Rossi, Lorenzo 1- 3 in Blustery Indy MotoGP
Fiat Yamaha teammates Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo finished a tremendous first and third
in the inaugural MotoGP race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in appallingly difficult storm
conditions on Sunday, Sept. 14. The win gives Rossi an incredible 87-point advantage in the
standings – over three races worth – with just four events left to go, while Lorenzo’s second
consecutive podium finish reinforces his return to the top echelon of MotoGP while also securing
fourth place for him in the standings. Tech 3 Yamaha's Colin Edwards finished 15th and James
Toseland finished 18th.
While Hurricane Ike was downgraded to tropical-storm status before it reached Indy, it still hit with
a fury for Sunday afternoon’s race. Rossi had earned the pole on Saturday but was conservative
in the event's opening lap, quickly slotting into fourth behind early leader Andrea Dovisioso, Casey
Stoner and Nicky Hayden. But after feeling out the track conditions – including areas of standing
water – Rossi began to move forward until finally taking over the lead from Hayden with 15 laps
remaining. From then on the YZR-M1 rider held a comfortable advantage until the event was redflagged
after 20 of 28 scheduled laps due to gale-force winds that scattered debris across the
racing line, caused power outages in track buildings, and blew the riders dramatically from side to
side.
Besides winning the pole and the race, Rossi also set the fastest lap and now stands alone in
history with 69 premier-class Grand Prix victories. “This is fantastic because it’s been a long time
since I won in the rain and even longer since I won four in a row!” he said happily. “To win the first
race here at Indianapolis is a great emotion and to beat Agostini’s record is also incredible – now I
hope my record will stand for 30 years like his! Sincerely I don’t think I’ve ever ridden in conditions
like these and I was lucky because I was far in front and therefore didn’t have to take any big
risks.”
2008 MotoGP Points 9/14/08
Pos. Rider Points
1 Valentino Rossi – Yamaha 287
2 Casey Stoner 200
3 Dani Pedrosa 193
4 Jorge Lorenzo – Yamaha 156
5 Andrea Dovizioso 129
6 Chris Vermeulen 117
7 Colin Edwards – Yamaha 109
8 Nicky Hayden 104
9 Shinya Nakano 87
10 Loris Capirossi 86
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