MotoGP Race Results: 1. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, Michelin, 22 laps, 43:33.759 2. Marco MELANDRI, Honda, Michelin, -1.670 seconds 3. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, Michelin, -5.536 seconds 4. Colin EDWARDS, Yamaha, Michelin, -14.737 seconds 5. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, Michelin, -20.431 seconds 6. Carlos CHECA, Ducati, Bridgestone, -31.432 seconds 7. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, Bridgestone, -32.983 seconds 8. Toni ELIAS, Yamaha, Michelin, -39.888 seconds 9. Alex BARROS, Honda, Michelin, -41.792 seconds 10. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, Bridgestone, -44.252 seconds 11. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, Bridgestone, -48.745 seconds 12. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati, Dunlop, -61.991 seconds 13. Shane BYRNE, Honda, Michelin, -64.805 seconds 14. Ruben XAUS, Yamaha, Michelin, -73.824 seconds 15. James ELLISON, Blata, Dunlop, -128.642 seconds 16. Franco BATTAINI, Blata, Dunlop, -1 lap 17. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, Bridgestone, -1 lap, mechanical 18. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, Michelin, -5 laps, DNF, crash 19. Max BIAGGI, Honda, Michelin, -16 laps, DNF, mechanical MotoGP World Championship Point Standings (after 14 of 17 races): 1. ROSSI, 306 points 2. BIAGGI, 159 points 3. MELANDRI, 157 points 4. EDWARDS, 152 points 5. HAYDEN, 150 points 6. CAPIROSSI, 148 points 7. BARROS, 129 points 8. GIBERNAU, 126 points 9. Carlos CHECA, 98 points 10. NAKANO, 78 points 11. TAMADA, 68 points 12. ROBERTS, 63 points 13. Troy BAYLISS, 54 points 14. HOPKINS, 53 points 15. ELIAS, 51 points 16. XAUS, 45 points 17. Olivier JACQUE, 25 points 18. TIE, ROLFO/Alex HOFMANN, 22 points 20. Jurgen vd GOORBERGH, 12 points 21. TIE, BYRNE/BATTAINI, 6 points 23. ELLISON, 5 points 24. David CHECA, 4 points 25. Tohru UKAWA, 1 point More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: NAKANO IMPRESSES WITH SEVENTH PLACE IN QATAR A sweat-soaked Shinya Nakano rode his Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR into a rewarding seventh place in today’s Qatar Grand Prix. After failing to finish in the previous two races, in Japan and Malaysia, Nakano’s top ten finish in heat wave conditions came after another consistent, mistake-free performance. Nakano finished just 1.6s behind Carlos Checa, both riders using Bridgestone tyres, in the 22-lap race won by Valentino Rossi. Bridgestone riders had won the previous two races. After a sharp start from seventh on the third row, Nakano made a forward move into turn one, before being squeezed back to tenth as the pack battled for early track position. Nakano passed Yamaha’s Toni Elias to be ninth at the end of lap one, and by lap eight had settled into seventh, after going ahead of Roberto Rolfo and race winner in Japan and Malaysia, Loris Capirossi. Over the final 14 laps Nakano gave chase to Checa, and at one stage closed to within 0.6s of his Spanish rival, with a series of fast, consistent laps on the mostly one-line Losail Circuit. By the end of the race Nakano had pulled a seven second gap on Elias, to record his eighth top ten finish of the season. The result consolidates Nakano’s tenth place in the World Championship standings with three races remaining. Nakano was the sole representative for the Kawasaki Racing Team in today’s race, following the withdrawal of Olivier Jacque, who a suffered shoulder and neck injury in the opening practice session on Thursday. Shinya Nakano: #56 – Seventh “I’m happy to finish a race after the problems of the past two weeks. Seventh is okay, I had expected to be closer to the front group, but it wasn’t possible today. Once I got behind Checa we had a great race, but I could only follow him, we had the same tyres and the same lap times – it wasn’t possible to pass. The Bridgestone tyres were consistent today and the increased top speed of the latest ZX-RR motor a big help. But we still need more acceleration to race the front group. My start was normal but many riders went to the inside, and Rolfo was very strong on the brakes, and we almost touched. I didn’t want to take a risk and crash, I wanted to finish this race.” Ichiro Yoda: Technical Manager “These very hot conditions made this a very tough race for Kawasaki. I’m happy for seventh but also a little disappointed, we anticipated being closer to the front group today. The upgraded motor was a step forward, but we still need to work on controllability and acceleration.” Harald Eckl: Team Manager “Shinya rode another very consistent race today and seventh is about the level of the our ZX-RR package at the moment. It was very important for the team to finish this race in the top ten and Shinya delivered for us, as he always does when given the opportunity. Keeping Shinya in the top ten of the championship points is now our priority for the remainder of the season.” More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Rossi takes revenge at Doha with tenth victory of the season Valentino Rossi added the Losail International Circuit to his long list of Grand Prix conquests today as he banished the memory of his crash here last season with his tenth victory of the season in the Marlboro Grand Prix of Qatar. Rossi passed Marco Melandri with three laps remaining, just two laps after Sete Gibernau had buckled under pressure from his Honda team-mate and run straight into the gravel. The Italian pair rubbed elbows in an intense battle over the last fifteen kilometres of the race, with Melandri making a desperate surge just three corners from the end but running out of track on the exit of the turn and conceding victory to his compatriot. “What a race!” said Rossi, who has now won at every circuit on the Grand Prix calendar except Laguna Seca and Istanbul, which will host the series for the first time in three weeks. “For me that was the best of the season, it was so much fun. I had bad memories from this circuit from last year so I really wanted to win and after practice yesterday I knew it was not impossible. I have to thank my whole team because my bike was very fast over the final few laps, which it needed to be because Marco Melandri was very strong and we had a great battle. He tried to pass me on the last lap but I was able to hold on and win.” Nicky Hayden was the only other rider capable of following the intense pace at the front, the American youngster setting a new lap record of 1’57.903, faster than his time in qualifying, to seal the final podium position in third place. Colin Edwards was unable to repeat his podium finish from last season, bringing his YZR-M1 home in a distant fourth place but adding valuable points to Rossi’s tally and securing the Teams’ World Championship for Gauloises Yamaha. Gibernau returned to the track to pick up his first points in over two months as he crossed the line in fifth place, with Carlos Checa taking sixth on a relatively disappointing day for Ducati. After taking his third consecutive pole position yesterday, Checa’s team-mate Loris Capirossi was unable to follow up with a third straight win as he struggled to tenth place, despite leading in the early stages. Capirossi’s problems, combined with a mechanical breakdown for Max Biaggi and those podium finishes for Melandri and Hayden, mean that just eleven points now separate five riders in the chase for the runner-up spot with three rounds remaining. Casey Stoner continued his quest to hunt down 250cc World Championship leader Dani Pedrosa with a convincing fourth victory of the season, his second in just six days. Pedrosa, who was leading by 63 points before his crash in Malaysia last weekend, could only manage fourth place today and has seen his advantage reduced to just 26 points, with Stoner’s home race at Phillip Island in Australia next on the calendar. Jorge Lorenzo marked his return to action from a one-race ban with a second-place finish from pole position, whilst Andrea Dovizioso stole the final podium spot with a draught pass on Pedrosa at the line. Mika Kallio regained control of the 125cc World Championship despite conceding victory to Gabor Talmacsi by just 0.017 seconds. Kallio led his KTM team-mate for the entire race after the pair broke free from the pack over the opening laps, only to concede victory at the finish line after an expertly timed slipstream carried the Hungarian to the line first. Despite his disappointment at second place, Kallio now leads the championship by two points from Thomas Lüthi, who could only manage sixth place as Marco Simoncelli completed the podium. More, from a press release issued by Gauloises Yamaha: ROSSI’S TENTH VICTORY SECURES TEAM TITLE FOR GAULOISES YAMAHA Just six days after lifting the MotoGP title with Valentino Rossi in Malaysia, the Gauloises Yamaha Team were celebrating again today as Valentino Rossi’s record-breaking tenth victory of the season secured the Teams’ World Championship at the Qatar Grand Prix. Rossi became the first Yamaha rider ever to take his win total for a single season into double figures after an exhilarating last-lap battle with Marco Melandri (Honda), whilst his team-mate Colin Edwards boosted the team’s points tally to unbeatable status with a determined ride to fourth place. Rossi’s 79th victory of his career came after 22 dramatic laps of the Losail International Circuit, with Loris Capirossi (Ducati) taking an early lead from pole position before Sete Gibernau (Honda) took over. The Spaniard had built up a solid advantage by the halfway stage but he was eventually reeled in by the chasing pack and made a critical error with five laps remaining, running into the gravel when trying to repel an attack from Melandri. With Nicky Hayden (Honda) in close attendance, Rossi closed in on Melandri and the two Italians went head to head in a gripping finale, Rossi taking the lead with three laps remaining and holding off one last attempt from Melandri just two corners from the end to secure victory. With the riders’ and teams’ titles now in the bag, Yamaha needs to be just 50 points clear after Phillip Island to clinch the Manufactures’ Championship. VALENTINO ROSSI (1st 43’33.759) “What a race! For me that was the best of the season, it was so much fun. I had bad memories from this circuit from last year so I really wanted to win and after practice yesterday I knew it was not impossible. I had two great rivals and all three of us showed that we were in very good shape until the end. We gave more than 100% and had a fantastic battle from the beginning to the end. I have to thank Yamaha and my whole team because my bike was very fast over the final few laps, which it needed to be because Marco Melandri was very strong and we had a great battle. He tried to pass me on the last lap but I was able to hold on and win my tenth of the season. I am very, very happy.” COLIN EDWARDS (4th; + 14.737) “I felt we had the pace yesterday but we were looking for a little bit more rear grip to take that extra step and went with a different tyre this morning. It was the same as the other guys were using but my bike was set up around the tyre we had yesterday and I couldn’t turn the thing. It was pushing the front a lot in the corners and I kept having to run it straight. We need to figure out why that was and take the lesson to Phillip Island in a couple of weeks. I’m disappointed for my team today because I was confident I could be up there fighting for the win and in the end it just didn’t happen. On the up-side, my points today contributed to the teams’ championship, so that’s a good thing to take away from here.” DAVIDE BRIVIO GAULOISES YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR “Today we saw a fantastic race, scored another victory and won another title so of course we are delighted. Valentino clearly wanted to win the race after what happened last year and he came out on top of another incredible battle, so congratulations to him. Colin finished in fourth place, which is not what he had hoped for, but he scored some important points and closed the gap to second in the championship so we are happy for him. The team have worked extremely well since Thursday, finding the right set-up for both bikes early in the weekend and then just fine-tuning for the race. We’ve won the Teams’ Championship today and both riders have contributed to this, so congratulations to everybody. Both Valentino and Colin like Phillip Island so now we all looking forward to going to Australia in two weeks.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Top six for Bridgestone in Doha desert sauna Bridgestone’s impressive run in the flyaway MotoGP races continued today after Carlos Checa claimed his third consecutive top six finish in a scorching hot Qatar GP. Coming into the race on the back of two stunning victories for in-form Ducati rider Loris Capirossi in Japan and Malaysia, Bridgestone made the perfect start to the weekend in search of an incredible hat-trick when the Italian claimed his third consecutive pole position on Friday. But although today’s results didn’t reach the dizzy heights of the previous two races in the Far East, Checa praised Bridgestone technicians. Tyres flown over from Japan to cope with the hot, sandy and abrasive 5.3km Losail circuit were a significant improvement from those he used at a test at the Middle East venue back in March. Front tyre stability was the biggest improvement, and rear tyre performance was also improved with a cleaner racing line and extra grip available compared to the 2004 Qatar GP. Spanish rider Checa ended a gruelling 22-lap race, run in baking hot temperatures that peaked close to 40 degrees, just one place ahead of fellow Bridgestone rider Shinya Nakano riding the Kawasaki ZX-RR. Starting from the second row of the grid, Checa slipped back to eighth position on lap two, but made a quick recovery to pass fast-starting Roberto Rolfo to take seventh on lap three. He moved into sixth place on lap eight after a mistake by Ducati Desmosedici team-mate Loris Capirossi, but unable to make any impression on the leading pack, he then had to keep maximum concentration to keep Nakano at bay. A gusting wind added to the stress of the extreme heat in today’s race as Capirossi’s recent domination came to an end. The 32-year-old Italian had to settle for 10th position. The Ducati rider made a typical fast start from pole position and led the first lap with world champion Valentino Rossi in the pursuing bunch. Having slipped back to sixth place, an off-track excursion on lap eight dropped him back to 12th position before he fought back to pass Rolfo and Kenny Roberts Junior. Carlos Checa Ducati Marlboro Team 6th position “It was a difficult race but I am very satisfied. When we tested here in March we had many problems and limitations with the tyres but it is clear the hard work done by Bridgestone has fixed it. It might not be at the level we wanted it to but it was an acceptable race. Always when you are making improvements at the rate that Bridgestone are it can go up and down. But I am really satisfied with the work made by them for this race. We now have much more experience and information that will be useful for the future to make further improvements because this was a track where Bridgestone has suffered at before. Compared to the test we have much more stability and endurance from the front tyre. The rear stability has also improved, but in the race it still wasn’t enough. We just didn’t find the right combination between stability, endurance and performance. It is never easy and it proved that for us here this weekend. The track was much better than when we raced here last year but not as good as when we tested. It was much less windy at the test and I think that played a part in today’s race with some of the problems we had. It was blowing a lot of sand on the track that might have worn the tyres quicker.” Junichi Kawajiri – Motorcycle Racing Tyre Development Manager Bridgestone Motorsport “From a developmental standpoint, I am somewhat satisfied with what we achieved here. Losail was one of the circuits we had the most problems with last year, especially on the front tyre, and we were able to make a big step forward this year in terms of performance and durability. We were able to score another pole position with Loris to make a hat-trick, and this was exciting to see. However in the race, it was made clear that despite our best efforts, we have still some catching up to do against our competitor here. Racing is of course about the results, so we will surely work even harder to achieve better results in Qatar next year. A big thank you to our 3 teams for all their hard work during this weekend, and we will now aim our efforts towards the next race in Phillip Island. “ Bridgestone Results: 6. Carlos Checa (SPA), Ducati 44.05.191, 7. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki, 44.06.742 10, Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati, 44.18.011. 11 Kenny Roberts (USA) Suzuki, 44.22.504, 17 John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki 44.38.818. Temperature Track Air Weather Afternoon 45 C 39 C Sunny More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Race day improvements for Roberts Jr in Qatar Kenny Roberts Jr narrowly missed out on a hard-fought top-10 position at today’s Marlboro Grand Prix of Qatar, as team-mate John Hopkins was forced to pit and change his rear tyre before completing the race. Roberts Jr finished in 11th place after the 22-lap race and was looking likely to challenge Loris Capirossi for another position higher up the field, but a lack of grip made the ex World Champion decide to bring the Suzuki GSV-R home safely in the points rather than risk all in the closing stages. Both Roberts Jr and Hopkins were involved in an early five man battle that also included the Hondas of Alex Barros, Max Biaggi and Makoto Tamada. The Suzuki racers more than held their own even though they were struggling with acceleration against their Honda counterparts. Unfortunately for Hopkins he couldn’t find any feeling from his tyres, and having run off the track, was forced into a pit-stop at the end of lap nine. He changed his rear tyre and then re-joined the race. Although now a lap down he managed to post consistent lap times that were equal to riders inside the top-10. Today’s race was held in scorching temperatures of 39 degrees and the small but enthusiastic crowd were treated to an exciting race all through the field. The eventual winner was World Champion Valentino Rossi on a Yamaha his 10th victory of the season. Team SUZUKI MotoGP will now travel to Phillip Island in Australia for the next round of the MotoGP World Championship on Sunday 16th October. Kenny Roberts Jr: “Today was always going to be a difficult race for us. I tried to make up time on everybody in the sections that you normally don’t have to make up time in, just to stay with some of the guys – it’s really difficult having to ride like that. You are never able to relax, even along the straights because you are constantly having to get the maximum out of the bike. Sometimes that forces mistakes and also forces you to be hard on the tyres. The start was pretty much as I expected from the fourth row and I just tried to stay consistent and on the racing line, that was really the best opportunity I had to be consistent. At the end Loris was back there because he had run off the track and I just tried to catch him because it looked like he was struggling. I picked up on him but in the last couple of laps I had used my tyre to its full extent through riding so hard so I settled for where I was. We know what we need to do to get better and Suzuki is more than ever going in the right direction as far as the engine is concerned. But we still need a big jump.” John Hopkins: “I’m disappointed as you’d expect – anybody would be! The first set of tyres I had in I just couldn’t get them to work – I was really struggling. I kept missing the apexes and running wide. I passed Tamada and was planning on catching up to Kenny and Barros and I ran it in a little bit harder than usual and ran off the track and into the dirt. I came in and put in a completely different tyre one that we had only used once earlier on in the week and that at the time didn’t work really well. I went out and I caught up with Shane Byrne but I didn’t want to mess up his lines so I’d let him go for one lap and then catch up to him on the next. It was easy to do 59’s consistently to the end of the race. It was unfortunate really because I think a top-10 was a possibility, but it has given me a little bit more anger and determination to keep me going until we get to Phillip Island.” Paul Denning Team Manager: “After a difficult weekend, 11th was probably realistically the best we could have expected. Kenny gave 100 percent the whole race and after things has settled down in the first few laps he was able to run high 59’s which was on a par with all the other Bridgestone runners. In fact if anything our level of performance took a step forward during the second half of the race. Kenny tried to chase Loris down and got within a second with a couple of laps to go, but he nearly crashed trying to close in and that was enough warning to just bring the bike home. John experienced a difficult situation with a lack of feel and a lack of turning on a rear tyre which we had done quite a lot of work on over the weekend, and appeared to be the right choice for the race. He came in and swapped to the same compound that Kenny was using and immediately the bike was fixed. He was able to run in the high 59’s quite steadily. It was a shame we didn’t start on that tyre or I am sure we would have had both the GSV-R’s in the points. A very tough weekend here in Qatar for Suzuki, but if there are some positives to take away it would be the effort of both riders and the fact that neither bike missed a beat all weekend in the desert heat the durability of the GSV-R has certainly improved.” More, from a press release issued by Camel Honda: QATAR AS GRUELLING AS EXPECTED FOR CAMEL HONDA RIDERS After a particularly difficult weekend of practices for Alex Barros in Qatar, he rode a determined and fault-free race, but was unable to get involved in the battle at the front. The Brazilian lay in fourteenth at the end of the first lap, and charged through to finish ninth at the flag. Shane Byrne, who has made significant progress with the Honda in just two weeks, and on a track he has never been to, took thirteenth place after riding a good pace throughout. Sito Pons Camel Honda “Alex had a decent race considering the difficulties he had all weekend trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to find a set-up that would give him the confidence require to ride as hard as he can. Of course, it’s not a result to be satisfied with considering how fast we can be, and as we have already demonstrated we can be, but now we’re looking forward to the next race in Phillip Island where conditions will be very different and where we hope to find Alex extremely competitive once again. In my opinion Shane had a great race considering how little he has ridden the Honda, and the fact that he had never ridden here in Qatar before. He has worked well with the team, he didn’t make any errors, and today he rode at the same pace as the top ten riders. It really was a good job.” Alex Barros Camel Honda 9th “I think that Qatar has been the worst weekend of the year, despite having finished the race in the top ten and even passing a few guys. To be honest I was never able to get a decent enough feeling to aim for a better result and of course, that doesn’t make me happy. I didn’t enjoy it, I was quite slow, I couldn’t battle and to put it simply, I was frustrated. The bike was running well, we worked as well as ever and we found a good set-up. Unfortunately I couldn’t find a suitable front tyre for me on this track. We hope that in Australia where conditions are really different and it’s cooler, Michelin can help me find a solution to improve front end response.” Shane Byrne Camel Honda 13th “From a certain point of view I’m quite happy with this race, but from another I’m not so happy. We got really close to the rest here, but in the race I had a lot of trouble with the front. The team had done a great job with setting up the rest of the bike though. Chassis, suspension, rear tyre, everything was perfect, but just as I began to push I got problems on the front end. I knew that I could go quicker, but every time I tried, I risked going down. It’s a real shame because after the practices we did, I thought we could get into the top ten.” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: HERO MELANDRI JUST MISSES OUT ON VICTORY This was a classic MotoGP encounter played out in fierce heat on a tricky track and the man of the moment was Marco Melandri (Team Movistar Honda RC211V). The Italian Honda star finished second to Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) with Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) third, but Marco, riding injured, showed true class in an epic battle with Rossi. Loris Capirossi (Ducati) led from pole into turn one from the lights with Hayden in close company before Sete Gibernau (Team Movistar Honda RC211V) barged his way to second with Rossi on his shoulder, relegating Hayden to fourth in the early stages of lap one. With track temperature at a heady 45 degrees and ambient temperature at 39 degrees this was always going to be a tough race over 22-laps of the 5.38kn Losail track. There was more grip available than in the two days of practice but that was only on the ‘racing line’ dust and disaster lay mere centimetres away. There was also a strong headwind for riders to contend with. Capirossi led the field over the line to complete lap one, before Gibernau swooped on him under braking into turn one. This move unsettled the Ducati man and in the space of another two turns, Rossi had moved up to second and Hayden to third. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) snatched fourth from Capirossi on the next lap and now Marco was making ground on the leaders. But Gibernau had begun work on putting a gap between himself and his pursuers and had a lead of just under a second by lap six. Melandri had passed Nicky for third by now and the front five of Gibernau, Rossi, Melandri, Hayden and Edwards had shrugged off Capirossi and were in a race of their own. Max Biaggi (Repsol Honda RC211V), who was never in contention here, pitted on lap eight. As Melandri made his first pass on Rossi to take second on lap 10, the front five had now become four Edwards couldn’t handle the hot pace as the leaders lapped in the low 1m 58s bracket. Nicky Hayden set the fastest lap of the race on lap nine at 1m 57.903s. Rossi then retook second place from Marco and began to reduce Gibernau’s lead. By lap 15 it was down to just 0.4 seconds from a high of 1.1 seconds. But Marco had ideas of his own about this race and re-passed Rossi on lap 17 to set about his team-mate. On the next lap Melandri pounced up the inside and Sete ran into the gravel as he tried to counteract Melandri’s bold move. Gibernau rejoined the race to finish fifth, but the action was at the front and was a two-way fight between Rossi and Melandri as Nicky dropped back in third. Melandri was able to fend off Rossi at turn one at the end of the start/finish straight for two laps before Rossi made a move stick on the penultimate lap. Marco shadowed him and then dived up the inside five turns from the flag only to run wide onto the kerb on the exit and lose crucial advantage. Rossi held on for the win, but Melandri, despite the stitches in his right foot, showed that he is a match for the World Champion both in speed and daring. Nicky finished third, Edwards fourth. Melandri said, “That was the best race of the season for me. I felt good after practice yesterday, the bike was ready and we did a great job with Michelin. I didn’t get a good start in the race, took it calmly for the first few laps and lost a bit of time as I made up the positions. I passed Edwards and Hayden to catch up with the leaders, the bike was running perfectly and my only thought was to finish on the podium. I tried to pass Valentino on the last lap but I made a mistake and ran off track. Despite that it was an incredible race.” Nicky said, “I’m so happy to be to be on the podium today. Before the race things weren’t going to plan. In the morning warm-up we were so slow and were in real trouble. My guys made some changes and I have to be real grateful to them as they got it right and that’s why I got third. The bike was so much better in the race than it had been all weekend – so much faster.” Sete, in fifth, said “Once again we’ve had a great race without the final result we deserved. I led the race until Marco came in a little aggressively and I had to run off my line. But it’s no use complaining; we’re doing some things well and some things badly. We’re leading races regularly but for one reason or another we haven’t been able to finish them off. But we can’t keep talking about bad luck the unlucky guy is the one who never gets to run at the front at all. I still think things will change.” Alex Barros (Camel Honda RC211V) finished ninth and said, “I think Qatar has been the worst weekend of the year, despite having finished the race in the top ten and even passing a few guys. To be honest I was never able to get a decent enough feeling to aim for a better result and of course, that doesn’t make me happy. I didn’t enjoy it, I was quite slow, I couldn’t battle and to put it simply, I was frustrated.” Shane Byrne, standing in for the injured Troy Bayliss (Camel Honda RC211V), was 13th. He said, “We got really close to the rest here, but in the race I had a lot of trouble with the front. The team did a great job with setting up the rest of the bike though. Chassis, suspension, rear tyre, everything was perfect, but just as I began to push I got problems with the front-end. I knew that I could go quicker, but every time I tried, I risked going down. It’s a real shame because after the practice we did, I thought we could get into the top ten.” Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda RC211V) dropped out of the race in the final few laps with an electrical problem. The Japanese man said, “Compared to yesterday the front-end was in bad state. During the race I felt some vibration and the bike didn’t allow me to ride well. Then all of a sudden the bike switched off and that’s when my race ended.” Max said, “The weekend started in a bad situation like in Sepang. After Motegi we’ve never been competitive at all. This is not just the set-up of the machine it’s something bigger than that. With the set-up you can improve. It’s more than just an engine-braking problem. Since Motegi it’s been difficult it’s impossible to turn into the corner. In the race the machine stopped with an electronic problem. I don’t know exactly yet, the team are looking closely at it.” The fight for second place in the World Championship table is close. Max still lies second with 159 points, but Melandri is now on 157, Edwards on 152, Hayden has 150 points and Capirossi 148 with three races left. In the Constructors’ World Championship Yamaha currently has 320 points to Honda’s 271. Casey Stoner (Aprilia) won the 250c race from Jorge Lorenzo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW), with Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Racing Team Honda RS250RW) third. Reigning World Champion Dani Pedrosa (Team Movistar Honda RS250RW) was fourth. Stoner led from the lights and was unassailable here. Hard as Lorenzo tried to reel the Aussie in, he remained 1.56 seconds adrift at the flag. Dani and Dovi who fought hard throughout this race could not quite get on terms with Lorenzo in second and Dovi’s last lap drafting of Dani netted him third at the expense of the series points leader. Hiroshi Aoyama (Team Movistar Honda RS250RW) finished sixth behind Sebastian Porto (Aprilia), Hector Barbera (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) was seventh and Yuki Takahashi (Scot Racing Team Honda RS250RW) inside the top ten for the fourth consecutive race. Lorenzo said, “That was as hard we all expected. Casey was just too fast here and maybe the wind was more of a factor than we thought it would be too. I’m happy to be the first Honda finisher here, but I’m still hungry for my first win in this class and I’ll be riding as hard as ever in the last three races.” Dovi was happy to be back on the podium and said, “I got past Dani on the last lap which was good. We all tried to follow Stoner but he was too fast. Then I tried to stay with Lorenzo, but he was too fast. But I knew I could get Dani because his bike was not as fast as mine today.” Dani said, “Stoner got a fast start and I had a scare on lap one. I also had carburetion problems coming out of the turns and on the straight. As soon as I lost anyone’s slipstream I couldn’t do anything and so the World Championship is still open. But now I’m looking forward to some rest at home before Australia.” The World Championship struggle has tightened up after Stoner’s second consecutive win. Dani leads with 239 points to Stoner’s 213, while Dovi lies third with 160 points. In the Constructors’ World Championship Honda holds a slender lead with 279 points to Aprilia’s 278. Gabor Talmacsi stole a controversial win from his team-mate Mika Kallio (both KTM) in the 125cc class as they crossed the line. Marco Simoncelli (Aprilia) was a distant third. Mike Di Meglio (Kopron Racing World Honda RS125R) was fourth, but World Championship leader (until now) Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix Honda RS125R) could only manage sixth. The KTM pair were out in front from the off and by lap four they already had 2.2 seconds on their pursuers. Luthi lay seventh in the early stages and after a accidental clash with Mattia Pasini at turn one was nearly out of the race, but the Swiss ace kept it together to grab fourth by lap 13. But he couldn’t keep the place and Di Meglio relived him of fourth on the same lap before Thomas again dropped back to sixth on the final lap. Kallio was expected to cross the line in first to snatch maximum points in his bid to steal an advantage over Luthi, but Talmacsi had other ideas and beat him by 17 thousandths of a second to deprive the Finn of vital points. Di Meglio said, “I’m satisfied with this result on a track that’s new to me. The team made my bike very competitive and I knew that if I saved the rear tyre I could exploit the grip limits in the final laps.” Luthi said, “My start was only so-so and I lost a couple of places at turn one on the first lap. I got stuck in the group behind Kallio and Talmacsi and some of those riders were slow mid-corner and that was a problem. At one point I hit Pasini he was better at turn one than me.” The World Championship points lead now belongs to Kallio with 201 to Luthi’s 199 with Talmacsi third on 156. The Constructors’ World Championship points table shows KTM with 283 and Honda on 244 points. HONDA TEAM QUOTES: MotoGP: Marco Melandri, MoviStar Honda: 2nd: ” That was the best race of the season for me. I felt good after practice yesterday, the bike was ready and we did a great job with Michelin. I didn’t get a good start in the race, took it calmly for the first few laps and lost a bit of time as I made up the positions. I passed Edwards and Hayden to catch up with the leaders, the bike was running perfectly and my only thought was to finish on the podium. I tried to pass Valentino on the last lap but I made a mistake and ran of the track. Despite that it was an incredible race and I’m really pleased to be back on the podium after a tough couple of weeks with the injury. Now I’m third in the championship and the fight for second is still on.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 3rd: “I’m so happy to be to be on the podium today. Before the race things weren’t going to plan. In the morning warm-up we were so slow and were in real trouble. My guys made some changes and I have to be real grateful to them as they got it right and that’s why I got third. The bike was so much better in the race than it had been all weekend – so much faster. The Michelins were brilliant – so much grip! I got an awesome start. In turn one my buddy Sete ran into the back of me again but I stayed on. In the race I just hung on in there. I wasn’t sure I was going to make it back but I’m here. I was pushing so hard to stay with the lead group and there were some pretty scary moments. It wasn’t pretty with Sete running off but I’ll take the result the way the weekend was going.” Sete Gibernau, MoviStar Honda: 5th: “Once again we’ve had a great race without the final result we deserved. I led the race until Marco came in a little aggressive and I had to run off my line. But it’s no use complaining; we’re doing some things well and some things badly. We’re leading races regularly but for one reason or another we haven’t been able to finish them off. But we can’t keep talking about bad luck – the unlucky guy is the one who never gets to run at the front at all. I still think things will change.” Alex Barros, Camel Honda: 9th: “I think that Qatar has been the worst weekend of the year, despite having finished the race in the top ten and even passing a few guys. To be honest I was never able to get a decent enough feeling to aim for a better result and of course, that doesn’t make me happy. I didn’t enjoy it, I was quite slow, I couldn’t battle and to put it simply, I was frustrated. The bike was running well, we worked as well as ever and we found a good set-up. Unfortunately I couldn’t find a suitable front tyre for me on this track. We hope that in Australia where conditions are really different and it’s cooler, Michelin can help me find a solution to improve front end response.” Shane Byrne, replacement rider for Troy Bayliss, Camel Honda: 13th. “From a certain point of view I’m quite happy with this race, but from another I’m not so happy. We got really close to the rest here, but in the race I had a lot of trouble with the front. The team had done a great job with setting up the rest of the bike though. Chassis, suspension, rear tyre, everything was perfect, but just as I began to push I got problems on the front end. I knew that I could go quicker, but every time I tried, I risked going down. It’s a real shame because after the practices we did, I thought we could get into the top ten.” Max Baggi, Repsol Honda: dnf electrical problem: “The weekend started in a bad situation like in Sepang. After Motegi we’ve never been competitive at all. This is not just the set-up of the machine it’s something bigger than that. With the set-up you can improve. It’s more than just an engine-braking problem. Since Motegi it’s been difficult it’s impossible to turn into the corner. In the race the machine stopped with an electronic problem. I don’t know exactly yet, the team are looking closely. My hope is gone. For this race for sure I couldn’t fight for the podium. It frustrates me so much because I know I should be fighting for the podium at every track and I know I could. We haven’t changed the set-up from Brno and Motegi. I just don’t understand what’s happening here.” Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda: dnf electrical problem: “Compared to yesterday the front end was in bad condition. During the race I felt vibration and the bike didn’t allow me to ride well. Then all of a sudden the bike switched off and that’s when my race ended. The only thing we can do is to analyse the data to find the problem. This is a weekend to put in the archive and hope for a better performance at Phillip Island where I finished eighth last year.” 250cc: Jorge Lorenzo, Fortuna Honda: 2nd. “I’m so tired after that race, it was so tough I couldn’t get started. I wanted to get to him (Stoner) but he got a two-second lead on me and it was impossible for me to recover. We had some problems with the front end in the wind and that made me tired. But that’s not an excuse. We wanted to win but I couldn’t finish the job. It was important for me to get back on the podium today and we did. I wish to dedicate this podium to my chief mechanic Jorge Guido, who returned home because his father died two days ago.” Andrea Dovizioso, Scot Honda: 3rd. “I’m satisfied to have beaten Pedrosa. He is under pressure and lost concentration but this is positive for me. His bike wasn’t 100% ok today but it was same as mine. In the last lap I gave my best and I exploited his slipstream and it worked well. The pace of Stoner was impossible for me: already during the practices he was 4 or 5 tenths of a second faster than me. I would like to pass Stoner in the championship: it is hard but not impossible.” Dani Pedrosa, MoviStar Honda: 4th: “Stoner was really fast at the start and I had a bit of a moment on the first lap. They all passed me down the straight and the bike just wasn’t fast enough I had problems accelerating out of the corners and when I lost the slipstreams in the straights I couldn0t do anything. At the end I tried to get ahead of Dovizioso because I knew I couldn’t even pass him using the slipstream in the straight. I couldn’t give any more, my shoulder was also really painful at one particular point on the track and bike wasn’t responding as I would have liked. They’ve cut back the gap in the championship, which is still open, so we need to give it everything over the next few races. I’m looking forward to getting home, having a good look at the shoulder and heading out to Australia in top shape.” Hiroshi Aoyama, MoviStar Honda: 6th: “It was a really difficult race; not only was the engine down but it was also sliding around a lot because of the track temperature. I tried to follow the group it was impossible to stay there in the second half of the race. I made a few mistakes and they got away for good. I want to say sorry to the team because they have worked so hard to give me the best possible bike this weekend but I couldn’t do any better than that.” Hector Barbera, Fortuna Honda: 7th. “I now feel I’m getting used to the bike. Today I’m very happy because all season long it has been tough for me to feel good on the bike. I didn’t get a good start but then I found my rhythm and improved lap by lap to take a good finish.” Yuki Takahashi, Scot Honda: 8th. “This result confirms my improvement race by race. My bike had grip problems but in the last lap I could pass Guintoli in the final part of the track, where I had some problems to maintain the rhythm. It was very hot and dirty and today also windy: it was a difficult race for all of us.” Alex Debon, Wurth Honda BQR: 11th. “It was impossible for me to go any faster than I did today. My engine was not as good today as it was in qualifying, it just stopped at 13,200 rpm but that might have been the wind. I was in behind Sekiguchi and Davies at one point but I couldn’t use their slipstream to pass them.” Dirk Heidolf, Kiefer Castrol Honda 18th: “I have not been happy all weekend I didn’t find a good rhythm on this track, I never had a good feeling with the bike. The track is not suited to my riding style. My start was good an I was on the back o the group with Debon so I pushed hard but I had two big front wheel slides one time I had my hand down on the track to save it! I lost about 30-seconds. After that I was alone on the straight and just could not make up any places.” Radomil Rous, Wurth Honda BQR: dnf crash. “I got a very bad start in the race and was at the back. I made up a few places but on the sixth lap I lost the front end and crashed. The front wheel turned in and I could not save it. The whole weekend has been a bad experience for me.” Jakub Smrz, Molenaar Honda: dnf technical proble. “Not the best weekend for me. On the third lap of the race I went off the track at the same place as yesterday with the same front-end problem. I got going again and passed a few riders but it was the same story as in qualifying the front was sliding very badly and near the end it was so bad I had to stop.” 125cc: Mike Di Meglio, Kopron Racing World Honda: 4th. Mike Di Meglio: “I’m satisfied of this result on a new track for me and also in very hot conditions. The team did a great job and my Honda has been very competitive. During the race, after contact with Pasini, I tried to save the rear tyre. In the last laps I knew the grip limit of the bike perfectly and I recovered gradually some positions. The contact between Pasini and Luthi favoured me and I easily kept Luthi behind me on the finishing line.” Thomas Luthi, Elit Honda: 6th. “My start was so so but I lost a couple of places at the first corner because it was very slippery off the racing line. I was stuck in the group behind Mika (Kallio) and Talmacsi and we were constantly changing places. Some of the riders in the group were slow in the middle of the corners and that caused me problems because I was faster. At one point I hit Pasini trying to out-brake him into a corner but he was better at that place than me. Towards the end I tried to catch Di Meglio but couldn’t do it. Still I’m happy with the points situation Talmacsi winning the race helped us a lot everybody thought that he would let Mika pass him.” Fabrizio Lai, Kopron Racing World Honda: 10th. “Today the wind was stronger than in the qualifying and conditioned negatively my performance twice. The first time I went out of the track but without serious consequences: I was near the group but I finished as the last of them. The second time I went on the synthetic grass (which was very treacherous) and it compromised my race and the chance of a podium.” Tomoyoshi Koyama, Ajo Motorsport Honda: 14th. “Not a good race for me today. My start was good but racing in a group of riders my engine overheated to about 64 65′ and lost power I could not even use the slipstream to pass other riders. I am quite disappointed with my result.” Sandro Cortese, Kiefer-Bos-Castrol Honda: 17th. “Not so bad. My start was good but at the third corner Espargaro and I touched and we had to pick our bikes up allowing some riders to pass us. Then later in the race Giuseppetti passed me and slammed the door shut and I touched him and lost places again. The bike was good today just the engine was a little too hot and lost some power.” Aleix Espargaro, Seedorf RC3 Tiempo Holidays Honda: 18th. “Not so bad considering that Cortese and I hit each other on the first lap and I went off the track and many guys passed me. Later on he could pass me down the straight but we were not in a position to fight for points today even though I was very comfortable with my tyres. “ Alexis Masbou, Ajo Motorsport Honda: 20th. “I was up to about 17th place on the first lap but somebody hit me very hard on lap three and I had to go onto the grass and was in last place. The engine was not so strong today so I had no hope of making a good race even though I made up a lot of places.” Alvaro Bautista, Seedorf RC3 Tiempo Holidays Honda: 22nd. “Not a good day for me. On the first lap I tried to pass Pesek but he closed the door very hard and I hit him and ran off the track. After that I had no chance but just I tried to catch as many riders as I could, it was a very hard race. The bike settings were very good but the engine was not as strong as in practice.” Toshihisa Kuzuhara, Angaia Racing Honda: 27th. Sascha Hommel, GER replacement rider for Raymond Schouten on the Molenaar Honda: dnf electrical problem. “We had some sort of electrical problem with the bike, we don’t know exactly what it is but maybe the ignition. The bike was OK on the sighting lap but at the last corner of the warm up lap the problem started and I had to go to the pits after just one lap. I’m disappointed for the team as much as myself they have worked hard for me here.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: DUCATI MARLBORO MEN ENDURE RED-HOT QATAR After scoring back-to-back wins over the past two Sundays the Ducati Marlboro Team had to be happy with something less than victory in today’s Marlboro Qatar Grand Prix. Carlos Checa finished the race in sixth place while pole-sitter and early leader Loris Capirossi fell victim to Losail’s notoriously treacherous surface, running off the track and ending up in tenth. Conditions could hardly have been tougher for round 14 of the 2005 MotoGP series – suffocating 39-degree heat and strong winds making for particularly difficult riding conditions. “Today could’ve been better and it could’ve been worse,” was the frank assessment of Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli. “We knew that this wasn’t going to be our race but we have to say that we are very satisfied with the overall result of these last three overseas GPs. We have to be optimistic, because if we can learn something from today then all the effort will have been worth it. To be honest, we had trouble with rear grip earlier than I’d expected. But our thanks, as always, to Bridgestone and to Shell Advance for all their help during this great run of ‘flyaway’ races.” CHECA CHOOSES HARD REAR FOR TOUGH RACE Carlos Checa had a mostly uneventful run to sixth place, just six days after he’d scored his first podium of the year at the Marlboro Malaysian Grand Prix. Starting from the second row the Spaniard was eighth after two laps, moving into sixth at one-third distance. “Maybe the result isn’t that great but I think we can be happy because we’ve done a good job here,” said the Ducati Marlboro Team man. “When we came here in March we had front tyre wear problems, so Bridgestone have made a big step forward here and I know they’ll improve again. I used a different rear from what I used in warm-up, I chose something harder for the race. That’s why I couldn’t push so hard early on but it allowed me to run a good, consistent pace later on.” CAPIROSSI CLOSER THAN EVER TO SECOND OVERALL Loris Capirossi started today’s race from pole position, just as he’d done at the two previous events, where he twice turned pole into race victory. But although the Ducati Marlboro Team rider took the lead at the start he wasn’t able to stay there long. He dropped to fourth the next lap and then slipped to 12th when he ran wide and into a gravel trap on lap eight. Nevertheless Capirossi is now six points closer to second overall, following rival Max Biaggi’s exit from the race. “We came here knowing that this would be a difficult track for us, but the main thing is that I finished and scored some points so we are even more in the battle for second overall,” said the Italian. “Bridgestone did a great job with the front but we had some trouble with the rear. I took it easy in the first few laps, then after four or five laps I lost some rear grip. It wasn’t spinning but I was losing grip when I flicked into turns, that’s what happened when I went into the gravel.” More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha: ELIAS’ BEST RACE SO FAR, XAUS FINISHES IN THE POINTS For Toni Elias, the Qatar race has proved to be his best of the year so far, with eighth place, and also by showing his combative nature as he makes significant steps forward with the M1. Meanwhile, Rubén now has 3 consecutive race in the points. His front tyre was such that he couldn’t take risks, and he preferred to bring the bike home. Toni Elias, 8th place, 15th in championship with 51 points “I’m not satisfied. This weekend has been good, because we got off to a good start, but there’s a moment where all the others advance more than I do. We need to watch out for this; at the start of the race it’s hard for me with a full tank, and we need to find a better set-up. When the tank empties, I can start to go quicker and catch up those ahead, but it’s already too late. Gradually I think we’ll get it sorted though.” Rubén Xaus, 14th place, 16th in championship with 45 points “Today I had problems with the front tyre. We chose a harder compound and even though it wore out less, I couldn’t lean the bike as much as I wanted. If I went past the tyre’s limit, the bike moved around too much. I rode the same lap times pushing hard as I did riding relaxed, so I decided to just bring the bike home.” Hervé Poncharal, Team Director for Fortuna Yamaha Motogp “Toni is never happy and that’s a good thing. But this has been a great weekend for Elias. All the weekend he felt good with the bike at this track, and was quick from the first free practice. We weren’t lucky with a few technical problems during qualifying, but 9th on the grid isn’t too bad. As for the race, in the first half he found it hard to keep up the pace with the full tank, but in the latter stages he rode fantastically. It’s without a doubt his best race. If we continue like this in the next races, we will get better results. For Rubén it was another tough weekend, he’s still not comfortable on the bike, and I think that his main aim today was to finish. Everyone’s working really hard, but so far, we can’t find what it is he needs.”