Lorenzo's Silverstone slip-up

Spanish MotoGP rider Jorge Lorenzo lost his championship lead on Sunday to Australian rival Casey Stoner, after crashing out of a rain-soaked British Grand Prix. Stoner went on to take the win at Silverstone, leaving him with 116 points in the championship battle to Lorenzo's 98.

The Spaniard had lined up his Yamaha in third place on the grid, but managed to sprint into the lead at the start. He didn't hold that position for long, however, as the Hondas of Stoner and Andrea Dovizioso swept past him before the first lap was over.

Stoner then managed to muscle his way past his teammate, while Lorenzo had to give up third place to Italian rider Marco Simoncelli, on the Gresini Honda. A mistake by Simoncelli, however, allowed Lorenzo back through and gave him a chance to hassle Dovizioso for second.

It was on lap eight that reigning world champion Lorenzo suffered a high-side, sending both him and his bike sliding off into the gravel at high speed. The Spaniard immediately jumped up, uninjured, but was unable to salvage his race due to the damage sustained to his Yahama.

Stoner, meanwhile, was extending his lead with every lap, eventually catching up with and lapping the last two riders despite the appalling conditions. Dovizioso came in second, and Colin Edwards, on the Tech 3 Yamaha, finished third.

Spain also had a day to forget in the Moto2 category, with polesitter Marc Márquez dropping down to 13th in the rain-soaked race, and later crashing out. Márquez, who is the reigning 125cc champion, is currently languishing in eighth place in the riders' rankings.