2007 FIM 250cc World Championship Phillip Island, Australia October 14, 2007 Race Results: 1. Jorge LORENZO (Aprilia), 25 laps, 39:25.727 2. Alvaro BAUTISTA (Aprilia), -19.634 seconds 3. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda), -19.724 4. Hiroshi AOYAMA (KTM), -19.797 5. Thomas LUTHI (Aprilia), -20.066 6. Julian SIMON (Honda), -21.045 7. Marco SIMONCELLI (Gilera), -32.960 8. Shuhei AOYAMA (Honda), -33.043 9. Alex DE ANGELIS (Aprilia), -33.051 10. Yuki TAKAHASHI (Honda), -44.814 21. Alex BALDOLINI (Aprilia), -7 laps, DNF, retired 24. Mika KALLIO (KTM), -24 laps, crash 26. Hector BARBERA (Aprilia), -25 laps, retired 2007 FIM 250cc World Championship Point Standings (after 15 of 17 races): 1. Lorenzo, 287 points 2. Dovizioso, 242 3. De Angelis, 215 4. Bautista, 181 5. Barbera, 146 6. Hiroshi Aoyama, 129 7. Kallio, 119 8. Luthi, 115 9. Simon, 103 10. Shuhei Aoyama, 87 More, from a press release issued by KTM: “Hero” Aoyama battles to fourth place at Phillip Island Red Bull KTM “hero” Hiroshi Aoyama put in a hard fought battle Sunday at the Australian 250 cc Grand Prix to charge through the chequered flag in fourth place. In the closest of races right to the finish line, the Japanese rider was denied another podium place by a mere seven hundredths of a second. As usual Aoyama was well up with the contenders, even after he released the clutch a little too quickly at the start. The 25-year-old Japanese rider dropped back to the middle of the pack and was in eighth place at the end of the first lap. But it only took Aoyama a third of the 25-lap-distance to have the front runners in his sights, including runaway championship winner Jorge Lorenzo. From that point on Aoyama was then embroiled in a thrilling battle for second place with Bautista, Dovizioso, Luethi and Simon. Changing places frequently as they jockeyed for the top spots, the riders battled it out until the end of the race delivering the kind of thrills and excitement that 250 cc racing aficionados have come to expect in these world championship competitions. “We use a longer than usual gearing on the first gear on this track. I released the clutch a bit too aggressively at the start and dropped back. But once I had a clear track in front of me, I was able to ride at my own rhythm, and catch up with the group that was battling for second place. But it was tough out there – I would pass the guys in the high speed turns, where I had a bit of an advantage over them, and they would re-pass me in the slower corners, where they had the advantage,” Aoyama commented after the race. He admitted to being “a little bit angry” that he missed a podium place but said he was pleased with the performance of his KTM machine and was looking forward with confidence to the next and penultimate race in Malaysia. Regrettably, Aoyama’s Red Bull KTM team-mate Mika Kallio was not so fortunate. The 24-year-old Finn, who won the last Grand Prix in Japan just three weeks ago, never really found the right set-up for the Phillip Island circuit. His bid for another podium ended in a crash in just the second lap, when he tried to match the pace of the front runners. “I pushed hard from the start and I really tried to stay within reach of the front runners,” Kallio said. “I rode with Hiroshi in the opening lap but on lap two, I opened the throttle a bit too early in one of the corners, got high-sided and crashed. Now I hope for better luck at the next race in Malaysia, where the track characteristics are completely different again!”