Jorge Lorenzo claimed victory in the Indianapolis MotoGP as Valentino Rossi crashed out on lap nine at the Brickyard.
Fiat Yahama duo now split by just 25 points at top of standings
Jorge Lorenzo halved the gap to championship leader Valentino Rossi with victory in the Indianapolis MotoGP at the Brickyard.
The Fiat Yamaha rider's third win of the 2009 campaign means he is now just 25 points behind his team-mate with five races left to go.
Rossi endured a day to forget on American soil, failing to complete a race for the first time since Valencia in 2007.
The world champion crashed out on lap nine when battling it out at the head of the field.
By that stage polesitter Dani Pedrosa had already lost his lead following a fall on the fourth lap. The Honda rider did manage to rejoin the race, though, eventually finishing 10th.
Lorenzo made the most of his chance to cut the deficit to Rossi, coming home 9.43 seconds clear of San Marino's Alex De Angelis.
"In the last two races, I tried to win and I crashed, so I was a bit disappointed," Lorenzo said. "But now today, the situation changed completely. It changed for Valentino and Dani, unfortunately for them.
American Nicky Hayden rounded out the podium by taking third place in front of his home fans having started from sixth on the grid.
Andrea Dovizioso was fourth ahead of Colin Edwards on a Monster Yamaha Tech 3. James Toseland took sixth spot, equalling the Brit's best MotoGP result to date.
Moto GP Drivers Championship Standings: 1 Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha 212pts,
2 Jorge Lorenzo (Spa) Yamaha 187,
3 Casey Stoner (Aus) Ducati 150,
4 Dani Pedrosa (Spa) Honda 141,
5 Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha 123,
6 Andrea Dovizioso (Ita) Honda 120,
7 Alex De Angelis (Smr) Honda 88,
8 Loris Capirossi (Ita) Suzuki 86,
9 Randy De Puniet (Fra) Honda 84,
10 Marco Melandri (Ita) Kawasaki 79
Manufacturers Championship Standings: 1 Yamaha 280pts,
2 Honda 204,
3 Ducati 182,
4 Suzuki 109,
5 Kawasaki 79
