(NEWS RELEASE)

Stoner earns elusive Indianapolis victory; Spies third to lead Americans

INDIANAPOLIS, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2011 – Casey Stoner completed his domination of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Sunday, Aug. 28, running away from Repsol Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa to win the fourth annual MotoGP race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Stoner, from Australia, beat Pedrosa to the finish by 4.828 seconds. It was his seventh victory of the season and first at IMS. His previous best finish at the Brickyard was fourth in 2008.

“For the race, we knew we had a good setup,” Stoner said. “We knew we had the pace. I struggled a little bit the first few laps, but once we got going, we managed to get the lap times we sort of thought we could get to.

“It was a lot of hard work out front, trying to stay consistent, trying not to make mistakes and trying not to run wide onto that greasy part of the track. Very happy to win here at the Brickyard.”

American Ben Spies finished third on a Yamaha Factory Racing machine. It was his second consecutive podium finish at this event, as he placed second last year.

Stoner increased his lead in the MotoGP World Championship to 44 points over reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo, who finished fourth. 2009 Red Bull Indianapolis GP winner Lorenzo finished off the podium for the first time in four starts at this event.

2007 MotoGP World Champion Stoner, who started from pole, dropped to third on the first lap. But he passed Lorenzo for second on Lap 2 and then dove under Pedrosa for the lead in Turn 1 on Lap 7 of the 28-lap race.

Spies started second but dropped to ninth on the first lap. But he methodically picked off rivals over the ensuing laps to record his second consecutive podium finish at IMS. He placed second last year.

“We didn’t make the greatest start,” Spies said. “It felt like an OK start, but it just didn’t add up when we got out of Turn 1. And then me and (Andrea Dovizioso) made some contact in Turn 4, and that was our race. But it was at least pretty interesting.”

It was a mixed day for the other two American riders in the field. Colin Edwards placed seventh on a Monster Yamaha Tech 3. Nicky Hayden finished a disappointing 14^th, two laps down on his Ducati after racing as high as fourth on the first lap.

2006 MotoGP World Champion Hayden was the only rider to select a medium compound Bridgestone front tire in a gamble to gain more grip. But it backfired, as the hard tire selected by other riders proved more durable. Hayden was forced to pit before returning to the race.

Hayden’s Ducati teammate, seven-time MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi, also had troubles. He finished 10^th, plagued by gearbox issues.

The next event is the San Marino Grand Prix on Sunday, Sept. 4 at Misano, Italy.

RESULTS

INDIANAPOLIS – Results of the 28-lap Red Bull Indianapolis GP MotoGP race, with position, rider, country, motorcycle, time behind winner. All riders on Bridgestone tires:

1.	Casey Stoner	Australia	Honda
2.	Dani Pedrosa	Spain	Honda	+4.828 seconds
3.	Ben Spies	United States	Yamaha	+10.603
4.	Jorge Lorenzo	Spain	Yamaha	+16.576
5.	Andrea Dovizioso	Italy	Honda	+17.202
6.	Alvaro Bautista	Spain	Suzuki	+30.447
7.	Colin Edwards	United States	Yamaha	+39.690
8.	Randy de Puniet	France	Ducati	+53.416
9.	Hiroshi Aoyama	Japan	Honda	+53.790
10.	Valentino Rossi	Italy	Ducati	+55.345
11.	Cal Crutchlow	Great Britain	Yamaha	+57.184
12.	Marco Simoncelli	Italy	Honda	+1:00.141
13.	Toni Elias	Spain	Honda	+1:02.169
14.	Nicky Hayden	United States	Ducati	+2 laps
NC	Hector Barbera	Spain	Ducati	+1 lap
NC	Karel Abraham	Czech Republic	Ducati	+8 laps
NC	Loris Capirossi	Italy	Ducati	+12 laps

NC – Not classified

Fastest lap: Stoner, 1:39.807, Lap 20; Pole lap: Stoner, 1:38.850

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POINTS

Riders: Stoner 243, Lorenzo 199, Dovizioso 174, Pedrosa 130, Spies 125, Rossi 124, Hayden 105, Edwards 84, Simoncelli 80, Aoyama 77, Barbera 62, Bautista 49, Abraham 46, Elias 46, Crutchlow 39, Capirossi 29, De Puniet 27, Hopkins 6, Akiyoshi 3.

Manufacturers: Honda 285, Yamaha 233, Ducati 135, Suzuki 55.

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PODIUM QUOTES

CASEY STONER (Repsol Honda Team, winner): “These last two races have been difficult until now. We’ve had a really good setup all weekend, felt good with the track. I was struggling a lot with the grip and didn’t feel comfortable, but I supposed in comparison with everyone, we felt pretty good. For the race, we knew we had a good setup. We knew we had the pace. I struggled a little bit the first few laps, but once we got going, we managed to get the lap times we sort of thought we could get to. We thought we could get a bit faster, but obviously with the heat today, it made the race very hard. It was a lot of hard work out front, trying to stay consistent, trying not to make mistakes and trying not to run wide onto that greasy part of the track. Very happy to win here at the Brickyard.”

 DANI PEDROSA (Repsol Honda Team, second): “I’m very, very happy because yesterday in qualifying, I did one second (behind Stoner). One second a lap is a lot. So we didn’t expect to get the pace for the race today with Ben and Casey. So to finish second is unbelievable for me here. We did a good job from yesterday to today. We did a good rhythm. I think the bike was working quite well. After the disappointment of Brno, second place is quite good. I’m happy. Of course, I’m looking forward to winning again a race. But second place is fine.”

BEN SPIES (Yamaha Factory Racing, third): “”That’s always the story. It could have been different if something else happened. The race is what it is. We didn’t make the greatest start. It felt like an OK start, but it just didn’t add up when we got out of Turn 1. And then me and Dovi made some contact in Turn 4, and that was our race. But it was at least pretty interesting. The result maybe could be a little bit different, but it wouldn’t have changed much. It would have made it a little easier to come through the pack. We did the best we could with what we had, and that’s all we can do.”

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OTHER AMERICAN RIDER QUOTES

COLIN EDWARDS (Monster Yamaha Tech 3, seventh): “I thought I got a great start. But obviously I lost a couple of spots. It was just down to sheer grunt and power of the other guys. You know, we got into the race and got behind Bautista, which I was kind of worried about at the beginning. That bike has got quite a bit of grunt off the corner. And I sat behind him and sat behind him. Just when I would make up the work and get to him, he’d pull 10 bike lengths on the front straight. I’d make all the work up again, then he’d pull 10 bike lengths on me. I don’t know; it’s frustrating working your ass off, then you just see 10 bike lengths disappear in one straight. We just need more juice.” (About the event): “It was fantastic. I think they did an awesome job. Again, hats off to everybody in Indianapolis. The track itself is unbelievable, way better than what it was. I look forward to coming back.”

NICKY HAYDEN (Ducati Team, 14^th): “The first few laps was probably the most fun I’ve probably had all year. It was the first time I’ve been able to put up any kind of real fight in the drive. This is the first week we’ve ridden the new bike, and early it was working pretty good. But it didn’t last long. Our biggest problem is pushing the front. We couldn’t make the hard tire last because it pushed even worse. So we thought, ‘Go with the soft tire.’ Yesterday in qualifying, I was able to make the soft tire last, but the first few laps (of the race) I was going so hard, after about seven or eight laps I destroyed it. There was no rubber left. Then it was out of balance, and I really couldn’t even ride. It’s a tough day. Yesterday, we couldn’t make the hard tire last, either. Other Ducati riders went with the hard front tire and had to pit, too. So I’m really not sure it was going to make a big difference, either way. Hopefully, we can somehow take some of the data and stuff we’ve learned from this weekend on that bike. And really, we’re more worried about next year. This bike is a lot closer to what next year’s bike is going to be. We’ve got a long way to go, but we can see some things that definitely do better.”

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MotoGP SUPPORT CLASS WINNERS

Moto2: Marc Marquez, Spain, Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol Suter. American JD Beach finished 29^th, and American Jake Gagne finished 31^st. American Kenny Noyes was not classified.

125cc: Nicolas Terol, Spain, Bankia Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia.

AMA Pro Vance & Hines XR1200: Tyler O’Hara (Race 1), Chris Fillmore (Race 2).

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NEXT RACE

Grand Prix of San Marino, Misano World Circuit, Misano Adriatico, Italy, Sept. 2-4, Round 13 of 18.