Spanish rider lucky to escape serious injury

Dani, this is the safety wall… safety wall, this is Dani.

Honda Repsol rider Pedrosa slid off in wet conditions during Sunday’s MotoGP in Germany, and went face first into an inflatable safety wall. Thank the sweet lord that he did - he was tossed from his bike like a rag doll and flew into the wall with considerable force.

According to reports, Pedrosa broke his left wrist plus a finger in his left hand, and sprained an ankle. Like we said, it could have been much worse. Honda has not taken a decision yet on whether Pedrosa can ride in this week’s US MotoGP at Laguna Seca.

Watch a video of Pedrosa’s crash below:

Two wheels, two girls

We’ve tried for several minutes to come up with some appropriate copy to accompany this photo, but since we doubt you’d read it, we’ll just waffle on like this whilst you chomp on the eye candy draped on this ZX-RR.

Finished staring? Good - you may also want to know that the German MotoGP, held on Sunday, was won in the rain by reigning world champion Casey Stoner. It was the Aussie’s third victory in a row, and puts him firmly back in the title mix. Valentino Rossi now leads the championship, with Dani Pedrosa in second place. Pedrosa crashed out in Germany, suffering suspected fractures to his anke and finger.

Watch a fan’s eye view of Pedrosa’s big crash below:

Grid Crasher sees who endured a China crisis

Five winners:

1. Valentino Rossi The Doctor is back again, after a seven-race winless streak - ah, we never doubted him. The Italian maestro hardly put a wheel wrong in Shanghai, and is deservedly the new bookies’ favourite for the title. Great to see him back on the podium’s top step.

2. & 3. Charlie Cox & Steve Parrish The BBC’s MotoGP first-class commentary duo continue to entertain, inform and excite – they complement each other so well. We’d like to see them involved somehow in the Beeb’s F1 coverage next season.

We rank the hottest racers and riders in the world of motorsport

1. Kimi Raikkonen (F1)
Drove what he claimed was his best race to win in Spain last weekend, and could have gone faster if necessary. Leads the F1 drivers’ championship and now looks totally at ease in his Ferrari. A worthy No.1 in our inaugural rankings.

2. Troy Bayliss (World Superbikes)
Continued his relentless charge towards a third Superbikes world title with back-to-back wins at Assen. The 39-year-old Aussie is now 70 points ahead of his nearest rival, an uprecedented lead at this stage of the season.