MotoGP: Pedosa Takes Series Lead in France

rider had an extraordinary race at the historic Le Mans circuit, tackling a tricky track that had been made slippery by rainfall minutes before the start. He was joined on the podium by Cal Crutchlow and Marc Márquez, who made a spectacular comeback from ninth place to finish third.

Starting from sixth position on a cold, wet track, Dani Pedrosa overtook three riders off the start and pegged onto Andrea Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo. He was able to get past them on the opening laps, but had to make another move on Dovizioso later on when he had a couple of scares to let the Italian through. After making his definitive pass, he crossed the finish line more than 4 seconds ahead of second-placed Crutchlow.

The Briton reached the checkered flag just ahead of Marc Marquez, who was unable to use the pole position start to his advantage. The Repsol Honda rider experienced wheel sliding and dropped down to ninth place within a matter of seconds. Mounting an incredible comeback, Marquez began to overtake his rivals and was able to reach the podium positions with two laps remaining. He was only 2 seconds behind Crutchlow by the end, taking 16 points for his World Championship tally.

With this result, Dani Pedrosa becomes the new leader in the class with 83 points. His win was his 24th in the premier class –equaling Waine Rainey and Jorge Lorenzo. Marquez, on 77 points, lies second overall with an advantage of 11 points over Jorge Lorenzo. It had been 15 years since a rookie last took four podiums from his first 4 races in the premier class.