After his closest rival and fellow Spaniard Dani Pedrosa crashed in lap two of the Australian round of the MotoGP 2012 at Phillip Island it was automatic that Jorge Lorenzo on his Yamaha Factory Racing M1 would become world champion for the second time – unless of course he DNF’d, too, which he managed to avoid. In doing so he became the first Spaniard ever to win two premier class motorcycle world titles.
“You must be very consistent, always try to never make a mistake, always try to finish the races and be very focused so today is a very special day,” an elated and, one would have to say relieved, Lorenzo explained.
The race was led early on by Casey Stoner on the Repsol Honda after an early tussle with Lorenzo and Pedrosa but when his team mate Pedrosa washed out his front tire in turn four Stoner took the lead never to be challenged for the rest of the race. The winning margin was 9.23 seconds which indicated that Lorenzo may have perhaps been just a little motivated to ride conservatively to ensure his title.
The promise of a Casey Stoner record 6th win at home and the crowning of a new world champion pushed the crowd into record numbers at the picturesque seaside track at Phillip Island with official attendance for the three days of 122,465.
Photos: Olivier Bochsler
