Lorenzo Steamrolls Through at Mugello

Moto GP 2015

maddix park mx

www.motorcycle-usa.com   By Byron Wilson

Movistar Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo steamrolled the competition on the way to his third consecutive MotoGP win of the year at Mugello, finishing 5.5 seconds ahead of his closest rival. Ducati’s Andrea Iannone crossed the line in second-place followed by hometown favorite and teammate to Lorenzo, Valentino Rossi, in third. 

Iannone and his teammate, Andrea Dovizioso, got off the line well but had Lorenzo in close quarters through the opening turns. Lorenzo didn’t waste any time either, pushing his way to the front of the field within the first lap. Further back in the ranks, Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez made up significant ground from 13th on the grid, gaining a number of positions through the opening turns and finally settling into fourth by the end of the first rotation. Rossi, meanwhile, dropped down the register from eighth on the grid to 11th. 



Lap 2 saw Marquez pass Iannone for third-place, Lorenzo hold steady at the front and Rossi move himself up to ninth. The following lap Marquez was able to get in front of Dovizioso for the runner-up spot while back in the pack, Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Aleix Espargaro crashed out of competition after getting a bump from Octo Pramac Racing’s Danilo Petrucci. Soon after, Aspar Racing’s Nicky Hayden would crash out as well. 

The subsequent laps saw Lorenzo, Marquez, Dovi and Iannone stay close and break away from the field somewhat, Marquez’s teammate Dani Pedrosa heading the charge behind the lead group in fifth. Lorenzo picked up the pace and started stretching his advantage while Marquez diced it out with the Ducatis for second. Positions shifted a handful of times between Marquez, Iannone and Dovizioso and the scuffle allowed Pedrosa to close the gap and join the fun as well. Meanwhile, Rossi was still gaining ground, making it to seventh-place on Lap 6. 

As Lorenzo checked out, the fight for second continued throughout the first half of the race. With Pedrosa now involved, it was a four rider battle for a period. Rossi was still advancing too, making it to sixth-place on Lap 8 and closing the space between himself and Pedrosa fast. 

The second half of the contest was marked by Rossi’s remarkable comeback, dispatching Dovi first for fifth-place with 11 laps remaining. Two laps later Dovizioso would pull into the garage with a rear chatter issue, ending his bid for the podium. Marquez and Iannone continued to trade punches for second position while Rossi sought a way past Pedrosa for fourth. 

At one point Marquez had gained on Iannone, but then while coming down the start/finish straight the Ducati flexed its muscle and simply powered past the Honda on acceleration without any fuss. Marquez pushed hard to keep pace with the Italian rider, a bit too hard in fact, resulting in a loss of the front and an end to the defending champion’s race. 

Marquez’s exit moved Pedrosa to third and Rossi to fourth. Quickly after Marquez’s mistake, Rossi found the line he was looking for and passed by Pedrosa into podium position. Iannone had stretched a bit of a gap at this point, leaving Rossi with more work to do in the final laps. 



There were times it appeared Rossi would put himself close enough to move on Iannone, but the Ducati rider stayed steady and ultimately kept himself just far enough away to ensure the second step on the podium. Pedrosa ended the day fourth. 

The fight for fifth was led for a long period in the latter stages by CWM LCR Honda’s Cal Crutchlow. Crutchlow’s fortunes took a terrible turn during the final laps though, the Honda rider losing the front end of his machine and crashing out less than three laps from the finish. This moved Tech 3 Yamaha’s Bradley Smith up to fifth, a position he’d hold to the checkers. 

Smith’s teammate, Pol Espargaro, trailed in sixth followed by Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Maverick Vinales in seventh, the Spaniard earning his best premier-class result to-date. Ducati’s test rider and Mugello wildcard Michele Pirro finished the race in eighth followed by Petrucci and his teammate, Yonny Hernandez, in ninth and 10th, respectively. 

Rossi’s valiant effort keeps him in the championship points lead, but Lorenzo continues to cut the margin in second, now just six points adrift of the leader. Dovi sits third with Iannone a single point behind in fourth followed by Marquez in fifth. 

MotoGP Mugello Results 2015 
1. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 
2. Andrea Iannone (Ducati) 
3. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 
4. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 
5. Bradley Smith (Yamaha) 
6. Pol Espargaro (Yamaha) 
7. Maverick Vinales (Suzuki) 
8. Michele Pirro (Ducati) 
9. Danilo Petrucci (Ducati) 
10. Yonny Hernandez (Ducati) 
11. Scott Redding (Honda) 
12. Loris Baz (Forward Yamaha) 
13. Hector Barbera (Ducati) 
14. Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia) 
15. Eugene Laverty (Honda) 
16. Mike di Meglio (Ducati) 
17. Karel Abraham (Honda) 
18. Marco Melandri (Aprilia) 

MotoGP Championship Points 2015 
1. Valentino Rossi, 118 
2. Jorge Lorenzo, 112 
3. Andrea Dovizioso, 83 
4. Andrea Iannone, 82 
5. Marc Marquez, 69 
6. Bradley Smith, 57 
7. Cal Crutchlow, 47 
8. Pol Espargaro, 45 
9. Maverick Vinales, 36 
10. Danilo Petrucci, 32

 
Bookmark and Share