Monday, September 22, 2008

Lorenzo thrilled with rain breakthrough

Jorge Lorenzo hailed his third place at Indianapolis as the best wet weather performance of his entire racing career.

The Fiat Yamaha rider said he had never managed to reach the podium in a wet race before.

"This is my first podium in wet conditions in all my life, so I'm so happy," said Lorenzo.

"In the Spanish championship, I never took a podium (in the wet). So for me it's a very good result."

Lorenzo added that his only regret was that the race was red-flagged before he had a chance to overtake Nicky Hayden for second place.

He had closed rapidly on the Honda rider as the rain returned in the final laps, and was putting Hayden under heavy pressure when the officials decided to halt the race due to the worsening rain and wind.

"It's not perfect, because with maybe one or two laps more I could have passed Nicky," said Lorenzo.

"He was so fast at the beginning, but with the wind and his worn tyres, he reduced his pace. Next time I hope to do better."

The result was Yamaha's second double podium in a row, as Lorenzo's championship-leading teammate Valentino Rossi clinched his fourth consecutive victory.

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