When Dani Pedrosa left Indianapolis Motor Speedway last week, there’s little doubt he was the envy of his fellow MotoGP contenders. The Spaniard clinched victory, proving that he possessed not only the speed, but also the fortitude to truly challenge Jorge Lorenzo. The question on everyone’s mind was this: Could Pedrosa and Repsol Honda really mount a solid comeback? Make the jump to find out.
[Source: MotoGP.com | Image: Mirco Lazzari GP/Getty Images]
The Italian Round at Misano gave us the short answer, as Pedrosa lashed out against the field right from the start, controlling the race until the checkers waived, he was once again standing atop the podium armed with 25 points. The current points leader did not “give up the farm,” however, finishing less than two seconds off the leader’s pace and not allowing much of a foot-hold for rumors to creep in.
Overshadowed by a fatally crash in the Moto2 class, the real action in San Morino came from defending world champion Valentino Rossi, and his fellow countryman Andrea Dovizioso as they battled for the final Podium position in front of their Italian brethren. Just after making short work of overtaking Ducati-mounted Casey Stoner, the fight between Honda and Yamaha began, ending with Rossi in the final podium position and Dovizioso content to hang on to his third place overall points standing.
Another duo made their way to the finish line just behind Casey Stoner, who ended up fifth for the day. Two Tech 3 Yamaha’s secured sixth and seventh position piloted by Ben Spies and Collin Edwards, respectively. It seems as though Spies struggled to find the pace that landed him on the block last week, and he wasn’t alone as another American who didn’t fare well in Italy – Nicky Hayden – suffered an early crash but returned to the race only to retire on the 25th lap. As the series moves to Spain for the round at Aragon, we can only imagine we’ll gain some needed clarity in answering the question; Can we call it a comeback?
Misano Adriatico, Sunday, September 05, 2010
| Pos. | Points | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Bike | Km/h | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 25 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 160.0 | 44’22.059 |
2 | 20 | 99 | Jorge LORENZO | SPA | Fiat Yamaha Team | Yamaha | 159.9 | +1.900 |
3 | 16 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Fiat Yamaha Team | Yamaha | 159.8 | +3.183 |
4 | 13 | 4 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 159.6 | +6.454 |
5 | 11 | 27 | Casey STONER | AUS | Ducati Team | Ducati | 158.9 | +18.479 |
6 | 10 | 11 | Ben SPIES | USA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 158.3 | +28.385 |
7 | 9 | 5 | Colin EDWARDS | USA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | Yamaha | 157.9 | +34.934 |
8 | 8 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | SPA | Rizla Suzuki MotoGP | Suzuki | 157.8 | +38.157 |
9 | 7 | 40 | Hector BARBERA | SPA | Paginas Amarillas Aspar | Ducati | 157.6 | +40.943 |
10 | 6 | 33 | Marco MELANDRI | ITA | San Carlo Honda Gresini | Honda | 157.5 | +42.377 |