Jorge Lorenzo had a spectacle of a highside during the cooldown lap after MotoGP’s Free Practice 3, sending the Spanish rider into the air and his Yamaha YZR-M1 motorcycle tumbling after him. Stopping to do a practice start, the traction control on Lorenzo’s M1 was disabled, which is normal during such an event. Failing to re-engage the TC system after his start by downshifting (as would happen going into Turn 1 after a start), Lorenzo entered the next turn without his rider aids.

Cracking the throttle wide-open on the corner exit (as is the custom now with GP bikes), the Yamaha recieved full-power to the rear wheel, resulting in the accident. Hitting the ground hard, Lorenzo recieved further injury from his M1 also colliding with him, resulting in the Spaniard grabbing his knee and being slow to get up from the gravel trap. Helped off the track by corner workers, Lorenzo was already recovering from the incident by the time he got to the Clinca Mobile.

After seeing a flop of a round at Infineon earlier this year with four, then three entries racing on the two race days, it would seem that some good has come from the FIM and TTXGP playing nice with each other, as twelve entries have been listed for the upcoming electric motorcycle race. Poised to be perhaps the best e-moto race to date, we have virtually all the major players in the electric motorcycle production, technology, and racing gig as entrants for the event (noticeably absent are Zero Motorycles and the “banned” Chip Yates).

Other notable notations include Lightning fielding two bikes, one in each TTXGP class, as well as eCRP entering two bikes in the open class. It also looks like Michael Czysz will be once again riding again on-board his 2011 MotoCzysz E1pc, personally defending his victory at last year’s Laguna Seca gathering. Find all twelve entries for the FIM/TTXGP round listed after the jump.

Asphalt & Rubber is coming to you live from Laguna Seca for the rest of the week and weekend, and upon our arrival at the historic Californian track, we had a moment to talk to Jorge Lorenzo about his recent statement that he would not race at Motegi, even before Dorna’s independent safety review of the Japanese track was published.

Responding to the criticism that his statement ran counter to the “With You Japan” message Yamaha and the rest of the MotoGP paddock have been showing, Lorenzo made his position clear that he was for Japan, but not Motegi. Perhaps hinting that another circuit should be chosen for the Japanese GP.

While the Indianapolis GP has been renewed for another season, talk continues to swell regarding the Brickyard, and whether it will remain on the MotoGP calendar. While a notably historic track in the United States, and a venue capable of easily handling an event like GP racing, track conditions at Indianapolis weighed heavily on riders’ minds while contending with the midwest circuit this past season.

With members of the GP safety commission audibly displeased with the track’s layout and and changing tarmac patches, and a new GP-quality track in Austin, Texas currently being built, the writing appears to be on the wall for Indy. Playing host to Formula One US GP (which ironically used to be held at Indianapolis) from 2012 to 2021, the new track in Austin has however denied talks with MotoGP, and having the series race at its venue. But don’t believe everything you hear.

In an announcement made before today’s Indianapolis GP, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway published that it will host MotoGP again next year, as Dorna has renewed The Brickyard with a one-year contract. This announcement puts an end to the immediate chatter that surrounded the MotoGP venue before this weekend, as it was speculated that IMS would not be returning to the MotoGP calendar for the 2011 season.

However the announcement also raises some more eyebrows, specifically because of the short renewal duration (Laguna Seca also renewed its contract with Dorna this year, but will host MotoGP through 2014), and also because of the growing pressure from riders regarding the track’s surface and format.

Perhaps most vocal of his opinion about the track’s condition is Casey Stoner. The Ducati rider missed last year’s Indianapolis GP, and says that there has been a significant degradation between Indy’s inaugural conditions and those from this weekend. One of the victim’s of the bumps in Turn 6, Stoner succintly believes that there’s, “a lot of the circuit they need to have a big think about.”

Actor, comedian, and motorhead Jay Leno will serve as the Indianapolis GP’s Grand Marshal later this month when MotoGP makes its last stop in the United States for the year. Leno’s duties include presenting the Winner’s Trophy at the end of the race, and we have it on good authority that his chin will be waiving the checkered flag at the race’s conclusion (this last statement may have been fabricated for comedic purposes).

Rumors have been swelling for the past few months about the state of MotoGP in the United States, as both Laguna Seca and Indianapolis Motor Speedway were up for contract renewal with Dorna and the FIM. Laguna Seca has always been the more popular American venue for MotoGP, and during the Red Bull US GP stop, the famous Californian track and the premiere motorcycle series again solidified their relationship, extending the GP’s presence at Laguna Seca into 2014. But what fate bestills IMS and the timing of the US GP weekends after 2010?