Jorge Lorenzo has taken his first MotoGP victory as reigning world champion after an accident-packed Spanish Grand Prix, round two of the 2011 MotoGP World ✃Championship and the first European race of the year.

Rain fell throughout Sunday at Jerez, and got heavier for the MotoGP mainꦚ event, which was the first wet premier-class race ܫsince Sepang, Malaysia, in 2009.

The 17 riders at least had morning warm-up to experience the conditions, when pole sitter Casey Stoner was fastest from twelfth-on-the-grid Valentino Rossi,൲ followed by Andrea Dovizioso, Nicky Hayden and Lorenzo.

Stoner𝕴 held his start line advantage into turn one, but was unable to break away and lost the lead to Marco Simoncelli on lap 6, with Lorenzo and Rossi right behind him.

Rossi - who had charged his way forwards from eighth on lap one - then passed former team-mate Lor🐟enzo on the following lap.

That put the Italian star directly behind Stoner, and the seven time MotoGP champion launched a rash p🎃ass on the Repsol Honda rider into turn oneꦫ of lap 8.

Rossi came from a long way back, but was able to cut inside Stoner without contact - until he lost the front of his Ducati, side🅰swiped Stoner and sent them both sliding into the gravel.

Rossi remained on his prone Ducati, which now had Stone⛦r's RCV lit﷽erally lying on top of it. Yet it was Rossi who got away first, while Stoner was forced to retire - and left fuming at the lack of assistance he received from the marshals.

Rossi rejoined at the back of the field, yet was still able to fiꦬnish in fifth place due to the number of accidents that followed. The #46 went straight to the Repsol Honda pits after the race to🐓 apologise to Stoner.

Stoner, although smiling and accepting Rossi's handshake, said "Your ambition outweighs your talent" during the brief exchange, in which he also asked about Rossi's shoulder.

The Rossi/Stoner collision left Simoncelli, without even a MotoGP podium to his c🔯redit, holding a two-second lead - but the Ital🌜ian threw it all away when he lost the front, then the rear, and highsided out at turn one on lap 12.

That handed Lorenzo a lead he held to the flag, but not before successfully responding to pressure from countryman Dani Pedrosa, who closed almost to within strikin🍬g dista🔯nce of the Yamaha rider before losing pace.

It looked l🀅ike Pedrosa was suffering a repeat of his arm numbness problems as he slipped back into the clutches of Lorenzo's team-mate Ben Spies late in the race.

However, tyre wear seems to have been the critical factor f🐼or all riders in the closing stages - and cost two competitors a place o𓆏n the podium.

Spies, having overtaken Pedrosa on📖 lap 24, then crashed out of second on the following lap.

That mistake handed fellow American Colin Edwards the final podium place, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 ride꧂r having just overtaken Hayden, but a stunned Edwards then crashed ouಞt after a technical failure on the last lap!

Hayden thus picke♑d up Ducati's first podium of the season, from eleventh on the grid, with Hiroshi Aoyama just behind him. Rossi was over 1 minute from Lorenzo, who once again celebrated by jumping intꦐo a lake.

Rookie Cal Crutchlow was another victim of the grip levels, falling from his Tech 3 bike while fifth with seven laps to go - the Englishm🐽an rejoined to finish eighth behind Hector Barbera and Karel Abraham. Abraham also fell during the race.

The rate of attrition helped LCR Honda's ♈Toni Elias claim ninth and John Hopkins tenth in his first MotoGP race since 2008, as a replacement for the injured Alvaro Bautista at🍸 Rizla Suzuki.

Loris Capirossi was the only Pramac rider to finish, in eleventh - after a crash for Randy de Puniet - while third Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso, who ran ꦿoff track, made a pit stop on his way to twelfth and last.

Pedrosa will undergo shoulder surgery🃏 on Monday to 💛try and cure the numbness he has suffered since his collarbone was broken at Motegi last year.

With t♎he 2011 Japanese Grand Prix postponed, round three will be the Portuguese round at Estoril, which starts at the end of this month.

Spanish Grand Prix:

1. Lorenzo
2. Pedrosa
3. Hayden
4. Aoyama
5. Rossi
6. Barbera
7. Abraham
8. Crutchlow
9. Elias
10. Hopkins
11. Capirossi
12. Dovizioso