2015. In 2013, he won five of the last seven races, after hurting his collarbone. Well, he's back to that form again. Through Dry Sac, Lorenzo has a lap and a half until winning his first race of 2015.
Rossi will get third, and get his record 200th podium finish, while also extending his points lead. We are now on the last lap of this race, chaps. It's going to finish this way. Lorenzo, Marquez, Rossi, on the podium. Fifteen-time world champion Giacomo Agostini looks on. Lorenzo has won at Jerez in 2010 and 2011. He has now won in 2015! He's a three time winner at Jerez as he goes through the corner bearing his name. Lorenzo wins his 55th career MotoGP race, here in Jerez!
#99 Jorge Lorenzo ESP. Yamaha
Marquez second. Rossi, is third, for his 200th podium, followed by Crutchlow, Espargaro, and Ianonne. This race is done and dusted. Lorenzo has a win today, a birthday tomorrow, and, a new Yamaha contract. Not bad.
The next race on the 2015 MotoGP calendar, is the French Grand Prix, at the Bugatti circuit in Le Mans, France, coming up in two weeks.
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