A dramatic race in Australia saw Jorge Lorenzo’s MotoGP world title hopes rekindled after championship leader Marc Marquez was disqualified.
Yamaha’s Lorenzo, who started from pole and led throughout, now trails his fellow Spaniard by 18 points going into next week’s penultimate race in Japan.
The riders were ordered to change bikes mid-race because of safety concerns over tyres but Marquez failed to pit by the required time and and was subsequently black-flagged and disqualified, scoring no points. Marquez’s Honda team reportedly said it was a pit-board error which led to their rider being disqualified.
Race results
1. Jorge Lorenzo (Spain) Yamaha
2. Dani Pedrosa (Spain) Honda
3. Valentino Rossi (Italy) Yamaha
4. Cal Crutchlow (Britain) Yamaha
5. Alvaro Bautista (Spain) Honda
6. Bradley Smith (Britain) Yamaha
7. Nicky Hayden (US) Ducati
8. Andrea Iannone (Italy) Ducati
9. Andrea Dovizioso (Italy) Ducati
10. Randy de Puniet (France) Aprilia
Championship standings
1. Marc Marquez (Spain) Honda 298 points
2. Jorge Lorenzo (Spain) Yamaha 280
3. Dani Pedrosa (Spain) Honda 264
4. Valentino Rossi (Italy) Yamaha 214
5. Cal Crutchlow (Great Britain) Yamaha 179