MotoGP 2015: Catalunya race results

JORGE Lorenzo takes his fourth consecutive win of the 2015 MotoGP season as his Movistar Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi claims seconds and Marc Marquez crashes out.

Lorenzo led from start to finish and the Yamaha duo dominated to make it the second 1-2 of the sason for the Factory Yamaha team.

Repsol Honda’s Marquez battled with Lorenzo for the lead in the opening laps, but crashed out at Turn 10 on only the third lap.

Marquez’s crash has now decreased Repsol Honda’s chance of winning the 2015 MotoGP Championship title as he is now 69-points adrift of Rossi. The 22-year-old has now crashed out of three of seven races.

Track temperatures reached almost 50 degrees and were the hottest recorded over the weekend, as the race at Catalunya got underway. Lorenzo led into the first corner as Team Suzuki Ecstar’s pole-man Aleix Espargaro dropped down to 9th after struggling with the GSX-RR from the start.

Lorenzo set a fast pace and by lap 4 had a 1.5 second lead over Rossi who later on went to try for the win.

The nine-times World Champion had to settle for second, 0.885s behind Lorenzo, who took his 37th premier class win to equal the tally set by British legend Mike Hailwood.

Marquez’s teammate Dani Pedrosa finished a lonely third 19-seconds behind Lorenzo – his first podium since undergoing arm pump surgery after Qatar.

Ducati Team’s Andrea Iannone claimed fourth after a great fight with Bradley Smith on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 M1. The British rider crossed the line in fifth as the leading Satellite rider.

Maverick Viñales on the second GSX-RR took his career best finish in sixth position after being pushed down the order and out of the top 10 to begin with.

Scott Redding equalled the best result of his MotoGP™ career in seventh, with Stefan Bradl taking the Open class win in eighth.

Danilo Petrucci (Octo Pramac Racing) and Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) completed the top ten, as a number of riders crashed out on the slippery track surface.

Yonny Hernandez, Cal Crutchlow, Andrea Dovizioso and both of the Espargaro brothers crashed out and only 16 riders completed the race.

 Race results:

1. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 42:53.208
2. Valentino Rossi ITA Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 42:54.093 (+0.885)
3. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team 43:12.663 (+19.455)
4. Andrea Iannone ITA Ducati Team 43:18.133 (+24.925)
5. Bradley Smith GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 43:20.990 (+27.782)
6. Maverick Viñales ESP Team Suzuki Ecstar 43:22.767 (+29.559)
7. Scott Redding GBR Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS 43:29.632 (+36.424)
8. Stefan Bradl GER Athina Forward Racing 43:35.311 (+42.103)
9. Danilo Petrucci ITA Octo Pramac Racing 43:42.558  (+49.350)
10. Alvaro Bautista ESP Factory Aprilia Gresini 43:45.777 (+52.569)
11. Jack Miller AUS CWM LCR Honda 43:46.874 (+53.666)
12. Eugene Laverty IRL Aspar MotoGP Team 43:48.973 (+55.765)
13. Loris Baz FRA Athina Forward Racing 43:49.040 (+55.832)
14. Mike Di Meglio FRA Avintia Racing 44:2.245 (+1:09.037)
15. Alex De Angelis RSM E-Motion IodaRacing 44:18.471 (+1:25.263)
16. Hector Barbera ESP Avintia Racing (+1 lap)
DNF. Aleix Espargaro ESP Team Suzuki Ecstar
DNF. Nicky Hayden USA Aspar MotoGP Team
DNF. Marco Melandri ITA Factory Aprilia Gresini
DNF. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team
DNF. Pol Espargaro ESP Monster Yamaha Tech 3
DNF. Marc Marquez ESP Repsol Honda Team
DNF. Cal Crutchlow GBR CWM LCR Honda
DNF. Yonny Hernandez COL Octo Pramac Racing