FIA MotoGP - Stoner Gains Ground On Lorenzo With Comfortable Win

INDIANAPOLIS, June 6, 2011: Defending World Champion Jorge Lorenzo is hearing the wail of a Honda engine more closely than ever after Casey Stoner won the Grand Prix of Catalunya on June 5, cutting Lorenzo's lead in the MotoGP World Championship to just seven points.

2007 MotoGP World Champion Stoner took the lead from Lorenzo on Lap 1 of the 25-lap race on the Circuit de Catalunya and rode his Repsol Honda to a comfortable, 2.403-second victory over Lorenzo's Yamaha Factory Racing machine. It was Stoner's second consecutive victory and third of the season, and he closed to within 98-91 of leader Lorenzo in the series standings.

"We got a reasonably good start but not as good as Jorge," Stoner said. "I wanted to try to pass him early on but had to wait until the end of the first lap. From this point, I just tried to put in the consistent laps, as we did in the practice sessions, to see if he could stay with me. Fortunately I was able to open up an advantage without pushing too hard or feeling too much pressure."

Lorenzo's Yamaha Factory Racing teammate, American Ben Spies, finished third, 4.291 seconds behind Stoner. It was Spies' first podium finish of the season.

"The bike was great, and I felt good on it and just needed a good result," Spies said. "After the first couple of laps, I realized we had a shot at a podium, so I rode as hard as I could."

The starting grid was missing two of its top riders, 2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP winner Dani Pedrosa and American veteran Colin Edwards, both recovering from broken collarbones. Pedrosa suffered his injury in a crash with Marco Simoncelli last month at the Grand Prix of France, while Edwards was hurt in a practice crash Friday.

Edwards had surgery Saturday to insert a titanium plate and 13 screws into his shattered right collarbone and wanted to try to start the race Sunday to extend his streak of never missing a Grand Prix during his MotoGP career, which started in 2003. But he was not granted medical clearance by track doctors and saw his streak of 141 consecutive starts end.

Edwards is expected to be back aboard his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine June 10-12 for the Grand Prix of Great Britain at Silverstone. Pedrosa's return remains uncertain.

The other American on the grid, 2006 MotoGP World Champion Nicky Hayden, finished eighth on his Ducati.

Once surprise pole sitter Simoncelli was passed by five riders on the first lap, the remaining drama came about midway through the race when very light rain began to fall. Teams began to prepare backup bikes with rain tires, but the skies never opened enough for riders to need to switch to their rain machines.