SPAIN’S HONDA RIDER Dani Pedrosa won the Czech MotoGP today, beating world championship leader Jorge Lorenzo in a nerve-wracking finish.
Pedrosa, who finished the 22 laps on the 5.4-kilometre (3.4-mile) circuit in 42 minutes 51.570 seconds, has narrowed the gap on Lorenzo in the overall standings to only 13 points with six races to go this season.
Britain’s Cal Crutchlow on a Yamaha came in third for the first podium finish of his MotoGP career.
With last year’s winner Casey Stoner absent with a fractured ankle, Lorenzo and Pedrosa demonstrated their dominance as they took off and gradually widened the gap on the rest of the pack, gaining more than 12 seconds on Crutchlow in the end.
Pedrosa took the lead from pole-sitter Lorenzo halfway through the race and held on until the last lap, when Lorenzo took it back.
But the 26-year-old Pedrosa reacted immediately, fighting back to earn his third victory this season.
