Once the “marine layer”, the stuff you and I call fog, burned off at the Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway on Sunday morning, it became obvious it was going to be a great day for Honda Racing Corporation. Having placed three bikes on the front row of the qualifying grid, the only impediment left would have been the weather; the RC213V likes it hot. And hot it was, as Repsol rookie Marc Marquez continued his amazing first season by becoming the first rookie ever to win the U.S. Grand Prix.

For defending world champion Jorge Lorenzo, the approach of the U.S. Grand Prix at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca circuit in Monterey is fraught with peril. Fate, and the powerful Repsol Honda duo of Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez, have conspired to put the bright star of Yamaha Racing in an incredible bind. Having injured his left collarbone twice in two weeks, a crash in Monterey could jeopardize the rest of Lorenzo’s career. But by sitting out, he effectively surrenders the 2013 title to one of his rivals.

Repsol Honda rookie phenom Marc Marquez took the flag in today’s German Grand Prix, a rather anti-climactic end to a brutally dramatic weekend in Saxony. With series leaders Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo both sidelined with injuries suffered in practice, this was clearly Marquez’s race to lose. After a poor start, he took the lead on Lap 5 and never looked back. The composed Spaniard again leads the series in his rookie season, with an opportunity to make more hay in California before summer vacation.

Two weeks ago at Assen, we witnessed the re-birth of factory Yamaha legend Valentino Rossi in what was easily the most exciting race of the year thus far. Adding to the drama was the gutty performance of his teammate, defending world champion Jorge Lorenzo, who defied logic, common sense and the advice of his surgeon on his way to a brilliant 5th place finish that kept him in the hunt for the 2013 title. Sunday’s eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland offers a great opportunity for the Repsol Honda duo of Dani Pedrosa & Marc Marquez to strike back.

It was a thoroughly hectic weekend for factory Yamaha kingpin Jorge Lorenzo at the 2013 Dutch TT Assen. Broke his collarbone in a routine highside in FP2 on Thursday afternoon, chartered a jet to Barcelona that day, had a couple hours of surgery early Friday morning, grabbed a bite to eat, flew back to Assen, slept a little on the plane, started 12th and finished 5th in the race. Had to be helped off his bike at the end. Ho hum.

MotoGP correspondent Bruce Allen previews the seventh round of the 2013 season at the TT Circuit Assen in the Netherlands. Check back on Saturday for the full report of the Iveco TT Assen.

Factory Yamaha #1 Jorge Lorenzo won a number of battles today at the Gran Premio Aperol de Catalunya. He beat challengers Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez to the finish line for his second consecutive win of 2013 and his second in a row at Montmelo. He beat the Spanish summer heat that had a number of riders seeing stars. He beat the racing surface itself, which was hot, greasy and abrasive. So why does he seems destined to finish second in 2013?

The reason we have this YZ is because fellow editor Tom Roderick and I entered ourselves in the Steel Shoe Fund 3-hour Endurance race held on a frozen Kettle Moraine Lake in Campbellsport, Wisconsin, which you can read about soon in a future story. And we were fortunate enough to have Yamaha step up and provide us with a potent weapon for this event.

Chad Reed was back after suffering a season-ending injury in Dallas last season as he battled for the title. Ryan Dungey is also considered a major threat, having given KTM several wins last season. Dungey and KTM also created a lot of excitement in the pits when they showed up to Anaheim Stadium with an air shock that they kept very tight lipped about. Then there was also the return of James Stewart after recovering from injuries, and many expected he would maintain his win-or-crash style that has brought him so much success and so much pain. But few could have predicted how the main event would turn out.

Valencia was the fourth race of the season in which the rostrum featured the two Repsol Honda pilots, Pedrosa and the retiring Casey Stoner, flanking a factory Yamaha rider. In each of the previous three – Jerez, Estroril and Laguna Seca – that rider was Jorge Lorenzo, who was today gunning for his 17th podium of the season.

In front of 53,000 delirious fans, Casey Stoner, as is his wont, ran away from the field for his sixth consecutive premier class win in Australia. Being the fastest rider on the fastest bike at the fastest track on the tour, there was little question that Stoner would go out in grand style in front of his homeys. He was at the top of every single timesheet all weekend and never seriously threatened during the race itself. Although he didn’t enjoy a great start, he oozed past Lorenzo on a decisive second lap into the lead and ended up winning by some nine seconds.

Round 17 of the 2012 MotoGP championship tour rolls into southern Australia for the annual “Watch Ol’ Casey Win Another”, otherwise known as the AirAsia Australian Grand Prix. This year, attendance is expected to balloon for the newly renamed “Last Chance to Watch Ol’ Casey Win Another.” And while Repsol Honda front man Dani Pedrosa and factory Yamaha regent Jorge Lorenzo slug it out for the world championship, most eyes will be on Stoner as he goes for his sixth consecutive, and final, win at Phillip Island.

In between, Repsol Honda bantamweight Dani Pedrosa claimed another victory, joined on the podium by Yamaha enforcer Jorge Lorenzo and Repsol’s Casey Stoner, who appeared sufficiently tuned up to compete for his sixth consecutive Australian GP title next weekend at Phillip Island. Pedrosa shaved another five points off Lorenzo’s championship lead, which now stands at 23 points with two races to go. The breathless writers at MotoGP.com would have you believe that the race couldn’t get any tighter or more exciting. The truth is, if Lorenzo beats Pedrosa next week, he will clinch the 2012 title and render Valencia moot. Other than that, it’s as close as can be.

Americans have been racing motorcycles around oval fairground dirt tracks almost as long as there have been motorcycles. It continues to this day barely changed from its dusty past. Meanwhile, circuit racing on asphalt tracks gets most of the contemporary glory with race fans.

After today’s race, Pedrosa had relatively little to celebrate. Sure, he stuck like glue to Lorenzo at the start, refusing to fold when the Yamaha chieftain attempted to abscond with the race in the early going. Sure, he went through on Lorenzo mid-way through the race and ended up winning comfortably. Sure, he was sufficiently composed during the post-race press conference to discuss “how to control the gap” over Lorenzo once he had gone through. This is a man near the top of his trade. Excruciatingly near.

It is with divided loyalties that MotoGP blows into The Land of the Rising Sun for the first round of its annual three-round Pacific swing. Fans excited by the prospect of a meaningful final tilt, a Game 7, in Valencia are virtually forced to project bad karma at factory Yamaha numero uno Jorge Lorenzo. Unless he suffers some major misfortune, it will be almost impossible for him not to clinch the 2012 championship before returning to Spain in November.

Aragon really is a beautiful place. The stacked stone wall looks like something straight out of the Inquisition. Running Round 14 against this backdrop reminds us we’re no longer in Kansas. The electronic billboard at the other end provides a stunning contrast, from medieval to ultra-modern.

Roughly one minute into Round 13 at Misano, the 2012 MotoGP championship contest seems to have ended with a bang. A comedy of errors at the start resulted in Repsol Honda ace Dani Pedrosa having to initiate hostilities from the last row, which he did with his usual vengeance. Slicing through the field like a hot knife through butter, his title hopes came to an inglorious end when he was unseated by Hectic Hector Barbera in Turn Six. As they say at Wimbledon, game, set and match.

Trying to pass 20 riders on the first lap, the seething Spaniard was unseated by Pramac Ducati hazard Hector Barbera, ending Pedrosa’s day and perhaps the 2012 championship contest in one fell swoop. It also cleared the way to the podium for Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo, Ducati icon Valentino Rossi and home team Gresini Honda’s Alvaro Bautista, who was joined on the rostrum by the ghost of Marco Simoncelli

One thing is certain heading into Round 13 of the 2012 MotoGP world championship – the title and venue are a mouthful. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the GP Aperol di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini hosted by the scenic and renown Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. (For the purposes of this article, let’s just call it Misano.) Less certain, however, is the identity of the rider who will be leading the series come Sunday evening. Less certain that that is which Spaniard will ultimately be the 2012 world champion.

I usually follow that up by saying “my job’s probably not as cool as you think it is … but it’s still pretty damn cool.” Indeed, most of my work involves following up news leads, tracking down photography, rendering dyno charts and deciphering press announcements to figure out exactly what makes the 2012 Vespa LX different from the 2011 version (a task made further complicated by the fact I can’t read Italian.)

With teammate Casey Stoner missing in action due to the ankle injury he suffered at Indianapolis, Pedrosa carried the hopes and expectations of the entire Honda nation into the Czech Republic. In Free Practice 1, he recorded the fastest time, with the next four going to Yamaha s. In FP2, it was pretty much the same story, with Ben Spies falling to eighth. FP3 virtually duplicated FP1. During qualifying, Pedrosa crashed early, and had to resort to his #2 bike to finish the session. Although he struggled somewhat, he eventually captured the last spot on the front row, wedged in between Yamaha stalwarts Lorenzo, Cal Crutchlow, Spies, and Andrea Dovizioso.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway has proven itself a formidable place to race motorcycles, with the long fast straight and the slow, twisty infield section, serving different asphalt on different sections of the track to keep it from becoming boring. The IMS track is slick and abrasive, reminding one of European bathroom tissue. Bridgestone brings in a bunch of tire choices, asymmetric rears, etc., and everyone has either not enough grip or too much. No blaming it on the weather, which was perfect this year.

The history of MotoGP at Indianapolis is starting to become etched in my mind, more than other circuits since I get better seats here in my home town. The 2008 inaugural race was held during Hurricane Ike, and Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi, who became Yamaha’s prodigal son this past week, tracked down Repsol Honda homeboy Nicky Hayden in a remarkably “wet race” called after 18 laps. In 2009 Rossi, who could have slammed the door on teammate Lorenzo, instead crashed out, letting Lorenzo win going away, being joined on the podium by Alex de Angelis and Nicky Hayden, the Kentucky Kid’s sole visit to the rostrum that season.

Another contributing factor is the date change. The PPIHC traditionally runs one month earlier in the summer than it did this year. A local wildfire of catastrophic proportions scorched more 18,000 acres and consumed nearly 350 homes the week before the scheduled time of the race. The slightly cooler temperatures, under brilliant sunny skies, surely kept the asphalt cooler than it would have been in July. As one might expect, these factors had profound effects on the racer’s setups.

By now you probably know what happened during the race; Lorenzo led the first half with Stoner hot on his heels. The Australian world champion made an inspired tire choice, selecting the softer rear tire while his rivals chose the harder compound. Stoner babied his tires in the first half of the race and made his move on the Spaniard midway through the race and never looked back, winning in convincing fashion. Of course, this is the Cliff Notes version of the race. Check out Bruce Allen’s recap for all the details.

Bostrom, the youngest of the three (yes, three) Bostrom brothers got his first taste of the bike the week prior during testing at Thunderhill Raceway. Not sure what to expect from an electric motorcycle he told the team, “If I don’t like it, I’m out.” Thankfully, E-Boz enjoyed his experience. Had he tried the Brammo entry last year, however, his opinion might be different, as the 2011 machine was powered by a 90-hp motor. With the help of a new motor from Parker-Hanifin, the 2012 machine pumps a claimed 140 hp to the rear wheel.

I knew something weird was happening in Monterey when I glanced at the results of the first two practice sessions and noticed that the top five spots in each were identical. FP3 was mostly fogged out, and the Repsol Honda team blew it off in the garage playing euchre rather than tackling The Corkscrew blindfolded. Lorenzo snatched the pole from Stoner on the last lap of the QP, and then Stoner topped Lorenzo in the warm-up practice on Sunday morning by a full 1/1000th of a second, after waiting an hour for the fog to clear. Although the podium duplicated last year’s rostrum, the lead-up to the weekend was vastly different.

If you’re an astute Motorcycle.com follower, you’ll remember our Recharging TTXGP story, where we caught up with Azhar Hussain of TTXGP during the first round of the North American series at Infineon Raceway. As part of an effort to expand the grid sizes for each event, a new class dubbed “E-Superstock” was introduced with the help of Kenyon Kluge of Zero Motorcycles.

Lorenzo looked fast and smooth during the weekend’s practice sessions, other than a brief loss of power at the end of qualifying that may have kept him from the pole. Pedrosa, who spent the entire weekend inhaling Lorenzo’s exhaust fumes, looked geared up to attempt a reprise of his win a week earlier in Germany, and snatched the pole late in the QP. That Round 9 would hold a few surprises was made clear on Saturday, when Pramac Racing’s ”Hectic” Hector Barbera qualified third, thus becoming the first satellite Ducati rider ever to start a MotoGP race from the front row. In the process, Mugello 2012 became the first premier class race ever to feature an all-Spanish front row, a fact I find incomprehensible, due to the recent domination of Spanish and Italian riders, both in quantity and ability.

The first half of the 2012 MotoGP season draws to a close this Sunday at Mugello, one of the most tradition-soaked circuits on the global tour. After last week’s stunning finish at the Sachsenring, the Aliens – Repsol Honda pilots Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa, and factory Yamaha heartthrob Jorge Lorenzo – sit clumped together at the top of the standings, breathing down each other’s necks. All three are relatively healthy, for a change, all three have enjoyed success at the Italian Grand Prix, and all three are hungry for another win before heading to the United States for Laguna Seca.

The weather had been a factor all weekend, alternating between damp, dry and wet, and led to some surprising practice results. Exhibit A was FP3, run in the wet, in which the top two finishers were CRT plodders Michele Pirro and Mattia Pasini. Qualifying practice closely resembled last week’s shocker in Assen, as the wet track suddenly dried out late in the session, and Stoner again snatched the pole to join Pedrosa and Yamaha’s Ben Spies on the front row. Row two included the highly ambitious Cal Crutchlow, a limping Lorenzo, and homeboy Stefan Bradl on the LCR Honda. When the red light went out, the sun was shining, the track was hot, and the big dogs had their game faces on, along with hard compound asymmetric rear slicks.

Repsol Honda’s #1 rider, Casey Stoner, is a lucky man. He’s famous, young, and wealthy, has a beautiful wife and daughter, and reigns at the top of his chosen profession, doing what he loves, or at least likes. While he may have lost his passion for racing, it still beats working for a living. Thanks to the vastly ill-considered antics of San Carlo Honda’s Alvaro Bautista at Assen last week, Stoner is also back in contention for the world championship, now tied with Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo at 140 points. Lucky and good is a wicked combination.

In spite of an influx of young athletes (including 12-year-olds doing 900s on skateboards on the super ramp) at this year’s Games, tenacity and sheer will may have been measured in year’s this go around, as the veterans made their mark in 2012.

In the practices leading up to today’s race, it appeared that Stoner was well off his normal game. Though he had the third fastest lap in FP1, the best he could manage in FP2 was 10th; in FP3 he finished 6th after a huge high side in the wet. The qualifying practice on Friday was remarkable, as Stoner was loitering in 9th position when rain interrupted things, sending everyone back to their garages. With less than five minutes remaining in the session, the sun came back out, the bikes re-entered the track, and Stoner appeared to have been fired out of a howitzer. He warmed up his tires on the first lap, and then jumped into third place on the second go-around. His third and final lap was a blur, and launched him onto the pole in front of Pedrosa and Lorenzo.

The Iveco TT Assen, a.k.a. The Dutch Grand Prix, going off this weekend for the 82nd time, is described on the MotoGP website as “the most prestigious event in Dutch motorsports”, drawing “hundreds of thousands of fanatical spectators.” While this may be true, what is beyond dispute is that the last three races have been high speed parades, due to the narrow track and relative scarcity of passing opportunities. All of which suggests that if you want to podium at The Cathedral, you’d better get off to a strong start.

The lead-up to today’s race was more interesting than usual. There was Ducati’s Valentino Rossi topping the chart in a wet FP1. A dry FP2 concluded with Spies, Bautista, Ducati #2 Nicky Hayden and LCR Honda rookie Stefan Bradl occupying spots two through five and Rossi in 11th. The only thing fans would remember about FP3 is hometown fave Cal Crutchlow going ragdoll falling off his Tech 3 Yamaha, ending up in the gravel facing Coventry with his dislocated left ankle pointing toward Oxford. While everyone else was out qualifying, Cal was in the hospital having things put back in their rightful places, and it appeared he would miss his second consecutive home race. But as they say in Chicago, “Not so fast.”

Round Six of the 2012 MotoGP season erupts this weekend at Silverstone, home of the Hertz British Grand Prix. According to Wikipedia, the village of Silverstone, on the map since at least the 11th century, boasts both a pub and a church. (!) So much for the local attractions. The newly spruced-up racing circuit is one of the longest and fastest on the calendar, comparable in length to Losail and Aragon. But since it almost always rains for the race, it’s a little misleading to call it “fast.” Perhaps a better adjective would be “clean.”

Since its 2009 debut at the Isle of Man, TTXGP has grown from a single-lap race of the island circuit (documented by Mark Neale’s Charge) to encompass three national series on as many continents culminating in a world championship round in Daytona Beach, Florida, during Biketoberfest.

Early June brings Round Five of the 2012 MotoGP season, which storms into bucolic Montmeló, Spain for the Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya. Jorge Lorenzo, fronting the factory Yamaha team, leads rival Casey Stoner in the championship by 8 points, on the strength of a formidable win two weeks ago in France.

Things, as it turned out, went Lorenzo’s way all day. His crew, with only the morning’s warm-up practice to put in wet settings, dialed in his M1 perfectly, allowing him to take the early lead. Repsol Honda’s swarthy pole-sitting Spaniard, Dani Pedrosa, appeared unable to cope with the weather conditions and faded at the start. Stoner, having been lightning quick all weekend, seemed willing to settle for sloppy seconds; perhaps this was a side-effect of the decision to retire at the absolute top of his game. And Tech 3 Yamaha pilot Andrea Dovizioso, having podiumed in France for the last three years, crashed out with two laps left. At the end of the day, Lorenzo won by almost 10 seconds in a crushing performance.

Counter-clockwise racing on dirt ovals in our country is known as the Grand National Championship and is dominated by booming V-Twins ridden by dirt-track heroes such as Chris Carr, Scott Parker and Jay Springsteen. Large, loud and a badge of honor for Harley-Davidson, the sport suits our national bigger-is-better ideology.

Round Four of the 2012 MotoGP season lifts off this weekend in northern France at historic Le Mans, where they’ve been racing one thing or another for over 90 years. As expected, the Aliens rule 2012, with Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner and factory Yamaha mullah Jorge Lorenzo sitting at the top of the heap, with a single point separating them, while Stoner’s teammate Dani Pedrosa lurks alone in third place, waiting for one of his rivals to screw up. There’s plenty of history here for you at Le Mans, with the best riders on earth looking to add to it on Sunday.

Drama and racing are synonymous, and last weekend’s West Coast Moto Jam at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California, delivered both. The Superbike points lead changed hands once again, a couple of key riders were injured in crashes, and the emergence of new teams were battling up front.