The Repsol rider commanded with authority a race which he led from start to finish. A sensational Marc Márquez finished tenth in 125cc, Nicky Hayden was eighth in MotoGP and Julián Simón was ninth in the 250cc category
Dani Pedrosa took another step forward in his fight for the MotoGP World Title. After a practically perfect weekend, the Repsol rider claimed the victory with authority at the Catalunya Grand Prix, a result which places him seven points behind Valentino Rossi -second today- in the general classification. After his victory at the last Spanish Grand Prix, Pedrosa claimed a further victory at home in front of 113.150 dedicated spectators.
What is more, the Repsol rider was the first Spaniard to take the victory on the Catalunya track in the top category since 1999, when Alex Crivillé, also a Repsol Honda Team rider at the time, claimed a victory that was to bring him closer to the 500cc World Championship Title.
The race was one of those that Dani Pedrosa likes: he took the lead at the first bend, set his own pace -including a fastest lap in an incredible 1’42.186 seconds during the fourth lap-, and lost sight of his rivals until the checkered flag was waved. A perfect race which drove the Spanish crowd ecstatic. At the other end of the paddock, a disappointed Nicky Hayden finished in eighth position, hindered first by the premature erosion of his tyres, and later by a malfunction in his rear brake towards the end of the race. Tomorrow’s training sessions should give the American rider the chance of testing the new valve engine and of finding the cause of today’s problems.
In the quarter-litre race, Julián Simón was not very satisfied with his result today. The Repsol rider got off to a good start, but could not avoid being passed by a number of riders. At the end of the first lap he was eighth, but one lap later he fell a position and fought throughout the rest of the race to stay in the second pack. With eight laps remaining, Hiroshi Aoyama (rider who receives technical support from Repsol) passed him, and Simón maintained tenth position until the World Championship leader, Mika Kallio, withdrew due to a mechanical problem when there were four laps remaining, with Simón finally crossing the line in ninth position.
The positive day for the Repsol riders started well and finished even better. In the morning, Marc Márquez gave an excellent performance in 125cc during the first race of the day. The Repsol rider, who started from fourteenth position, got off to a superb start, placing himself in ninth position by the end of the straight. A few curves later he had lost three positions, but held fast in the leading pack struggling for ninth position with De Rosa. After a couple of brushes with other riders, Márquez lost contact with the leading group and stayed in the second, along with Bradl, De Rosa and Ianone. As the race progressed, two more riders joined the pack, but the struggle caused them to separate, and the Repsol rider finally managed to secure a splendid tenth position, after dodging De Rosa and Ianone, who fell right in front of him with four laps remaining. Teammate Esteve Rabat left the Intensive Care Unit at the Catalunya General Hospital and was taken to a room, where he continues to recover favourably. Tomorrow Monday, at some point during the day, it is expected that Esteve Rabat will be discharged from hospital.
Dani Pedrosa
1st
“I’m very happy about this win, my thanks to all the people around me. Today was also very important for the championship, I am now five points closer to the lead, but there are still many races ahead of us, so we need to keep pushing and be consistent. We had a few issues in practice here, so my team was thinking what they could do and they made a small adjustment before the race that improved the bike and helped me to run that pace. Once again, a big thanks to them. I couldn’t believe the fans, it seems like every year there are more and more. I’m very happy they were here because I know it was difficult to get into the track today. I was all alone, pushing to go faster and faster and I could see everyone cheering me on. At one point I lost a bit of concentration, but I got my focus back and kept pushing. Now we have two days of tests which will be very important for the next few races.”
Nicky Hayden
8th at 22.280 secs.
“We knew the race was going to be tough. Our bike has worked quite well when we had grip but something with the set-up right now we’re not getting the tyre life we need. It was okay in the beginning but I couldn’t maintain the pace. Something in the set-up is hurting the tyre life, it’s quite frustrating. We were in there early and thought we might be on for a good result and then we lost touch and went backward. The rear brake went out towards the end which didn’t help things. Eighth place is not what we want. We’ve got a really important two days of testing which we need. I’m certainly looking forward to it, hopefully we can get a couple of things sorted out.”
Julián Simón
9th at 36.964 secs.
“The start wasn’t bad, but a few rivals passed me on the straight. I struggled to climb back a few positions over the first lap, but didn’t manage to and stayed with the second pack until halfway through the race, trying to follow Kallio, Pasini and the others. It was difficult keeping up with the pace. In the end the tyres were performing very poorly and I was having trouble keeping up with the others. Maybe I was lacking a bit of engine power to keep up with the pack. We’ve worked real hard and I did my best during the race; though ninth position was not what I’d hoped for. It was the best we could do today, so we’ll have to hope Donington puts us back in the lead.”
Marc Márquez >> 10th at 18.962 secs
“The race was very tough. The leading pack was not riding too fast at the start and I was able to follow them; but later on, I had a few brushes with other riders, lost them as a reference, and found it hard to keep up with them. I felt quite comfortable in the group I was in throughout the race, but with three laps remaining two riders fell in front of me, I narrowly missed them and definitely lost my reference. But the important thing is that we’ve done a good race, I’ve learned a great deal and want to congratulate the team because they’ve all done a great job.”
