Lorenzo keeps championship lead with another podium

Yamaha Factory Racing rider Jorge Lorenzo extended his unbroken run of podium finishes today in Portugal for the third round of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship. Having taken his fourth consecutive Estoril pole position start in yesterday’s qualifying heat, the reigning World Champion retained the lead from the off. Lorenzo completed a perfect 25 lap run in the lead before relinquishing to Pedrosa just three laps from the end, crossing the line in second place to take valuable championship points.

The team will remain at Estoril tomorrow for an official MotoGP test session before heading to Le Mans in two weeks time for round four. Following today’s race Lorenzo adds another 20 points to his championship tally, giving him a total of 65 at the top of the table.

Jorge Lorenzo – Position 2nd – Time +3.051
“I made a good start and I’m really happy for that then I pushed to my maximum to try to open the gap to Dani. Unfortunately today was not the day for that, he was too strong and consistent and at the end he was maybe fresher to push. Second is a good result, we have a lot of points from three races so I think we are in a good way to keep fighting for the championship. I want to thank my team who worked really hard this weekend to make sure we were as competitive as we could be.”

Wilco Zeelenberg – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“A second place here at Estoril is very good, of course we would like to have won but it didn’t happen. Jorge led for 25 laps but Dani held on and had a little bit extra in his pocket at the end. He looked very stable and clean when he passed so Jorge was smart to settle for second. We gained a bit in split one and lost a bit in split four from qualifying, you win some, you lose some. Second place is ok and we’re still leading the championship. We’re going for podiums and if we can win then we’ll try, today we couldn’t.”

Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
“Lorenzo took a lot of important points for the championship today. He led for most of the race riding impeccably. When he understood it was difficult to retain the lead he showed his maturity as a racer to secure second place. Our focus is now on the test tomorrow and Le Mans in two weeks time.”

Source: Yamaha Racing