VOL. 50 ISSUE 35 SEPTEMBER 4, 2013
Bradley Smith leads Nicky Hayden
and Andrea Dovizioso in their racelong scrap. Hayden ended up eight
with Smith ninth. Dovi crashed out
while leading both of them.
look that way to Lorenzo.
He regained the lead next
time round, setting the scene
for a breath-taking last-lap fight.
Marquez attacked again at the
end of the back straight, and got
through. Just two corners left,
but he ran a little wide on the
change of direction into the last
one. Lorenzo needed no written
invitation, forcing past inside to
lead into the final Woodcote corner, and over the line.
"It was a very emotional race,
and an emotional victory," Lorenzo explained. "Marc was very
brave, and even injured he never
gave up. When he overtook me
I studied him for one lap and I
could see he was struggling a bit.
Six For Salom
P47
Briefly...
their own course, rather than copying the other bikes. "The carbon
frame had a lot of potential, and it
was a shame that we never got to
test it again," he said. Injury at the
final round in 2011 meant that he'd
had only had a brief test on it, "but
I went really fast with a good feeling, with much less understeer."
He never rode it again. That was at
Jerez, where "I never got close to
the lap time I set on that test, and
it's really frustrating," he said. His
narrative reinforced other rumors
emanating from close to the team
of a confused approach to testing,
giving at least some explanation
of the difficulty that all riders have
had in finding some improvement.
Ducati's last race win came at Phillip Island in 2010, in the hands of
Casey Stoner, who won the title for
the firm in 2008.
Maverick Vinales was on
and kept there by the two
pole, and he led the first
Alexes, Rins ahead over the
lap after seizing the lead
line, Marquez taking his secfrom title leader Luis Salom
ond rostrum in third, Vinales
halfway around. Vinales
less than a tenth adrift.
stayed up front, at least
A fine four-strong battle for
over the line, until almost
fifth was almost 20 seconds
half distance, but he had
away at the finish, with Miguel
the usual gang in close
Oliveira prevailing over Jonas
attendance - at that stage
Folger and the two top HonSalom and Estrella Galicia
das of Australian Jack Miller
teammates Alex Rins and
and Alexis Masbou. All four
Luis Salom (39) won his second
Alex Marquez.
crossed the line within just over three
straight Moto2 GP.
As usual in a year when the quartenths of a second - the way they'd
tet is in control, their battle lasted all
been all race long.
the way to the last lap. Almost as usual and certainly
Salom's sixth win of the year extended his lead
as at Brno the week before, it was the still-injured
over Maverick Vinales to 26 points, 233-207. Rins has
Salom in front when it mattered, after a furious set of
200, then comes Folger and Marquez with 120 and
closing laps that saw Vinales pushed back to fourth
117, respectively.
