Jorge Lorenzo

Jorge Lorenzo Guerrero[1] (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxoɾxe loˈɾenso ɣeˈreɾo]; born May 4, 1987 in Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain), is a Spanish professional motorcycle road racer. He is the 2006 and 2007 250cc World Champion,[2] and the 2010 MotoGP World Champion. He is currently a rider in the MotoGP Class, on the Factory Yamaha Team. Contents [hide] Jorge Lorenzo Jorge Lorenzo 2010 Indianapolis.jpg Lorenzo at the 2010 Indianapolis Grand Prix. Nationality Spanish Date of birth May 4, 1987 (1987-05-04) (age 23) Place of birth Palma (Spain) Website jorgelorenzo.com MotoGP Record Current team Fiat Yamaha Team Bike number 99 Championships 250cc – 2006, 2007 MotoGP – 2010 Race starts 146 Wins 35 Podium finishes 72 Pole positions 42 Fastest laps 16 Points 1881 2010 championship position 1st (383 points) * 1 125s and 250s * 2 MotoGP o 2.1 2008 o 2.2 2009 o 2.3 2010 o 2.4 Celebrations o 2.5 Other o 2.6 Rivalry * 3 Grand Prix career statistics o 3.1 By season o 3.2 By class o 3.3 Races by year * 4 References * 5 External links [edit] 125s and 250s Lorenzo made his championship debut on his fifteenth birthday, on the second qualifying day for the 2002 125cc Spanish Grand Prix, after having to miss Friday practice as he was not old enough to race. Lorenzo dominated the 2007 250cc World Championship.[3] His nine pole positions led to nine victories in 2007, and all his 2006 poles bar Motegi led to victories in 2006. Jorge's victory at Misano in 2007 was his 16th in the 250cc class, making him the most successful Spanish rider of all time in the 250cc GP class – with one more victory than Dani Pedrosa and Sito Pons. [edit] MotoGP After being linked with a Yamaha MotoGP ride for 2008,[4] on 25 July 2007 he was confirmed as Valentino Rossi's partner on a two year deal for the 2008 MotoGP season.[5][6] [edit] 2008 Lorenzo made a great start to his MotoGP career, after qualifying on pole for the Qatar night race on March 8 and placing 2nd. He followed this up with pole at the second round in Jerez, Spain and 3rd Position, and pole in round 3 at Estoril, Portugal. He converted this pole into a victory, his maiden win in the Premier Class. In doing so, he became the youngest rider in MotoGP to finish on the podium in his first three races,[7] taking the record from compatriot (and bitter rival)[8] Dani Pedrosa by a single day. Jorge Lorenzo's major highside crash at the 2008 Chinese Grand Prix. By this stage of the Championship, Lorenzo was in joint first place with Pedrosa, but on May 1, 2008 Lorenzo was thrown from his bike during practice for the MotoGP Grand Prix of China. Lorenzo suffered a chipped bone and snapped ligament in his left ankle, and a fractured bone in his right.[9] He was still able to finish the race in 4th place. Two weeks later at Le Mans, Lorenzo suffered two accidents in the practice sessions but managed to post a 2nd place result.[10] In the following race in Italy he crashed during the race after qualifying seventh on the grid,[11] The next week at Catalunya he experienced his fifth crash in four meetings, the practice session accident forcing him to miss the race. Another major crash for Lorenzo at the 2008 United States Grand Prix. At both Donington Park and Assen, he was observed to be riding more conservatively after a series of injuries, but moved up the order in the later part of the race to finish 6th in each case. He has commented that he is stronger in the latter parts of races, preferring the bike when it is low on fuel. In the next meeting at Sachsenring, however, Lorenzo crashed out of the race during very wet conditions.[12] Lorenzo suffered yet more injuries to his feet at the USGP at Laguna Seca on July 20, when he experienced his seventh crash in only three months. During the first lap a spectacular highside left Lorenzo with a sore right foot (or ankle) and three broken bones in his left foot, specifically the third, fourth and fifth metatarsals. At Misano, Lorenzo clinched 2nd place. Indianapolis saw him on the podium again this time in third position. He eventually finished the season in 4th position. [edit] 2009 In 2009, Lorenzo stayed with Yamaha. His season started strongly, with two wins out of four races: in Japan and France. Two crashes later in the season, during the rain hit British Grand Prix and at Brno hampered his title bid, as he was 50 points behind championship leader Valentino Rossi prompting Lorenzo to claim his chances of winning the title have gone.[13] He won at Indianapolis, while both Rossi and Pedrosa crashed, reducing Lorenzo's gap to Rossi to 25 points.[14][15] His first corner crash with Nicky Hayden in Australia was a blow to his title chances and Rossi clinched the title with a third place finish in Malaysia. [edit] 2010 On 25 August 2009, Lorenzo ended speculation surrounding a possible move to Honda or Ducati by signing a contract to race with Yamaha in the 2010 MotoGP Championship.[16] Ducati reputedly offered him a 15 million dollar contract to take Nicky Hayden's position. Lorenzo (#99) chases team-mate Valentino Rossi at the 2010 French Grand Prix. Lorenzo broke two bones in his hand in a pocket bike crash pre-season, therefore missing most of the pre-season testing. He fought through the field to finish second to Rossi in the season opener in Qatar, whilst still not fully fit.[17] After Rossi broke his leg in a crash at Mugello, Lorenzo became the title favourite, with a 47-point lead after four wins in the first six rounds. Victory at Assen made him only the seventh rider ever to win in 3 classes at this prestigious circuit.[18] During a break between the Italian and British rounds of the championship, Lorenzo rode a Yamaha in a parade lap around the world famous Snaefell Mountain Course at the Isle of Man TT. He rode alongside former World Champion Ángel Nieto, later describing the experience as 'amazing'. Despite nearest rival Dani Pedrosa making up ground in the latter stage of the season, Lorenzo was still in control with five races remaining. Pedrosa, the only man who could still overtake Lorenzo in the standings, then suffered a broken collarbone during practice, causing him to miss the next two races and virtually guaranteeing Lorenzo would become champion. On 10 October, Lorenzo clinched the title with a third place finish at the Malaysian Grand Prix behind Rossi and Andrea Dovizioso.[19] [edit] Celebrations Lorenzo has become known for his celebration antics, which have become more frequent over the 2010 season. These have included Lorenzo imitating a spaceman, and Nintendo's mario brothers making an appearance at the trackside. [edit] Other In January 2010, Lorenzo got involved with the Oxfam international confederation's efforts in assisting support for the victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.[20] The character Jorge in the video game Halo: Reach is named for him, after Lorenzo wore a helmet at the 2009 Valencian Grand Prix that replicated the main character's helmet in Halo 3.[21] [edit] Rivalry Jorge's tenure in the Fiat Yamaha team has been underscored by an intense rivalry between himself and his team mate Valentino Rossi.[22] This rivalry has resulted in the Fiat Yamaha team being divided. [edit] Grand Prix career statistics [23] [edit] By season Season Class Motorcycle Team Race Win Podium Pole FLap Pts Plcd 2002 125cc Derbi RS 125 14 0 0 0 0 21 21st 2003 125cc Derbi RS 125 16 1 2 1 1 79 12th 2004 125cc Derbi RSA 125 16 3 7 2 2 179 4th 2005 250cc Honda RS250RW 15 0 6 4 0 167 5th 2006 250cc Aprilia RSW 250 16 8 11 10 1 289 1st 2007 250cc Aprilia RSW 250 17 9 12 9 3 312 1st 2008 MotoGP Yamaha YZR-M1 Yamaha-YMR 17 1 6 4 1 190 4th 2009 MotoGP Yamaha YZR-M1 Yamaha-YMR 17 4 12 5 4 261 2nd 2010 MotoGP Yamaha YZR-M1 Yamaha-YMR 18 9 16 7 4 383 1st Total 146 35 72 42 16 1881 [edit] By class Class Seas 1st GP 1st Pod 1st Win Race Win Podiums Pole FLap Pts WChmp 125 cc 2002–2004 2002 Spain 2003 Brazil 2003 Brazil 46 4 9 3 3 279 0 250 cc 2005–2007 2005 Spain 2005 Italy 2006 Spain 48 17 29 23 4 768 2 MotoGP 2008–Present 2008 Qatar 2008 Qatar 2008 Portugal 52 14 34 16 9 834 1 Total 2002–Present 146 35 72 42 16 1881 3 [edit] Races by year (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Class Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Pos Pts 2002 125 cc Derbi JPN RSA SPA 22 FRA 19 ITA 20 CAT 14 NED 16 GBR 13 GER 17 CZE 20 POR Ret BRA 7 PAC 9 MAL 20 AUS Ret VAL 22 21st 21 2003 125 cc Derbi JPN Ret RSA 24 SPA 15 FRA Ret ITA Ret CAT 6 NED Ret GBR Ret GER 21 CZE 12 POR 6 BRA 1 PAC Ret MAL 3 AUS 8 VAL 11 12th 79 2004 125 cc Derbi RSA 16 SPA Ret FRA 3 ITA 10 CAT 5 NED 1 BRA Ret GER 6 GBR 3 CZE 1 POR 3 JPN 7 QAT 1 MAL Ret AUS 2 VAL Ret 4th 179 2005 250 cc Honda SPA 6 POR 10 CHN 9 FRA 5 ITA 2 CAT Ret NED 3 GBR 8 GER Ret CZE 2 JPN Ret MAL EX QAT 2 AUS 3 TUR 4 VAL 2 5th 167 2006 250 cc Aprilia SPA 1 QAT 1 TUR Ret CHN 4 FRA Ret ITA 1 CAT 2 NED 1 GBR 1 GER 3 CZE 1 MAL 1 AUS 1 JPN 3 POR 5 VAL 4 1st 289 2007 250 cc Aprilia QAT 1 SPA 1 TUR 2 CHN 1 FRA 1 ITA 8 CAT 1 GBR Ret NED 1 GER 4 CZE 1 SMR 1 POR 3 JPN 11 AUS 1 MAL 3 VAL 7 1st 312 2008 MotoGP Yamaha QAT 2 SPA 3 POR 1 CHN 4 FRA 2 ITA Ret CAT GBR 6 NED 6 GER Ret USA Ret CZE 10 SMR 2 IND 3 JPN 4 AUS 4 MAL Ret VAL 8 4th 190 2009 MotoGP Yamaha QAT 3 JPN 1 SPA Ret FRA 1 ITA 2 CAT 2 NED 2 USA 3 GER 2 GBR Ret CZE Ret IND 1 SMR 2 POR 1 AUS Ret MAL 4 VAL 3 2nd 261 2010 MotoGP Yamaha QAT 2 SPA 1 FRA 1 ITA 2 GBR 1 NED 1 CAT 1 GER 2 USA 1 CZE 1 IND 3 SMR 2 ARA 4 JPN 4 MAL 3 AUS 2 POR 1 VAL 1 1st 383