Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Jorge
Lorenzo continued his momentum at the Autodromo del Mugello track on Sunday
(May 22, 2016) as he secured a brilliant victory in the Gran Premio d'Italia.
His achievement marks the Yamaha Factory Racing team’s hundredth premier class
win of the modern four-stroke era, that began in 2002, as well as their third
consecutive first place of the 2016 season. Valentino Rossi also gave a
stunning performance in the early stages of the 24-lap sprint as he battled
with his teammate for the lead, until a mechanical issue on lap nine prevented
him from completing the race.
During the race Andrea Iannone
hit 354.9km/h, setting a new top speed record in the MotoGP World Championship.
The Autodromo del Mugello
circuit was filled with thousands of fans who gathered to see the Movistar
Yamaha MotoGP riders continue their 2016 MotoGP World Championship challenge.
Jorge Lorenzo rode his signature race, leading over the line on each lap, to
take a flawless victory at the Gran Premio d'Italia. Teammate and local hero
Valentino Rossi was also in contention for a strong result, but was unable to
finish the race due to a technical failure.
Lorenzo was quick to make his
intentions clear and had a flying start from fifth place on the grid to take
the holeshot. With his teammate on his tail, he led across the line after the
first lap, but it soon became clear his fellow Yamaha rider would not go down
without a fight. The Doctor made a pass going into turn one, but Lorenzo was
not shaken and quickly regained the lead as the Italian ran wide.
With a clear track ahead the
number 99 rider tried to break away, but he was unable to shake Rossi who
continued to pile on the pressure, ready to seize any opportunity to pass.
However the smooth Spaniard left no space for him to slip past and made sure to
brake at the last possible moment every time going into turn one to keep the
lead.
Lorenzo rode defensively until
Rossi fell behind due to a mechanical issue and was forced to retire. This
allowed the current World Champion a small breather until Marc Marquez ( Repsol
Honda Team) tapped onto the back of his
YZR-M1 with ten laps to go. With five points between them in the championship,
the two compatriots battled hard for the win. The last lap saw a flurry of
activity, with Lorenzo making an unexpected overtaking manoeuvre in the
Scarperia corner. It didn’t stick, but Lorenzo cleverly used his experience and
launched his YZR-M1 out of the last corner to steal the victory, his third of
the season, as he crossed the line 0.019s ahead of Marquez.
Over 100,000 people lined the
hillside stands of Mugello to see if ‘The Doctor’ could win once more. But it
wasn’t going to be easy with Maverick Viñales (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Andrea
Iannone (Ducati Team) right alongside him on the front row.
As the lights went out, Jorge
Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) made an incredible start to lead into Turn 1
from fifth on the grid. It was a disastrous start for Viñales who dropped down
to 11th.
Jack Miller (Estrella Galicia
0,0 Marc VDS), Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) and Loris Baz
(Avintia Racing) all came together at the first corner and fell. The trio
retired from the race, Baz heading to the medical centre for checks.
On lap eight the stadium fell
silent as Rossi encountered a technical problem. The Italian dropped down to
ninth and continued to drop back, his race over. His head hung low as he pulled
off to the side of the track and returned to the pits on a scooter. The fans
were silent as their hero trudged into the pits, hardly lifting his visor. Soon
after Redding also retired from the race due to a technical issue.
Source: MotoGP / Yamaha Racing