The challenge for the 2009 World Championship was opened wide on Sunday at the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix as Jorge Lorenzo claimed a fantastic victory although his Fiat Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi gained his sole ever DNF of the season.

Lorenzo finally finished over the line with a 9.5s margin to put Rossi’s championship lead from 50 to 25 points, with only five races left.

Following Lorenzo was a good performance from San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Alex de Angelis who helped his chances of staying in MotoGP in second spot, claiming his first ever premier class stage appearance from fourth on the grid.

Nicky Hayden also raced well with a sixth placing, repeating his 2008 Indianapolis stage in third place this time, this is his best current result with the Ducati team. Hayden progressed over Andrea Dovizioso, although suffering a stiff rival from the man who took his place in the Repsol Honda squad, the Italian unable to beat fourth spot yet again on the final lap.

World hero Valentino Rossi smashed the ground on lap nine when fighting for the lead with Lorenzo, the Italian was able to regroup and continue on, only having to retire a few laps later because of the injuries to his M1 engine. 

Early on, there was a smash for Dani Pedrosa on the fourth lap when he was leading. He courageously picked up his bike and rejoined in final place, actually doing quite well to end in 10th position.

Extra US representations for Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) who ended up in fifth place, while a late smash occurred from Marco Melandri (Hayate Racing) when challenging James Toseland (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) for sixth place. Melandri’s incident allowed the Englishman to equal his best ever MotoGP score.

The top ten also includes Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki), Mika Kallio (Ducati) and Toni Elías (San Carlo Honda Gresini). An added moment for Pramac Racing’s substitute competitor Aleix Espargaró who gained three points with a 13th placing for his MotoGP debut.