Lorenzo managed to get off to a good start into the first corner, keeping his cool and working hard to keep a determined Dani Pedrosa off his tail. With just a few laps remaining, he managed to break free of the the Repsol Honda rider, crossing the line with a 1.763 second margin. The podium was rounded off nicely by Pedrosa’s teammate Marc Marquez who came in less than a third of second behind Pedrosa.

Lorenzo’s victory and corresponding 25 points means there is just seven points between him and Pedrosa. Marquez is 13 points behind Lorenzo and third in the current standings. Speaking of his victory, Lorenzo said;

‘Today was the hottest race this year and physically very hard. I made a better start than I expected and was able to pass Cal and Dani, and after that I just tied to keep my rhythm. For most of the race, Dani was always there behind me, but in the last few laps I managed to pull a small gap. It was a special race in front of my home crowd.’

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The race didn’t go quite as well for Cal Crutchlow, who crashed out and was forced to call it a day. As Steve points out though, there’s still a long way to go and the championship really is still to play for. Watch this space for regular updates from Steve and The Bike Insurer. We’ll keep you in the know with the lowdown on every MotoGP, as it happens.

The circuit is known for being fast and flowing and as a result of its numerous right-hand corners taken at high speeds and large lean angles, it places huge amounts of stress on the right hand shoulder of the rear tyre. As a result, Bridgestone will provide asymmetric rear slicks with hard right-shoulder rubber compounds.

At the front-end of the machine, the hard-braking zones need a tyre with strong braking stability, as well as high-edge grip which is a priority for the long, sweeping corners.

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The Repsol Honda duo of Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez will reach the circuit in fine form, with Dani the series leader since heading to the top of the standings after a victory at the Italian round. The Catalunya GP is certain to be special for him, since it takes place just a few kilometres from his birthplace.

Marc meanwhile, has been on fire since making the move up to the Premier Class this year, and this round is likely to be no exception! He knows the circuit well as a result of riding there since he was a small child. The young rider said;

‘After crashing out in Mugello, I really can’t wait to get back on my bike at my home GP! This is another track where all the other riders have more experience than me and they will be extra tough to beat. But we’ll keep to our own programme and work hard and try our best.’

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Rossi, who returned to the MotoGP Yamaha team this year after an ill-fated couple of years with Ducati, made £14 million in 2012, but apparently, that’s nothing compared to what he was raking in in 2010…wait for it…a huge £22 million. In last year’s Forbes countdown, Rossi made 20th postion, with his £19.2 million income.

Even if Rossi’s wages aren’t quite what they used to be, I don’t think he has too much to worry about – he’s estimated to be worth a cool £100 million!

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Despite his finger being in pretty bad way, Bradley soldiered on in the actual race, riding through the pain barrier to finish in a very respectable ninth place. He then headed straight for San Marino, where he underwent a half-hour procedure at the Ospedale de San Marino. During the op, a wire was inserted into his finger (apologies if you’re eating when reading this!) to help repair some of the extensive damage his tendons have endured.

He will now stay in Italy until the end of the week, where he’ll undergo daily treatment ahead of the MotoGP Catalunya race. All we can say is, get well soon, Bradley!

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After his French GP win, Dani has managed to tip the number of 2013 victories in his favour, with both his teammate Marc, and Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo hot on his heels! So far, Dani sits with a six-point advantage at the top of the table. He said;

‘After the race in Le Mans, I’ve managed to relax this week and I feel good physically. Mugello is a nice track and one that I enjoy to ride…I am leading the championship which is pretty special so I hope we can arrive in Mugello and that the bike works well so we can do a good race!’

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Though, admittedly, the new bike is slightly behind schedule, Honda’s test rider did manage to give it a good run at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit on the 23rd-24th May. Shuhei Nakamoto, Honda’s Executive Vice President said;

‘The test results showed more than what we had expected, in particular with its running performance. We’re very pleased at this stage and we will announce more in the not too distant future.’

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Mugello has always been a lucky circuit for the Spanish rider; he has achieved two consecutive wins there in recent years – and Sunday’s perfect conditions set the scene for his third. Starting well, he managed to pass Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa on the second corner, and though both Dani and his teammate Marc Marquez were hot on his heels, he picked up the pace significantly on the thirteenth lap and took the chequered flag by 5.4 seconds.

Dani took a well-earned second place after Marc experienced his first crash, putting an end to his Italian hopes three laps before the end. Despite this, he did manage to set a fastest lap record of 1’47.639. Congratulations are also in order for Monster Yamaha Tech 3′s Cal Crutchlow, who crossed the finish line in third place.

Weather on the day was optimal, with a peak track temperature of 44 degrees. Grip was good, so all riders chose the Bridgestone softer rear slick option, with all but one rider  choosing the harder front slick option.

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As one of the fastest and most flowing circuits on the calendar, with one of the longest straights preceded by a horseshoe-shaped corner, front tyres with powerful structure are a must at Mugello. In addition, powerful grip capabilities are essential when it comes to the high levels of acceleration and braking the bikes will be experiencing.

Asymmetric rear slicks will be making an appearance, in order to deal with the nine right-handed corners; while the high temperatures will be handled by Bridgestone’s ‘Special Construction’ heat-resistant tyres.

With wet conditions forecast for the weekend, the main tyres on offer for all riders will be the hard-wet variety, with the soft spec. versions on hand if the competitors prefer.

Dovi will be competing on his Desmosedici GP13 for the first time at the track where he started his GP career in 2001. He’s also experienced some good results there in the past with a podium result on his past three visits. Nicky Hayden too had a strong Mugello performance last year, threatening the podium before running off-track on the final lap.

Michele Pirro, the Ducati test rider, will also be in action on the day, making his second wildcard appearance on board the GP13 ‘lab-bike’.

Dovi managed to grab the top spot front the front row and kept hold of it for eight laps, fending off eventual winner Dani Pedrosa for as long as he could. In the later stages, Dovi began to slip back, but despite losing podium contention in the final few laps, he later said he was pleased to have ran a steady race;

‘It’s always nice to be at the front of the pack! I’m really happy with my feeling with the bike and as long as the tyres were decent, I was able to manage the situation well.’

Teammate Nicky Hayden did just as well, racing up from the fourth row on the grid to be in sixth place by the end of lap one. He managed as high as fourth, before slipping to fifth at the end. He said;

‘I got a great start and picked up some positions in the first few corners. I didn’t feel great at first, but I began to improve and was closing on the lead group when they were battling with each other…there were moments this weekend when we showed more potential than we have all year, and I’m really looking forward to Mugello.’

Despite the damp conditions, Dani fought hard with Andrea Dovizioso, with both riders swapping the lead until lap fourteen; it was then that the Spanish rider made his move and slipped ahead, holding his position to win the race by a fantastic margin of 4.863 seconds – taking his first ever French MotoGP victory while he was at it!

A very well deserved second place went to Monster Yamaha Tech 3′s Cal Crutchlow, who overcame a leg injury and ran an unbelievable race to take the highest ever place in his MotoGP career to date. Cal came in ahead of Dani’s teammate, Marc Marquez who claimed the final podium position.

The combination of cool temperatures and a damp track meant all riders went for the softer wet tyre option on the day for both front and rear. Fortunately, as the day progressed, the sun decided to make an appearance, clearing up some slippery patches.

The Le Mans victory now puts Dani at the top of the Championship standings, where he sits six points ahead of teammate Marc Marquez. Nine points behind Marc is defending champ, Jorge Lorenzo, in third.

It seems that the young Spanish rider has been in talks with Yamaha to join them in the Premier Class next year, and Cal’s seat is the only one free, especially now that Bradley Smith, Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi have signed on the dotted line for two year contracts. When he was asked about the rumours, Cal said;

‘I have nothing to say on it. There’s not anything I know at the minute, so we can concentrate on the job in hand, which is to race this weekend and next weekend until Herve (Yamaha boss) tells me something. Until Herve tells me I’m not riding the bike, I won’t not get on it.’

Watch this space…

At 4.185km in length, the Le Mans circuit places much more emphasis on acceleration and braking than outright corner speed and as a result, front and rear tyres are at the soft end of the tyre selection. Rear tyres will be available in extra-soft and soft for CRT riders and soft-medium for works riders. Front tyres will be available in extra-soft and soft compounds.

Though the French round will be Andrea Dovizioso’s first visit to Le Mans aboard the Ducati bike, he’s no stranger to the track famous for its 24-hour endurance race. He earned his first GP pole there in 2003 in the 125cc class, and in the premier class, he earned two podiums in 2010-2011. He said;

‘The conditions at Le Mans are always tricky…still, I think it’s a good track for Ducati and it’s a really good track for me. That being the case, we should go there with confidence and see if we can understand a little bit about where we can improve.’

For teammate Nicky Hayden though, Le Mans has always proved tricky; nonetheless, he’ll be hoping for a respectable finish when the team tests its mettle at the French GP.

Le Mans, famous for its 24-hour endurance race, is a good track for both Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez, with Dani winning the 125cc GP there in 2003 and the 250cc in 2004. Marc, meanwhile, won here in 2011 in his first Moto2 season. Marc said;

‘We goto Le Mans and again we arrive there starting from zero, as I haven’t done any tests there. I’ll do my best and I’ll try and make the most of the situation…I’m very happy at the moment but we have to keep our feet on the ground as the coming circuits are new for me in MotoGP.’

The circuit is one of the team’s favourites, particularly because its one of their test tracks, and the two riders managed to complete 89 and 96 laps respectively over the day and a half. They were joined by the Ducati Test Team and rider Michele Pirro, ahead of next week’s French Grand Prix, where he’ll stand in for Ignite Pramac Racing’s Ben Spies.

The team now heads to Mugello, where it the riders will take part in a private test today and tomorrow (8th-9th May).

Marc used the time to solve issues at the front of his bike, and on setup changes. He spent time on his electronics, collecting suspension setup data. Dani, meanwhile, also spent time on his Ohlins suspension, electronics and chassis settings. He said;

‘In general today was a positive day. We worked on various different aspects of the setup in order to find a bit more rear grip and stability in the corners…it’s all good preparation for the next round.’