Rossi Wins Thrilling Race at Sachsenring, Beats Lorenzo

Valentino Rossi clinched his 101th win inside the MotoGP championship on Sunday, after holding off teammate Jorege Lorenzo for his 4th success at the Sachsenring. And it was Catalunya all over again for the Yamaha duo, as the two riders went head to head for the majority of the race, all the way to the chequered flag. After a strong start from Pedrosa, Rossi and Lorenzo did not take long to get into the lead, with Ducati's Casey Stoner following them past the Honda rider.

A few laps into the race, it was quite obvious the German GP win was going to be an all-Yamaha affair, while Stoner was to face some immense pressure from Pedrosa for the last step of the podium. The two duels lasted until 5 laps to the finish line, when the Spaniard got on Stoner's inside and never let go of his 3rd place. The Australian, still recovering from his difficult medical condition, refused to put up a fight for the podium in the closing stages of the race and settled for 4th overall.

Up front, it was Lorenzo who managed to pass his teammate at the same time with Pedrosa's overtaking Stoner, and it seemed it was going to be a 3-wide for the win on Sunday. The Italian kept his cool, however, and stayed close to Lorenzo, while keeping Pedrosa on a distant 3rd place. Two laps to the finish line, Rossi pulled one more rabbit out of his hat and attacked Lorenzo immediatelly after the main straight.

Despite the Spaniard's feverish moves for the leading spot, Rossi proved a too tougher nut to crack and eventually held on to the lead until the chequered flag. Alex de Angelis and Toni Elias finished the race in 5th and 6th respectively, while followed by Marco Melandri and Nicky Hayden. Thanks to his 4th win of the season, Rossi is now 14 points ahead of his teammate in the overall classification, while Stoner is still in 3rd place, some 28 points behind the reigning MotoGP champion.