Casey Stoner celebrates after following up his
opening-day victory in Qatar with another win at Le Mans on Sunday.
(CNN) -- Australian motorcyclist Casey Stoner claimed his second
victory this season while chaos reigned on the track behind him at the French
Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Spaniard had won the third race this season last time out in Portugal after recovering from shoulder surgery, but his championship hopes suffered a blow after 17 of the 28 laps at Le Mans.
Pedrosa was passed by Simoncelli but clipped the bike of his fellow Honda rider when he tried to retake second place.
Stoner sets MotoGP pace at Le Mans
The Italian was later handed a drive-through penalty for an illegal move, relegating him to fifth place and denying the 24-year-old his first podium position.
That incident left seven-time world champion Valentino Rossi as Stoner's closest chaser, but he was beaten to second place by fellow Italian Andrea Dovizioso.
It was still Rossi's best finish since leaving Yamaha for Ducati, but he trails former teammate Jorge Lorenzo by 31 points.
World champion Lorenzo finished fifth to be 12 points clear of Stoner and 18 ahead of Pedrosa as he became the youngest rider to start in 150 grands prix in all classes.
The 24-year-old Spaniard had a bad start to the day when he crashed in practice, injuring his finger and wrecking his bike.
The race featured several casualties as home hope Randy de Puniet, Loris Capirossi and Cal Crutchlow crashed out -- as did the latter's Yamaha teammate Colin Edwards, but the veteran American returned to the track to finish 13th.
Stoner, in his first season with Repsol Honda, triumphed by more than 14 seconds as he continued the dominance he showed in practice and qualifying to win for the first time at Le Mans.
The 25-year-old won the opening race of the season in Qatar,
but failed to finish in Jerez as Lorenzo triumphed on home soil, and was third
in Portugal as Pedrosa led a Spanish 1-2.
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