by Tracy Hagen

MotoGP rookie Marc Marquez took his third win of the season at Laguna Seca on Sunday to extend his points lead in the 2013 world championship with nine races gone and nine still to go. Sophomore Stefan Bradl finished second after starting from pole to give his stock a much needed boost as silly-season approaches, while Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi escaped with third, barely ahead of ankle-biter Alvaro Bautista (Honda).

Marquez, starting from the middle of the front row, was third in the early going with Bradl showing the way and Rossi second. Marquez kept pressuring Rossi corner after corner, and Rossi kept one step ahead of the youngster. Coming up to the top of the Corkscrew on lap four Rossi waited to brake longer than before to prevent Marquez from swooping around on the outside. He still swooped and the two bounced off of each other. Rossi rode the rumble strip down the Corkscrew while Marquez motocrossed it, swerving to avoid the storm drains. It was nearly a carbon-copy of the humiliating pass Rossi made on Casey Stoner in 2008 for the win.

With 28 laps to go Marquez paced himself to catch up to Bradl. On lap 19 Marquez dived inside of the German, the Repsol Honda bending up on the brakes as the pair approached the final corner. Bradl settled for second.

Wounded warriors Dani Pedrosa (Honda) and world-champion Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) finished fifth and sixth, respectively. Both rode in desperation to keep their championship hopes alive after fracturing collarbones a week earlier in Germany. Though both were declared by a medical doctor to be fit to race, their post-race interviews were revealing on the physical pain and risk they had taken.

Cal Crutchlow, having a Cinderella season so far, lefted the glass slippers back in Europe and finished a lowly seventh. His post-race comments were unspecific, stating that he never found a set-up that worked for his Yamaha.

The American spectators always turn up for Nicky Hayden and this time they watched the two-time Laguna Seca winner race bar-to-bar – literally – with teammate Andrea Dovizioso over the whole race. On lap 25 the two banged into each other, bending Hayden’s handlebar and clutch lever. From that point on it was war and the two factory Ducati riders were lapping almost as fast as leader Marquez, albeit a half-minute behind. Hayden caught and passed his teammate, poetic justice after Ducati’s recent decision to sack Hayden at the end of the season.

The other partisan favorite, Colin Edwards, wasn’t as lucky. The Texan had a shot at top CRT after CRT superbike aces Aleix Espargaro and Randy De Puniet dropped out early. Edwards chased Hector Barbera over the duration of the race but could not overtake the Spaniard.

At half-time for the season Marquez leads the championship at 163 points, followed by Pedrosa (147), Lorenzo (137), Rossi (117), and Crutchlow (116).

Over the first half of the season Marquez has been getting stronger and stronger. Will the trend continue?

Next race: Indianapolis, August 18