Pedrosa takes Indy GP

Spain's Dani Pedrosa took his third MotoGP win of the season on Sunday at the Indianapolis Grand Prix. Australian Casey Stoner crashed out early in the race.

The win narrows the Repsol Honda rider's deficit on championship leader Jorge Lorenzo to 68 points, with the latter finishing two spots back in third in a season-worst result for the Spaniard.

In last year's corresponding race, Pedrosa crashed from starting on pole position.

But he had little trouble making amends, passing Yamaha rookie rider Ben Spies at the start of the eighth lap and finished 3.575 seconds ahead of the American.

It was runner-up Spies' second podium finish of his debut season on the MotoGP circuit, capping off a brilliant few days for the youngster after he was confirmed as a Yamaha factory rider for the 2011 season in the lead-up to the race.

Reigning world champion and Fiat Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi finished fourth while Repsol Honda's Andrea Dovizioso came fifth.

Nicky Hayden could not capitalise on his first front-row position on the grid at Ducati, and finished the race in sixth spot.

Stoner was a shock non-finisher, crashing on lap eight after he lost control of the front end of his Ducati.

The main race was overshadowed by the death of rider 13-year-old Peter Lenz, who crashed in an earlier race on Sunday and was consequently run over by another motorcycle.