Whybyflier et al,
I believe the reason rudder is mentioned and used in some stall recovery methods, is because it is the yaw that develops at the point of stall due to the sudden increase in drag of that wing at the point of stall. The wing drop is normally the bit we as pilots see more visually. So rudder is used to prevent further yaw, not actually wing drop.
In this incident, we get a perfect view underneath the jet so we are not seeing it from a pilot's eye view. I would guess that if you look at any aircraft that stalls one wing first for what ever reason (rudder application, dirty wing, gust, aileron input etc) it would look like a massive yaw has developed from a pilot input.
So - although none of us know exactly what or wasn't applied in this event it seems to appear to me, for whatever reason (pilot induced or not) the right wing finally stalled causing a rapid yaw with resultant roll in the direction of yaw. . . basically a spin entry that due to the delightful 747 it briefly headed 'towards' a spiral dive which then self corrected? That perhaps more altitude may have given them a fighting chance . . . but there for the grace of god and all that.
However I am not a swept wing specialist so perhaps my straight wing stalling theory is flawed?