The Italian rider produced a display full of skill and determination in the early stages of the 25-lap race after he'd swept into third place on the third lap. It was a position Dovizioso wasn't to relinquish for the remainder of the race.
Cal Crutchlow started from the front row of the grid for the third time this season and like in Jerez and Le Mans, the 26-year-old produced an epic effort to try and secure his maiden MotoGP rostrum. Crutchlow shadowed Stoner throughout but despite piling on the pressure he couldn't force the Australian into making a mistake and he settled for fifth place. Crutchlow remains in the top five in the overall World Championship rankings heading to his home race at Silverstone on June 7.
Andrea Dovizioso
"I am really happy to get my first podium for Yamaha and this is a fantastic reward for all the effort my Monster Yamaha Tech 3 crew has put in since I came to this Team. We have been building up to this result for a while now, but it is great to be battling at the front in MotoGP on a satellite machine and I'm sure nobody expected us to be doing this so early. Now we can go to Silverstone with a lot of confidence."
Cal Crutchlow
"I'd have liked to have battled for the podium at the end and I think if I could have passed Casey I could have gone with Andrea. I was strong in some parts of the track and Casey in others, so each time I'd close up, he would be able to pull away and manage the gap. I couldn't do anything else to get by him but he's not the World Champion for nothing. Now I'm really looking forward to my home race at Silverstone where I hope to be battling for the podium again in front of my own fans."
Hervé Poncharal – Team Manager
"Today was a fantastic advert for MotoGP with exciting races in all three classes and for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team it was obviously fantastic to be on the podium. We have been very close to this result before this season but it is so difficult to finish in the top three when you have Casey, Dani and Jorge lining up on the grid."
Source: http://www.motogp.com