Starting fourth on the grid at Laguna Seca Raceway, flyweight (51kg) Dani Pedrosa (Honda) again won the drag race to the first corner, followed by Casey Stoner (Ducati) and Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha). Lorenzo grabbed second place on lap six as Stoner started to have tires issues that bugged him throughout the race.

Now second, Lorenzo pushed Pedrosa hard without showing his true pace by actually passing him into the lead. As we have seen before, Pedrosa did lose his concentration and fall without injury on lap twelve, letting Lorenzo grab the lead and then manage his pace to a three second win ahead of Stoner. The battle for the third raged until five laps from the end, when Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) fought through the pain and gapped a fighting Andrea Dovizioso (Honda). Third place, seven weeks after a double open fracture to his right leg. Enough said!

As far as 2011 rider signings are concerned, the overwhelming rumours are for Lorenzo and Spies to ride the official Yamaha bikes, for Vale and Nicki Hayden to ride Ducatis, and for Stoner to go to Honda and see how he can get on with a Spanish-dominated team that treats Pedrosa like a God. The quick Aussie will likely be quicker and fall less often than the diminutive Spaniard. In fact, Stoner may flourish there, given that the Honda team manager and several senior trackside technicians are Italians who love Stoner, having worked with him at Ducati when he won the 2007 MotoGP World Championship.

Results - UP MotoGP Laguna Seca 2010

1. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 32 laps
2. Casey Stoner Ducati -3.517 seconds
3. Valentino Rossi Yamaha -13.420
4. Andrea Dovizioso Honda -14.188
5. Nicky Hayden Ducati -14.601
6. Ben Spies Yamaha -19.037
7. Colin Edwards Yamaha -40.721
8. Marco Melandri Honda -47.219
9. Mika Kallio Ducati -52.813
10. Loris Capirossi, (Suzuki -52.814
11. Roger Lee Hayden Honda -74.089

World Championship Point Standings (after 9 of 18 races):

1. Lorenzo 210 points
2. Pedrosa 138
3. Dovizioso 115
4. Stoner 103
5. Rossi 90
6. Nicky Hayden 89
7. Spies 77
8. De Puniet 69
9. Melandri 53
10. Simoncelli 49
11. Edwards 48