DANI Pedrosa claimed his third victory in a row for Honda, in torrential rain at Sepang, Malaysia.
The race was red-flagged on lap 14 as conditions deteriorated and just 13 riders were still running when the race was stopped. At first, there was speculation that, with over 5 laps remaining - the minimum a MotoGP restart will allow - the race would be restarted but conditions continued to diminish, meaning Pedrosa had done what he needed to do.
Lorenzo had a few moments on the last couple of laps and Honda rider, Casey Stoner was catching him. Stakes were high as a mistake could have cost Lorenzo the championship and he, out of all the runners, must have been most relieved to see the red flag.
Ducati riders Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi finished fourth and fifth respectively and Britain's James Ellison finished an impressive ninth.
However, with Lorenzo finishing second, Pedrosa only managed to claw back 5 points on the current championship leader and with just two races to go, Pedrosa's tasks to claw back Lorenzo's 23-point lead is looking unlikely.
MotoGP Race Result from Sepang, Malaysia
1. Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda (RC213V) 29m 29.049s
2. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) 29m 32.823s
3. Casey Stoner Repsol Honda (RC213V) 29m 36.193s
4. Nicky Hayden Ducati Team (GP12) 29m 39.567s
5. Valentino Rossi Ducati Team (GP12) 29m 45.808s
6. Alvaro Bautista San Carlo Honda Gresini (RC213V) 29m 46.325s
7. Hector Barbera Pramac Racing (GP12) 30m 19.331s
8. Aleix Espargaro Power Electronics Aspar (ART CRT) 30m 20.634s
9. James Ellison Paul Bird Motorsport (ART CRT) 30m 25.725s
10. Karel Abraham Cardion AB Motoracing (GP12) 30m 26.671s
11. Danilo Petrucci Came IodaRacing (Suter-BMW CRT) 30m 31.854s
12. Michele Pirro San Carlo Honda Gresini (FTR-Honda CRT) 30m 31.940s
13. Andrea Dovizioso Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 30m 58.038s
DNF:
Stefan Bradl LCR Honda MotoGP (RC213V)
Cal Crutchlow Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)
Randy De Puniet Power Electronics Aspar (ART CRT)
Ivan Silva Avintia Blusens (FTR-Kawasaki CRT)
Colin Edwards NGM Forward Racing (Suter-BMW CRT)
Ben Spies Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1)
