Pedrosa triumphs in Malaysia MotoGP

SEPANG, Malaysia (AFP) –

Honda rider Dani Pedrosa of Spain waves on the podium after his victory in the Malaysian Grand Prix MotoGP motorcycling race at the Sepang circuit on October 21.

Spain’s Dani Pedrosa stormed to victory in the Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix on Sunday, keeping his championship title chase alive on a rain-soaked circuit.

The Honda rider passed pole-sitter and Yamaha ace Jorge Lorenzo, who is the championship points leader, midway through a race which saw a number of riders crashing out.

Organisers put out the red flag on lap 13 of the 20-lap race to stop the event.

Pedrosa’s Australian teammate Casey Stoner, recovering from an ankle injury, was third after starting from the second row.

With his first ever win in wet conditions, Pedrosa — who started second on the grid — can narrow the points gap with his countryman Lorenzo.

Pedrosa, who is battling for his first ever MotoGP crown, is now just 22 points adrift of Lorenzo, who has 321 points. Stoner has 230.

There are two more races left for the 2012 season, in Australia and Valencia.

Lorenzo charged away from the pack at the start. But as more rain began to hit the circuit, Pedrosa brilliantly picked up speed on his arch-rival.

“It is my first winning in the wet and I am very happy. I could get some rhythm and maintained a constant lap,” he said.

Lorenzo said the red flag came out just as Pedrosa overtook him.

“I was struggling when heavy rain poured on the track. I am lucky to be second. It (the 20 points obtained for second place) is good for the championship title,” he said.