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Phillip Islnd, Australia – Honda rider Casey Stoner celebrated his 26th birthday by clinching the MotoGP World title with a fifth successive Australian GP victory at the Phillip Island circuit - to the delight of the home fans.
He needed only a top-six finish to seal his second championship after nearest rival Jorge Lorenzo pulled out with a hand injury but he had no intention of simply coasting to the title and won by more than two seconds from team mate Marco Simoncelli on a gusty day at the seaside track.
UNASSAILABLE LEAD
Lorenzo apparently lost part of a finger in a crash and his crew had to retrieve his racing glove to find the missing digit. The rider is in hospital in Melbourne.
The win gave Stoner an unassailable 65-point lead over Spaniard Lorenzo with two races left and confirmed the 2007 champion's class after his last few seasons with Ducati were marred by illness and mechanical frustrations.
"I don't think I can fit too many more things in this today," a beaming Stoner said. "It was my birthday, it was my fifth win in a row here, my second World championship, my home GP – everything! To win like this is something really special.
"It's been pretty much a dream season for us, everything's gone really well. We've had a few ups and downs, but the downs haven't been too far down and the ups have been right up there.
"A big thanks to my team, a big thanks to everyone."
PODIUM NEEDED
The Australian's triumph was virtually a formality after reigning champion Lorenzo injured a finger on his left hand in a crash during a morning warm-up session.
A distant runner-up at Phillip Island last year, Lorenzo was the only rider to get within a half-second of Stoner during Saturday's qualifying and needed only a podium spot to deny the Australian the title for at least another week.
But his withdrawal virtually handed the title to Stoner, who powered away from the grid and opened up a near one-second lead over Ducati's Nicky Hayden after the first lap.
Stoner had pushed the lead to seven seconds halfway through the 27-lap race and cruised through the final laps, punching the air as the packed stands on the home straight roared with approval.
OTHER RACES
The race drama was reserved for the remaining podium spots, with Simoncelli and third-placed Andrea Dovizioso fighting a spirited battle for second.
Earlier in the Moto2 category, Motobi-rider Alex de Angelis passed Stefan Bradl on the last lap and survived a shunt from the German, whose second place gave him a three-point lead over Suter's Marc Marquez in the championship race.
Aprilia's Sandro Cortese edged team mate Luis Salom to win the 125cc category, with Derbi-rider Johann Zarco finishing third to close the gap in the title race behind Nicolas Terol to 25 points.
Australian MotoGP results
1 Casey Stoner Honda 42min02.425 seconds
2 Marco Simoncelli Honda 42min04.635
3 Andrea Dovizioso Honda 42min04.879
4 Dani Pedrosa Honda 42min15.585
5 Colin Edwards Yamaha 42min33.311
6 Randy de Puniet Ducati 42min51.225
7 Nicky Hayden Ducati 43min18.739
8 Toni Elias Honda 26 Laps
9 Loris Capirossi Ducati 26 Laps
10. Karel Abraham Ducati 25 Laps
DNF
Alvaro Bautista Suzuki 23 Laps
Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 23 Laps
Cal Crutchlow Yamaha 23 Laps
Valentino Rossi Ducati 13 Laps
Standings after Sunday's 2011 Australian MotoGP
1 Casey Stoner (Australia) Honda
(World champion) 325
2 Jorge Lorenzo (Spain) Yamaha 260
3 Andrea Dovizioso (Italy) Honda 212
4 Dani Pedrosa (Spain) Honda 208
5 Ben Spies (U.S.) Yamaha 156
6 Marco Simoncelli (Italy) Honda 139
7 Valentino Rossi (Italy) Ducati 139
8 Nicky Hayden (U.S.) Ducati 132
9 Colin Edwards (U.S.) Yamaha 109
10 Hiroshi Aoyama (Japan) Honda 94
11 Hector Barbera (Spain) Ducati 77
12 Alvaro Bautista (Spain) Suzuki 67
13 Cal Crutchlow (Britain) Yamaha 57
14 Karel Abraham (Czech Republic) Ducati 56
15 Toni Elias (Spain) Honda 55
Results from the Moto2 GP
1 Alex de Angelis (San Marino) Motobi 39min44.774
2 Stefan Bradl (Germany) Kalex 39min46.132
3 Marc Marquez (Spain) Suter 39min51.136
4 Claudio Corti (Italy) Suter 39min51.249
5 Pol Espargaro (Spain) FTR 39min59.589
6 Kenan Sofuoglu (Turkey) Suter 39min59.929
7 Scott Redding (Britain) Suter 40min00.035
8 Andrea Iannone (Italy) Suter 40min00.821
9 Mike Di Meglio (France) Tech 3 40min01.105
10 Yuki Takahashi (Japan) Moriwaki 40min05.111
11 Thomas Luethi (Switzerland) Suter 40min06.855
12 Dominique Aegerter (Switzerland) Suter 40min11.022
13 Aleix Espargaro (Spain) Pons Kalex 40min14.069
14 Michele Pirro (Italy) Moriwaki 40min14.977
15 Simone Corsi (Italy) FTR 40min15.519
Moto2 standings
1 Stefan Bradl (Germany) Kalex 254
2 Marc Marquez (Spain) Suter 251
3 Andrea Iannone (Italy) Suter 165
4 Alex de Angelis (San Marino) Motobi 157
5 Simone Corsi (Italy) FTR 127
6 Thomas Luethi (Switzerland) Suter 126
7 Bradley Smith (Britain) Tech 3 121
8 Yuki Takahashi (Japan) Moriwaki 77
9 Esteve Rabat (Spain) FTR 74
10 Aleix Espargaro (Spain) Pons Kalex 68
11 Dominique Aegerter (Switzerland) Suter 67
12 Julian Simon (Spain) Suter 62
13 Pol Espargaro (Spain) FTR 57
14 Scott Redding (Britain) Suter 57
15 Kenan Sofuoglu (Turkey) Suter 55
Results from the 125cc GP
1 Sandro Cortese (Germany) Aprilia 34min49.670
2 Luis Salom (Spain) Aprilia 35min03.242
3 Johann Zarco (France) Derbi 35min03.981
4 Efren Vazquez (Spain) Derbi 35min04.596
5 Alberto Moncayo (Spain) Aprilia 35min11.998
6 Nicolas Terol (Spain) Aprilia 35min16.359
7 Hector Faubel (Spain) Aprilia 35min18.557
8 Maverick Vinales (Spain) Aprilia 35min25.305
9 Louis Rossi (France) Aprilia 35min26.223
10 Danny Webb (Britain) Mahindra 35min26.356
11 Marcel Schroetter (Germany) Mahindra 35min28.278
12 Luigi Morciano (Italy) Aprilia 35min31.367
13 Jakub Kornfeil (Czech Republic) Aprilia 35min33.019
14 Alexis Masbou (France) KTM 35min37.566
15 Sturla Fagerhaug (Norway) Aprilia 35min44.829
125cc standings
1 Nicolas Terol (Spain) Aprilia 271
2 Johann Zarco (France) Derbi 246
3 Sandro Cortese (Germany) Aprilia 205
4 Maverick Vinales (Spain) Aprilia 198
5 Hector Faubel (Spain) Aprilia 148
6 Efren Vazquez (Spain) Derbi 142
7 Jonas Folger (Germany) Aprilia 140
8 Luis Salom (Spain) Aprilia 107
9 Sergio Gadea (Spain) Aprilia 103
10 Alberto Moncayo (Spain) Aprilia 77
11 Danny Kent (Britain) Aprilia 76
12 Jakub Kornfeil (Czech Republic) Aprilia 64
13 Adrian Martin (Spain) Aprilia 45
14 Miguel Oliveira (Portugal) Aprilia 44
15 Simone Grotzkyj (Italy) Aprilia 32
He needed only a top-six finish to seal his second championship after nearest rival Jorge Lorenzo pulled out with a hand injury but he had no intention of simply coasting to the title and won by more than two seconds from team mate Marco Simoncelli on a gusty day at the seaside track.
UNASSAILABLE LEAD
Lorenzo apparently lost part of a finger in a crash and his crew had to retrieve his racing glove to find the missing digit. The rider is in hospital in Melbourne.
The win gave Stoner an unassailable 65-point lead over Spaniard Lorenzo with two races left and confirmed the 2007 champion's class after his last few seasons with Ducati were marred by illness and mechanical frustrations.
"I don't think I can fit too many more things in this today," a beaming Stoner said. "It was my birthday, it was my fifth win in a row here, my second World championship, my home GP – everything! To win like this is something really special.
"It's been pretty much a dream season for us, everything's gone really well. We've had a few ups and downs, but the downs haven't been too far down and the ups have been right up there.
"A big thanks to my team, a big thanks to everyone."
PODIUM NEEDED
The Australian's triumph was virtually a formality after reigning champion Lorenzo injured a finger on his left hand in a crash during a morning warm-up session.
A distant runner-up at Phillip Island last year, Lorenzo was the only rider to get within a half-second of Stoner during Saturday's qualifying and needed only a podium spot to deny the Australian the title for at least another week.
HIGH-FLYER: Ducati's Damien Cudlin of Australia takes to the air in a crash during third practice session for the 2011 Australian MotoGP at Phillip Island. Cudlin was substitute rider for Hector Barbera of Spain who is out due to injury. Image: AFP
Stoner had pushed the lead to seven seconds halfway through the 27-lap race and cruised through the final laps, punching the air as the packed stands on the home straight roared with approval.
OTHER RACES
The race drama was reserved for the remaining podium spots, with Simoncelli and third-placed Andrea Dovizioso fighting a spirited battle for second.
Earlier in the Moto2 category, Motobi-rider Alex de Angelis passed Stefan Bradl on the last lap and survived a shunt from the German, whose second place gave him a three-point lead over Suter's Marc Marquez in the championship race.
Aprilia's Sandro Cortese edged team mate Luis Salom to win the 125cc category, with Derbi-rider Johann Zarco finishing third to close the gap in the title race behind Nicolas Terol to 25 points.
Australian MotoGP results
1 Casey Stoner Honda 42min02.425 seconds
2 Marco Simoncelli Honda 42min04.635
3 Andrea Dovizioso Honda 42min04.879
4 Dani Pedrosa Honda 42min15.585
5 Colin Edwards Yamaha 42min33.311
6 Randy de Puniet Ducati 42min51.225
7 Nicky Hayden Ducati 43min18.739
8 Toni Elias Honda 26 Laps
9 Loris Capirossi Ducati 26 Laps
10. Karel Abraham Ducati 25 Laps
DNF
Alvaro Bautista Suzuki 23 Laps
Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 23 Laps
Cal Crutchlow Yamaha 23 Laps
Valentino Rossi Ducati 13 Laps
Standings after Sunday's 2011 Australian MotoGP
1 Casey Stoner (Australia) Honda
(World champion) 325
2 Jorge Lorenzo (Spain) Yamaha 260
3 Andrea Dovizioso (Italy) Honda 212
4 Dani Pedrosa (Spain) Honda 208
5 Ben Spies (U.S.) Yamaha 156
6 Marco Simoncelli (Italy) Honda 139
7 Valentino Rossi (Italy) Ducati 139
8 Nicky Hayden (U.S.) Ducati 132
9 Colin Edwards (U.S.) Yamaha 109
10 Hiroshi Aoyama (Japan) Honda 94
11 Hector Barbera (Spain) Ducati 77
12 Alvaro Bautista (Spain) Suzuki 67
13 Cal Crutchlow (Britain) Yamaha 57
14 Karel Abraham (Czech Republic) Ducati 56
15 Toni Elias (Spain) Honda 55
Results from the Moto2 GP
1 Alex de Angelis (San Marino) Motobi 39min44.774
2 Stefan Bradl (Germany) Kalex 39min46.132
3 Marc Marquez (Spain) Suter 39min51.136
4 Claudio Corti (Italy) Suter 39min51.249
5 Pol Espargaro (Spain) FTR 39min59.589
6 Kenan Sofuoglu (Turkey) Suter 39min59.929
7 Scott Redding (Britain) Suter 40min00.035
8 Andrea Iannone (Italy) Suter 40min00.821
9 Mike Di Meglio (France) Tech 3 40min01.105
10 Yuki Takahashi (Japan) Moriwaki 40min05.111
11 Thomas Luethi (Switzerland) Suter 40min06.855
12 Dominique Aegerter (Switzerland) Suter 40min11.022
13 Aleix Espargaro (Spain) Pons Kalex 40min14.069
14 Michele Pirro (Italy) Moriwaki 40min14.977
15 Simone Corsi (Italy) FTR 40min15.519
Moto2 standings
1 Stefan Bradl (Germany) Kalex 254
2 Marc Marquez (Spain) Suter 251
3 Andrea Iannone (Italy) Suter 165
4 Alex de Angelis (San Marino) Motobi 157
5 Simone Corsi (Italy) FTR 127
6 Thomas Luethi (Switzerland) Suter 126
7 Bradley Smith (Britain) Tech 3 121
8 Yuki Takahashi (Japan) Moriwaki 77
9 Esteve Rabat (Spain) FTR 74
10 Aleix Espargaro (Spain) Pons Kalex 68
11 Dominique Aegerter (Switzerland) Suter 67
12 Julian Simon (Spain) Suter 62
13 Pol Espargaro (Spain) FTR 57
14 Scott Redding (Britain) Suter 57
15 Kenan Sofuoglu (Turkey) Suter 55
Results from the 125cc GP
1 Sandro Cortese (Germany) Aprilia 34min49.670
2 Luis Salom (Spain) Aprilia 35min03.242
3 Johann Zarco (France) Derbi 35min03.981
4 Efren Vazquez (Spain) Derbi 35min04.596
5 Alberto Moncayo (Spain) Aprilia 35min11.998
6 Nicolas Terol (Spain) Aprilia 35min16.359
7 Hector Faubel (Spain) Aprilia 35min18.557
8 Maverick Vinales (Spain) Aprilia 35min25.305
9 Louis Rossi (France) Aprilia 35min26.223
10 Danny Webb (Britain) Mahindra 35min26.356
11 Marcel Schroetter (Germany) Mahindra 35min28.278
12 Luigi Morciano (Italy) Aprilia 35min31.367
13 Jakub Kornfeil (Czech Republic) Aprilia 35min33.019
14 Alexis Masbou (France) KTM 35min37.566
15 Sturla Fagerhaug (Norway) Aprilia 35min44.829
125cc standings
1 Nicolas Terol (Spain) Aprilia 271
2 Johann Zarco (France) Derbi 246
3 Sandro Cortese (Germany) Aprilia 205
4 Maverick Vinales (Spain) Aprilia 198
5 Hector Faubel (Spain) Aprilia 148
6 Efren Vazquez (Spain) Derbi 142
7 Jonas Folger (Germany) Aprilia 140
8 Luis Salom (Spain) Aprilia 107
9 Sergio Gadea (Spain) Aprilia 103
10 Alberto Moncayo (Spain) Aprilia 77
11 Danny Kent (Britain) Aprilia 76
12 Jakub Kornfeil (Czech Republic) Aprilia 64
13 Adrian Martin (Spain) Aprilia 45
14 Miguel Oliveira (Portugal) Aprilia 44
15 Simone Grotzkyj (Italy) Aprilia 32
