Photography by Marc Urbano
Bumps in the track surface brought down a number of riders this weekend at the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix. On Sunday, Dani Pedrosa, Ben Spies and MotoGP points-leader Jorge Lorenzo emerged unscathed but exhausted to finish first, second and third, respectively. Valentino Rossi, still recovering from injury, crashed three times in practice but in the race rode precisely and finished fourth.
Series-rookie Spies earned his first MotoGP pole position on Saturday and led seven laps of the race before Pedrosa used his Honda’s top-speed advantage to steam past on Indy’s long front straight. Pedrosa was one of just four riders, including non-finisher Colin Edwards, who selected the harder of two available rear Bridgestones. The Spaniard described his 800cc V-Four engine as very aggressive, leading to wheel spin and high tire temperatures. Regarding his tire selection, he said, “I had no choice.”
“We had a good setup,” said Spies in a post-race interview. “It just wasn’t fast enough. I saw a lot of crash marks out there, and I knew some people were hitting the ground.” According to MotoGP rights-holder Dorna, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the second of two American rounds, leads the way thus far this season in crashes, with 70 falls across all classes. Spies confirmed this weekend that he will take Rossi’s place on the factory Yamaha team next year. Lorenzo is expected to be his teammate.
Champagne shower: Ben Spies celebrates his second-place finish at the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix with MotoGP points-leader Jorge Lorenzo. The American will be paired with the Spaniard on factory Yamahas in 2011.
Nicky Hayden was sixth, a disappointing result after his front-row qualifying performance—his first on a Ducati. The Kentucky native ran as high as third in the race, but he slipped backward in the standings when his left knee puck was ripped away following contact with curbing in one of the corners. He completed the race with a huge hole in his leathers. Hayden’s teammate, Casey Stoner, crashed out on the eighth lap.
Prior to Saturday night’s Indy Mile, held at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, Hayden announced a new two-year agreement with Ducati; he will be paired with Rossi. Much to the delight of the large crowd, Hayden then donned his helmet and steel shoe and cut several quick laps on a Ducati dirt-tracker sporting his famous number 69. The actual race was won by Bryan Smith on a Bill Werner-tuned Kawasaki—the Japanese bike maker’s first-ever AMA GNC victory. Dash-for-Cash-winner Chris Carr was a close second. JD Beach captured the Pro Singles main event.
Moto2 lived up to its reputation for crashes. A first-lap, second-turn pileup took out several riders, including Team American Honda Moriwaki’s Roger Hayden. Beat up and a bit dazed, Hayden later told team manager Kevin Schwantz that he felt like he’d been run over by a truck. The race was red-flagged and later restarted. GP Tech’s Jason DiSalvo led the American charge, finishing ninth. Hayden was 17th, and Kenny Noyes, riding for the Jack & Jones by Antonio Banderas team, was 19th. The race was won by class points-leader Toni Elias.
As with the two-stroke 250s, the 125cc GP class will soon disappear, its replacement being four-stroke Singles displacing 250cc and reportedly offering similar power. At Indy, Aprilia and Derbi accounted for 25 of the 28 machines on the 125 GP grid. The remainder were two Lambrettas and just one Honda. The first non-majority bike finished 17th.
An otherwise spectacular weekend was marred by the death of 13-year-old Peter Lenz. The talented Washington rider crashed Sunday during the warm-up lap for the second of two USGPRU Honda Moriwaki MD250H spec-series races. A second rider involved in the incident was not injured.
A new one-year agreement will see the 2011 Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix take place on August 26-28. “This is a unique weekend, and we are working hard to continue to grow the event,” commented Jeff Belskus, Speedway president.
