Photo: motogp.com
Drama was the key word at Mugello this weekend, with Rossi forced to retire because of an engine blowout and Marquez battling Lorenzo fiercely. After having qualified in the pole position at Mugello for the first time since 2008, Rossi was expected to provide quite a show in front of his home crowd.
Rossi battled Lorenzo at the front, but was unable to give the Spaniard a run for the money, as the 2015 World Champion fended off the attacks skillfully. The battle of the two Yamahas allowed Marquez to catch up.
However, on lap eight, Rossi's Yamaha experienced a technical failure, followed seconds later by an engine blowout, which ejected a thick white smoke that announced that the race was over for Rossi. The Italian was gutted, just like his fans, with the sea of yellow flags, t-shirts and caps reduced to silence. He arrived in the pits on a scooter, barely lifting his visor in a display of utter disappointment.
Still, the Mugello crowd had their fair share of thrill, as the battle for the first place raged between Marquez and Lorenzo down o the very finish line, while at the back, the two factory Ducati also fought valiantly for the last podium position. Dovizioso made a mistake and run wide, forfeiting his chances for the third position, while Iannone and Dani Pedrosa seized the opportunity and passed him.
Pedrosa and Iannone also fought hard to the very end, and it was the power of the Ducati that allowed the Italian to stay in front for a third position, which was won by a 0.168s margin.
At the front, Lorenzo's skillful riding style allowed him to use MM93's slipstream on the Mugello straight, with a final attack seeing the two bikes in a photo finish we just don't get to see very often in the premier class. In the end, Lorenzo won the race with an unbelievable 19 thousandths of a second advantage.
Jack Miller, Alvaro Bautista and Loris Baz crashed out of the race in the debut lap, while Scott Redding experienced technical problems with his Ducati and added his name on the DNF list.
Dovizioso ended the race in the fifth place, followed by Vinales, who again made a terrible start from the center of the first row. Smith, Petrucci, Aleix Espargaro and Michele Pirro rounded up the top ten at Mugello.
Lorenzo leads the championship with 115 points, trailed by Marquez with 105, and Rossi with 78, while Pedrosa and Vinales, have 66 and 59 points, respectively. Next, MotoGP arrives in Spain, with the Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya taking place in Barcelona on June 5, on Lorenzo's turf.
However, on lap eight, Rossi's Yamaha experienced a technical failure, followed seconds later by an engine blowout, which ejected a thick white smoke that announced that the race was over for Rossi. The Italian was gutted, just like his fans, with the sea of yellow flags, t-shirts and caps reduced to silence. He arrived in the pits on a scooter, barely lifting his visor in a display of utter disappointment.
Still, the Mugello crowd had their fair share of thrill, as the battle for the first place raged between Marquez and Lorenzo down o the very finish line, while at the back, the two factory Ducati also fought valiantly for the last podium position. Dovizioso made a mistake and run wide, forfeiting his chances for the third position, while Iannone and Dani Pedrosa seized the opportunity and passed him.
Pedrosa and Iannone also fought hard to the very end, and it was the power of the Ducati that allowed the Italian to stay in front for a third position, which was won by a 0.168s margin.
At the front, Lorenzo's skillful riding style allowed him to use MM93's slipstream on the Mugello straight, with a final attack seeing the two bikes in a photo finish we just don't get to see very often in the premier class. In the end, Lorenzo won the race with an unbelievable 19 thousandths of a second advantage.
Jack Miller, Alvaro Bautista and Loris Baz crashed out of the race in the debut lap, while Scott Redding experienced technical problems with his Ducati and added his name on the DNF list.
Dovizioso ended the race in the fifth place, followed by Vinales, who again made a terrible start from the center of the first row. Smith, Petrucci, Aleix Espargaro and Michele Pirro rounded up the top ten at Mugello.
Lorenzo leads the championship with 115 points, trailed by Marquez with 105, and Rossi with 78, while Pedrosa and Vinales, have 66 and 59 points, respectively. Next, MotoGP arrives in Spain, with the Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya taking place in Barcelona on June 5, on Lorenzo's turf.
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