Movistar Yamaha MotoGP rider Jorge Lorenzo made a stunning return to form today, taking third in the Gran Premio de la República Argentina at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit.

Starting from second on the grid, Lorenzo catapulted from the line to take the hole shot into turn one, leading the MotoGP pack into the first ever MotoGP race at the circuit.

Teammate Valentino Rossi jumped two places to fourth as the story of the first laps began. What happened next was a flurry of activity with Jorge dropping initially to third with a wide corner and Rossi climbing to second. The positions were not to last as the Yamaha riders shuffled again, Lorenzo climbing back to retake the lead and Rossi dropping initially to fourth before passing Andrea Iannone for third.

With 22 laps to go a brief state of grace saw the Yamaha riders running in first and second. The moment was not to last as Rossi ran wide, dropping to seventh and giving himself a challenge to fight back up the rankings and chase down Sefan Bradl, Dani Pedrosa and Iannone in front.

Rossi began to move forward and showed a fast enough pace to have kept with the ultimate race winner. Unfortunately a mistake by Stefan Bradl under braking pushed him wide whilst running in fourth, costing valuable time and any chance of a podium. He was able to retain fourth, crossing the line less than five seconds from first place.

Lorenzo was meanwhile leading the race, back to his old self and holding off championship leader Marc Marquez for as long as possible. It wasn't until just nine laps remaining that Marquez was able to take the lead, passing on turn five to move up. Lorenzo then did everything possible to hold second but was forced to concede and settle for third on the final lap as Pedrosa was able to pass.

The third place finish moves Lorenzo up to seventh in the standings on 22 points whilst Rossi retains his third position with 41 points.

Bradley Smith, who started from 7th on the grid but slightly dropped back to 9th in the opening laps at the 4,806 meter circuit, regained his composure and proceeded to recover the lost ground fantastically well, with his excellent race pace shining through once again. On lap six, the British rider overtook his teammate to clinch 8th position before firmly setting his sights on the position in front. Smith made an incredible charge to close the gap to the Factory Ducati rider of Andrea Dovizioso, gaining valuable time every single lap and gracefully passing him. As the fuel load decreased on his Yamaha YZR-M1, his speed boosted and the 23 year old set his personal best and fifth quickest lap of the race at the final stages, on lap 20. Today’s result sees Smith confident of a top result at round 4 in Jerez as the MotoGP paddock returns to Europe next week.

Rookie Pol Espargaro rode a notable race to collect his second top eight finish in succession at the fast flowing Argentinian Grand Prix. After having ran competitively during the free practice sessions, the Spanish rider qualified in 11th position, but rocketed up to 8th aboard his Yamaha YZR-M1 on the first lap. The reigning Moto2 World Champion then set a rapid pace and battled with teammate Bradley Smith for the first part of the race. Later on, he caught Factory Ducati rider Andrea Dovizioso, passing him on lap 19. The 22 year old Catalan eventually completed the race in a confidence boosting 8th position, with high hopes for the next round at Jerez in his home country’s Grand Prix, after gaining more valuable experience.

Aleix Espargaro couldn’t take advantage from starting from the second row on the grid. The Spaniard was 10th when he crashed out at Turn 2 on the second lap. Fortunately he was able to pick his bike up and rejoin the race. From that moment Espargaro made a very good race recovering from the 21st to the 15th position. Despite this result, Aleix remains the first open in the Championship ahead of Nicky Hayden and Hiroshi Aoyama.

It was a very demanding race also for team mate Colin Edwards, who started 14th position on the grid. Colin struggled a lot in the 25-lap long race, losing several positions and finally closed 20th.

The MotoGP paddock will move directly to Spain now for the first European round of the season at Jerez next weekend.


Jorge Lorenzo - 3rd, +3.201 seconds

“I’m really happy, this is probably the most sweet third place in my career in MotoGP, arriving after two difficult races. We have demonstrated that even in not our best shape we can fight with the Hondas and arrive in a proud third position. We want to improve; I want to improve my physical condition still and also the bike and when the moment arrives I think we will be ready to win races. We have to keep improving and have patience and wait for our moment.”

Valentino Rossi - 4th, +4.898

“I had the potential and the pace to end on the podium and especially to fight with the three guys in front. Unfortunately in the first laps first of all I made a mistake and lost a bit but the place I lost some more was when Bradl made a mistake. He arrived too deep in braking and he pushed me out of the track and I lost two seconds on that lap and so the podium.”

Massimo Meregalli - Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Team Director

“It has been a positive race. Considering where we started from on Friday we have done a superb job. At the same time, it is a shame that we lost second place on the last lap and that Vale’s rhythm during the race couldn't be capitalized on at the end to have both riders on the podium. Vale had difficulty stopping his bike in the beginning because of a combination of the hard front and very hot front brake temperatures. This podium gives Jorge back his confidence and now we are going back to Europe to familiar ground with no unexpected surprises to start our practice with on Friday. This race is a great addition to the GP calendar and we look forward to coming back next year with this weekend’s experience.”

Colin Edwards - 20th, +1'05.76

“It was not an easy race. I cannot ride this bike as I want, I’m not comfortable and I cannot push. Yesterday I had found a good set up but today I struggled a lot. We need to keep on working, analysing the data and test new solutions. I’d like to thank my team for the hard work.”


2014 MotoGP Argentina - Termas de Rio Hondo 27/04/2014

1 Marc Marquez Honda ESP 41'39.821
2 Daniel Pedrosa Honda ESP 0'01.837
3 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 0'03.201
4 Valentino Rossi Yamaha ITA 0'04.898
5 Stefan Bradl Honda GER 0'15.029
6 Andrea Iannone Ducati ITA 0'19.447
7 Bradley Smith Yamaha GBR 0'24.192
8 Pol Espargaro Yamaha ESP 0'29.118
9 Andrea Dovizioso Ducati ITA 0'33.673
10 Hiroshi Aoyama Honda JPN 0'43.279
11 Nicky Hayden Honda USA 0'43.352
12 Yonny Hernandez Ducati COL 0'44.819
13 Karel Abraham Honda CZE 0'45.178
14 Scott Redding Honda GBR 0'48.656
15 Aleix Espargaro Forward Yamaha ESP 0'52.250
20 Colin Edwards Forward Yamaha USA 1'05.760

MotoGP World Standing - Rider Standings After Race 3 of 19

1. Marc Marquez Honda ESP 75
2. Daniel Pedrosa Honda ESP 56
3. Valentino Rossi Yamaha ITA 41
4. Andrea Dovizioso Ducati ITA 34
5. Andrea Iannone Ducati ITA 25
6. Stefan Bradl Honda GER 24
7. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 22
8. Aleix Espargaro Forward Yamaha ESP 21
9. Bradley Smith Yamaha GBR 20
10. Pol Espargaro Yamaha ESP 18
11. Nicky Hayden Honda USA 18
12. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda JPN 15
13. Yonny Hernandez Ducati COL 11
14. Scott Redding Honda GBR 11
15. Cal Crutchlow Ducati GBR 10
16. Karel Abraham Honda CZE 8

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