VOL. 53 ISSUE 13 APRIL 5, 2016 P73
run up the inside into the penul-
timate corner. He lost the front
and slid straight into his team-
mate, putting both down and
leaving a lucky second to Rossi.
Iannone was called before
Race Direction for this reckless
move, docked three grid places
at the next race, and given a sin-
gle penalty point. Dovizioso was
understandably disgusted. "It's
unacceptable," he said, while
team boss Massimo Meregali
echoed his disapproval.
This also favored Pedrosa,
who had been struggling ever
since his first-corner Iannone
attack. Miles behind, he had
laps to go. The veteran struggled
manfully to keep Vinales behind,
and succeeded, if only narrowly.
Then at the start of lap 18, Vina-
les became another victim of the
first turn.
Now it was Rossi and the
Ducatis, and it was clear that
they had him beat. On lap 19
Iannone attacked Rossi at the
end of the straight, pushing both
wide. Crafty as ever Dovizioso
seized the moment and passed
the pair of them to start the last
lap in second.
He probably would have
finished in the same position if
headlong Iannone hadn't tried to
Miller (43) was
having the ride of
his short MotoGP
career before he
threw his RCV on
the ground.
