The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team celebrated a brilliant return to the MotoGP podium in the Gran Premio Iveco de Aragon today after Andrea Dovizioso came out on top of an exciting race long battle with teammate Cal Crutchlow.
Dovizioso secured his sixth podium of the 2012 World Championship campaign after he showed ice cool nerves to fend off the relentless challenge from hard charging Crutchlow to claim a richly deserved third place.
Italian Dovizioso and Crutchl ow were barely more than two tenths apart for the duration of the 23-lap race, which took place in sunny but cool conditions at the magnificent Motorland Aragon track.
After Stefan Bradl's early crash, Dovizioso and Crutchlow were pitched into an entertaining battle for third place with Factory Yamaha rider Ben Spies.
Crutchlow led the chase of the Texan until he ran slightly off line exiting the final corner on lap 11 and Dovizioso pounced to grab fourth on the long run to the first corner.
Dovizioso seized third from Spies on lap 15 at the second corner and it was at the same point of the track that Crutchlow also made his move on the American on lap 18.
The 26-year-old had brilliantly upped his pa ce by that stage and he launched a sustained attack on Dovizioso that went right down to the wire. The British rider briefly snatched third with a gutsy move at Turn 15 on the penultimate lap but Dovizioso responded instantly to seize the last podium position back.
Seeking to score his second podium in the last three races, Crutchlow tried the same manoeuvre again on the final lap, but Dovizioso was able to launch an instant counter attack and he held on to score his first rostrum since the Indianapolis round.
Dovizioso's outstanding ride moved him to within seven-points of Casey Stoner in third place in the World Championship standings, while Crutchlow's 13-points for fourth proved invaluable in his bid to secure fifth in the rankings.
He is now seven-points clear of Valentino Rossi and Alvaro Bautista with only four races remaining heading off on the flyaway tour to Japan, Malaysia and Australia.
Andrea Dovizioso 3rd – 179 points:
“It was a very good race and I am very happy to be back on the podium. It has been a difficult weekend with the weather but the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team did a fantastic job and the bike was very strong in the race. It was a very strategic race for me because right from the start I was quite slow in a few corners so I had to work very hard to stay in front of Ben and Cal. I knew Cal would be pushing very hard at the end of the race because a few times we have battled together like this and I have beaten him, so I knew he would not be giving up without a fight. He tried in the same place on the last two laps but at that point he couldn't stop the bike and I had a better exit speed to immediately take the third position back. And I know I am very strong on the brakes, so going to the last corner I was confident I could keep him behind me. It is great to be back on the podium, so I want to say a big thanks to my crew for doing such a wonderful job again.”
Cal Crutchlow 4th – 135 points:
“Obviously it would have been great to be back on the podium after the disappointment of Misano but credit to Andrea because he did a great job as always and I'm taking nothing away from him. I did my best in those last two laps to take third but I knew he had a little better exit speed than me coming out of Turn 15 and that's how it turned out. It was impossible for me to try again at the last corner but I am happy with fourth because this result once again shows the huge step I have ma de from last season. Today I was close to the podium and last year struggling to be in the top 10. It was a good result for the Championship too because I pulled a small gap on Valentino and Alvaro. I can go into the last four races with a lot of confidence and hopefully enjoy some more good battles with Andrea. I tried my best to beat him today and didn't quite manage it, so hopefully next time we are in a fight like that it will be me that comes out on top.”
Herve Poncharal – Team Manager:
“I don't think anybody can say that Andrea and Cal didn't put on a fantastic show for the crowd today. I have to congratulate both of them because they have been very fast and really close to each other but at all times they treated each other with the utmost respect. They were very professional because they were very aggressive but without ever stepping over the limit. It was clearly the best battle of the whole race and it could have gone either way. Cal could not have done anything else to get back on the podium but on this occasion he couldn't quite get the better of Andrea. We know Andrea is fantastic on the brakes and he has a lot of experience, and he needed to dig really deep to keep Cal behind him and get another brilliant podium. They are both so evenly matched and so is the performance of the YZR-M1 that it is always going to be a close battle and hopefully we will see more of that in the last four races. I'm sure the fans won't be complaining and once again I think the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team put on a brilliant display.”
Monster Yamaha Tech3 Press Release
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Source: http://www.zimbio.com/MotoGP/articles/1vn6If287zV/Dovizioso+pips+Crutchlow+podium+after+exciting
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