MotoGP
Redbull.com continues its look back over 2012...
Round 4 – France
It was wet, very wet, at Le Mans when the World Championship arrived in France a fortnight after Portugal.
Maverick Vinales, keen to put one back over on rival Sandro Cortese after a tightly fought previous race, qualified on pole and looked confident heading into the race at almost a second faster than the rest of the field.
Race day was quite a different story however. With conditions worsening it was a sodden affair and local rider Louis Rossi managed to deliver a superb ride in extremely tough conditions to take his first GP win from way down on 15th on the grid.
Some 17 riders were unable to keep their bikes upright with a crash-fest meaning that half the grid failed to finish. Significantly Vinales was one of those and when Cortese went down late in the race it looked like the damage suffered by his rival in terms of Championship points was going to be limited.
Cortese remounted and crossed sixth however, to extend his lead at the top. Alberto Moncayo followed Rossi home for second, with rookie Alex Rins collecting his first podium in just his fourth GP and from 26th on the starting grid. There was a solid ride from another first-timer at Le Mans too, as Arthur Sissis took fifth.
Championship standings after Round 4:
1. Sandro Cortese 67
2. Maverick Vinales 55
3. Luis Salom 49
4. Romano Fenati 45
5. Alex Rins 44
Round 5 – Catalunya
On to Barcelona and the second Spanish race of the season provided another weekend of high drama.
It started in qualifying when a heavy crash for Championship leader Cortese resulted in a bruised hand, and the German qualified on the second row. Vinales, with a point to prove after his DNF in France, took pole and was just as dominant in the race.
Victory by almost eight seconds ahead of Cortese closed the gap in the standings to the Red Bull KTM Ajo rider, who led a mad scramble for the remaining podium positions.
Behind him in third Miguel Oliveira claimed third place and his first World Championship rostrum, holding off an array of riders that included Alex Márquez, younger brother of Marc.
Championship standings after Round 5:
1. Sandro Cortese 87
2. Maverick Vinales 80
3. Luis Salom 55
4. Romano Fenati 52
5. Louis Rossi 45
Round 6 – Britain
Vinales was on a high after his win from pole at his home GP, and he repeated the feat at Silverstone where Cortese was almost a second down in qualifying.
In the race Vinales didn't have it easy and had to work the entire distance to take his third win of the season, and Luis Salom edged Cortese in the scrap for the remaining podium positions.
Victory for Vinales wrestled the Championship lead back from Cortese but only by two points, as things remained tight after six rounds.
Championship standings after Round 6:
1. Maverick Vinales 105
2. Sandro Cortese 103
3. Luis Salom 75
4. Romano Fenati 61
5. Louis Rossi 45