The Bugatti circuit at Le Mans is a bit rubbish, so we’re told. It didn’t stop the French Grand Prix from spoiling us with three tremendous races today though – and plenty of talking points around the races too.

Road Rash

It started this morning in MotoGP warm-up, when Randy de Puniet accidentally got right in the way of Casey Stoner. Stoner’s reaction was to pull alongside de Puniet and give him a bit of a punch. It brought back happy memories of Road Rash.

125cc

Nico Terol inevitably lead from the start of the 125cc race, but was followed closely by rookie Maverick Vinales. Was Terol biding his time? Could the rookie really keep up with the experienced championship leader? It was fantastically tense.

They toyed with each other brilliantly all race long, taking it in turns to lead, but neither could pull out any kind of advantage. The decisive move was left to the last lap, and it was Vinales who made it. That was the first of two jump off the sofa moments today.

It was an astonishing victory for the 16 year old in only his fourth race. But equally impressive was how gracious Terol was in defeat. But with an increased 36 point lead in the standings, he can afford to be.

Moto2

The Moto2 race wasn’t quite as tense, but it was a solidly entertaining bit of bike racing. It would have been enough for Marc Marquez to finally finish a Moto2 race, so to battle through from the arse end of the top ten on the first lap to take the win was nothing short of spectacular. Which, of course, it what we expect of him. Hopefully he’s got the hang of the bike now, and we’ll see more of that sort of thing.

MotoGP

Everyone had a reason to push in the MotoGP race today. Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa are fighting for supremacy within the Honda team; Marco Simoncelli wants to get in amongst the factory Honda boys; Jorge Lorenzo wants to challenge any of the Hondas (not counting Toni Elias, of course); and Valentino Rossi is looking to challenge anyone he has the opportunity to as he develops the Ducati.

Add to the mix the widespread complaints about Simoncelli’s rough and ready riding style; Pedrosa’s fast but fragile state; and the simmering rivalries between Stoner and Rossi, Rossi and Lorenzo, Lorenzo and Simoncelli. If that’s not the set up for a stunning race, I don’t know what is.

The race absolutely delivered. Everyone was pushing – for the aforementioned reasons – and it produced some great racing. Stoner eventually ran away with it, after Simoncelli and Pedrosa blew up – ending badly for both parties. That left Dovizioso, Rossi and Lorenzo to fight over the remaining podium positions – ending up in that order.

Plus there was a distracting little battle going on to not finish last, between Hector Barbera, Karel Abraham, Toni Elias and Alvaro Bautista, who all finished within half a second of each other. An embarrassment of racing riches, really.

That incident involving Simoncelli and Pedrosa, then – the other jump off the sofa moment today. No doubt it was a hefty move from Simoncelli, but did it deserve a ride through penalty more than any other move this season? Probably not. What’s not in question is that Pedrosa breaking his right collarbone is a blow for the championship.

Rock ‘n’ roll

But it would be a shame to end on a downer, after such a good day of racing. So our final thoughts go to Slash, who was a guest of someone or other at Le Mans today. The BBC’s Matt Roberts spoke to him on the grid, which soon turned out to have been a bad idea when Slash dropped a casual little F-bomb after being asked whether he was enjoying himself. Obviously he was.

Picture Credits
Road Rash: The Urban Gamer
Casey Stoner & Randy de Puniet: MotoGP.com