After dry Moto2 and Moto3 races, a heavy burst of rain saw the MotoGP grid in a state of confusion as riders were caught in two minds between slicks and wets. Could this be Ducati's chance to shine in the damp?
Starting grid in Germany quite odd!
With a bizarre starting grid at the end of pit lane and only Bradl and tail enders on the actual grid, the start of the MotoGP was a strange (and quite dangerous) affair! Somehow Marquez got the jump, but by that time Bradl was 20 seconds ahead with Laverty in second! Although it only took Marquez one lap to make up seven seconds...
Two laps in and Marquez was in sixth and carving through the field like a man possessed. Could Bradl hold on in his home GP? And more to the point, would the wet weather hold off? Although Marquez main concern was coming from his team mate Pedrosa, who was looking very quick.
With 25 laps to go, Marquez was in the lead and Pedrosa second as Bradl's challenge faded. Was it game over or could Dani rock the Marquez applecart?
A MotoGP race that started with so much entertainment ended up as a bit of a disappointment as Marc easily controlled Dani's challenge and Lorenzo was too far behind to make an impact. Nine out of nine for Marc...
Bradl couldn't win on his home circuit
The German Moto2 race developed into a two horse battle between Kalio and Aegerter, which was eventually won by Aegerter. The Brits has a poor day with Lowes securing 20th and Rea 25th
The Moto3 race saw Jack Miller back on form, leading for the whole race and taking a narrow win from Binder. However it was the Brit pair of Kent and McPhee who really impressed. Kent finished fifth while McPhee made up a stack of places from a poor qualifying to end up a superb seventh.
MotoGP
1. Marquez (Repsol Honda Team)
2. Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team)
3. Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP)
Moto2
1. Aegerter (Technomag carXpert)
2. Kallio (Marc VDS Racing Team)
3. Corsi (NGM Forward Racing)
Moto3
1: Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo)
2: Binder (Ambrogio Racing)
3: Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0)
Cal Crutchlow (MotoGP) - 10
Bradley Smith (MotoGP) - 19
Michael Laverty (MotoGP) - DNF
Scott Redding (MotoGP) - 11
Sam Lowes (Moto2) - 20
Gino Rea - (Moto2) - 25
John McPhee (Moto3) -7
Danny Kent (Moto3) -5
Over in America, the WSB lads were lining up at the famous Laguna Seca circuit where there wasn't any hint of rain! After a bit of first lap excitement at the corkscrew, Sykes settled in behind the two Aprilias of Melandri and Guintoli while Chaz Davies crashed out in a painful looking accident.
Rea took one podium and a sixth
Guintoli went well at Laguna last year and despite Melandri leading the way, you had to fancy the Frenchman for the win, although Sykes was still very much in the picture. Against the form guide, it was Melandri who took the flag in a fairly uneventful race one with Guinters behind and Sykes third.
Race two saw Sykes make the most of his pole position start and head the field for the first lap but it was Laverty in fourth who looked a man on a mission. Mid race and with Sykes just about holding off the Aprilias, a massive crash by Lowes brought out the red flag.
The restarted seven lap dash saw Melandri take off like a scalded cat, putting him in charge of the race while Sykes was trying to hold off Guintoli and at the same time attack Melandri. Then another red flag brought a halt to the race as Barrier crashed on the start/finish line.
Another start and another holeshot for Melandri who was looking on for his second double of the season, until he crashed out, although not quite as worryingly as Giugliano who parked his Ducati right bang in the middle of the corkscrew! With a clear track, Sykes made the most of his rival's errors, taking the win from Guintoli with Rea in third.
Race 1:
1. Melandri (Aprilia Racing Team)
2. Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team)
3. Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team)
Race 2:
1. Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team)
2. Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team)
3. Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike Team)
Eugene Laverty (Suzuki) - DNF, 4
Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) - 3, 1
Leon Haslam (Honda) - 7, 7
Jonathan Rea (Honda) - 6, 3
Chaz Davies (Ducati) - DNF, DNS
Alex Lowes (Suzuki) - 8, DNF
Christian Iddon (Bimota) - 13, 9
Leon Camier (MV Agusta) 16, 12
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