Australian Casey Stoner tightened his grip on the MotoGP title, blitzing to victory at the Indianapolis Grand Pix on Sunday for his third consecutive win and seventh of the season.
Stoner, starting from pole after destroying the track record in Saturday qualifying, briefly surrendered the lead to Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa, but roared past the Spaniard seven laps later and then powered his way to a runaway victory.
Pedrosa, last year’s winner at the Brickyard, settled for second, crossing nearly five seconds back, while American Ben Spies gave the home crowd something to cheer, taking third.
Photo: AFP
With a 10th consecutive podium finish, Stoner extended his lead at the top of the standings over Spain’s world champion, Jorge Lorenzo, who finished fourth, to 44 points with six races to run.
“There are crucial points throughout the whole season and we just have to make sure we keep our heads down and keep trying to win races,” Stoner told reporters. “That’s what I enjoy most and it’s what we are here to do every weekend.”
It was another dominating display by Stoner, who had complained bitterly all week about the slippery track he labeled one of the worst on the MotoGP circuit.
However, there was no hint of distress in the Australian’s performance as he neatly navigated the 4.22km layout, which uses part of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s oval on another sweltering day at the famed Brickyard.
“I’m not like some other riders who just enjoy tracks because they win there,” said Stoner, the 2007 world champion. “I’ve won on most of the circuits we have on the calendar and I can’t honestly say this is better than most of them. We drive on some fantastic circuits; I don’t get a kick out of it just because I win. I was struggling a little bit with the grip and didn’t feel comfortable, but I suppose, compared to everyone else, we felt pretty good.”
Both Pedrosa and Spies agreed they had no hope of reeling in Stoner.
Pedrosa started behind Stoner on the second row, but shot into the lead on the first turn.
Some early wobbles dropped Stoner down to third, but the Australian stalked the leaders and before the race reached the midway point was in complete command.
“I knew for the race pace I was not there,” Pedrosa said. “I did a couple of good first laps, but then Casey went by and started to pull away. I kept focused on my rhythm and I was happy with my performance.”
One rider not pleased with his day’s work was seven-time world champion Valentino Rossi, who had a miserable weekend with a 10th place finish.
After crashing in qualifying, the Italian started well down the grid and labored to his worst result of the season.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Roger Federer on Wednesday said that staying involved with tennis in retirement helped him avoid feeling “like an alien” ahead of this week’s Laver Cup in Berlin. Federer, who helped create the tournament, retired at the Laver Cup in London two years ago and has since stayed involved with the competition as an ambassador. “I’m happy I went back right away to some tournaments,” the 43-year-old told reporters. “I feel I ripped the Band-Aid off quite quickly and when I walk around the tennis sites I still feel I belong there,” he said. “I don’t feel like an alien, which is a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or