MotoGP: Lorenzo's world championship backed by his numbers

MotoGP: Lorenzo's world championship backed by his numbers

Published Nov. 9, 2015 2:45 p.m. ET

The numbers never lie, and new MotoGP world champion Jorge Lorenzo has no doubt he outclassed Valentino Rossi in every key area on the way to the 2015 title.

The Yamaha teammates fought a season-long battle for the championship that went down to the final race in Valencia.

Lorenzo denies that his championship performance has been devalued by the acrimonious atmosphere generated by the bitter feud between Rossi and Repsol Honda rider Marc Marquez.

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Lorenzo, 28, finished the season on a high, riding the perfect race to clinch his third MotoGP title, despite claims by Rossi that Marquez was Lorenzo's wingman over the final three races.

"I think my speed and my determination demonstrates that I deserve the championship, so I hope everyone respects the final result of the championship," Lorenzo said.

Lorenzo delivered his seventh and final win of the season by leading every lap from pole position at Valencia, turning the fairytale of a Rossi win into a nightmare for his Italian rival.

"I think clearly I deserved this world title because if you see the statistics compared I beat him (Rossi) in everything - in victories, in pole positions, in fast laps, in laps leading the race, leading the practice – in everything," Lorenzo said.

Lorenzo was the first rider since Giacomo Agostini in 1966 to claim the championship by winning the final race of the season.

The Spanish rider laments the mistakes, including a crucial error when he crashed in the rain at Misano, which cost him a bunch of valuable points towards the title fight.

"The beginning of my season was bad, and this avoided me arriving to Valencia with probably 20, 30 or even 40 points ahead," Lorenzo said.

"It is clear, everybody who knows our bikes, who saw me on the track and on the television who is not clearly supporting one rider, can see these things."

Lorenzo didn't win the first of his seven races of the season until round four, the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez.

By the numbers:

Race Wins:

Lorenzo - 7           Rossi - 4

Laps Led:

Lorenzo - 274        Rossi - 50

Pole Positions:

Lorenzo - 5            Rossi - 1

Race Fastest Laps:

Lorenzo - 6            Rossi - 4

 

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