ROAD RACE
MOTOGP / FIM MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
ROUND 8 / JULY 13-15, 2018
SACHSENRING / HOHENSTEIN-ERNSTTHAL, GERMANY
P56
hind Marquez, and had taken back
a couple of tenths when the Honda
rider got the message and started to
pull away, better than two seconds
clear with six laps to go.
Lorenzo held on to a fading third
but was obviously struggling, and
succumbed to Petrucci on lap 26.
By now, Vinales was going
fast, back in front of Bautista, with
Dovizioso fading behind them. The
Yamaha would easily dispose of
Lorenzo (as did Bautista a couple
of laps later), and he also passed
Petrucci easily, through the fast left-
hand of turn eight.
Some five seconds behind, Dani
Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) had got-
ten back ahead of the below-par
Johann Zarco's Monster Yamaha.
Danilo Petrucci (9) was on for
a podium place but lost out to
Maverick Vinales late in the race.
RALF WALDMAN
HONORED
The name of former German
grand prix star Ralf Waldmann,
who died of a heart attack in
March at the age of 51, has been
remembered at the Sachsenring,
at the track's finest feature. The
famous and daunting turn 11,
the first right-hander for half a
lap followed by "the waterfall"
downhill plunge, has been titled
Waldmann Corner. Waldmann
finished second in the 250cc
World Championship in 1996 and
1997, and had recently become a
popular and humorous TV com-
mentator in Germany.
MORE TANK FOR
JORGE
Jorge Lorenzo's specially pad-
ded "fuel tank" (actually the
airbox), the introduction of which
presaged the first of his two
wins, grew even bigger at the
Sachsenring. It was enlarged
before the meeting, and then
enlarged still further for race day,
with a modified add-on section
delivered to Germany overnight.
"It has been made a bit wider, to
touch his arms," team boss Da-
vide Tardozzi told Dorna. "Jorge
likes to make small changes. This
was made in Italy and brought in
for today." The ergonomic change
Briefly...
