Stoner Beats Lorenzo In Catalunya

Casey Stoner has simply been running roughshod over his MotoGP competition, but a DNF at Spain's Grand Prix means that the Australian is still trailing behind points leader Jorge Lorenzo. This Sunday in Catalunya, Stoner was able to get his third win of the season and chip away at Lorenzo's lead.

After five races, Stoner has now won three of them, with a third-place finish in another. Yet the fact that he did not finish the Spanish Grand Prix prevents him from being atop the standings. Over the weekend, Stoner was out to prove that he belongs at the top.

An early stumbling block was Marco Simoncelli, who beat Stoner in qualifying to take the pole. Yet Simoncelli got off to a terrible start in front of a hostile crowd, angry at the Italian for causing Dani Pedrosa to crash a few weeks back.

Despite not grabbing the holeshot, Stoner led by the second lap and didn't really look back. Some rain in the middle of the race threatened to derail Stoner's hopes, but he kept it together and got the victory.

"It was a high pressure race and to keep at the front was very nerve-wracking," Stoner said. "It would've been easy to come down in the conditions, but we stayed on two wheels and brought it home today."

Lorenzo and his teammate Ben Spies finished second and third, respectively.

Stoner is now seven points behind Lorenzo in the points standing, but if the Australian keeps racing as he has, that won't be a problem for long.