Public descend on Valencia ahead of MotoGP curtain-call Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana Thursday 1st November Preview The sun was shining and fans came out in force for the opening day of the Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana, the traditional finale to the MotoGP World Championship season. Preparing for what will be in some cases a week-long stay at the Spanish circuit, with testing for 2008 following on from Sunday’s race, all teams were going about their work with the usual diligence as they aim to end the year on a high. Many riders will be competing with their current teams for the final time before switching colours or category next week. MotoGP veterans Alex Barros and Carlos Checa, making their last Grand Prix appearances this weekend, were two of the five riders speaking at the MotoGP pre-event press conference at the Ricardo Tormo circuit. Alongside the experienced duo, World Champion Casey Stoner sealed his 100% attendance record this season with a final appearance in front of the media, accompanied by home riders Dani Pedrosa and Dani Pedrosa. Always a popular event, the Spanish edition of ‘Day Of Champions’ organised by official MotoGP charity Riders for Health, provided much activity this afternoon. Pit lane walks and the rider auction were just some of the activities organised to raise money for the worthy cause, aimed at providing support for projects in third world countries. A deal was also announced this afternoon to make Alice the title sponsor for Luis d’Antin’s satellite Ducati team, which will run riders Sylvain Guintoli and Toni Elias in 2008, for the next 2 seasons. Practice for the Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana begins tomorrow at 9am local time. Casey Stoner “I’ve had a lot of good results here, but also some bad ones. The track is unbelievably flowing for the size it is. I think that we can expect good things here. “Our 2008 season starts at Valencia. I’m looking forward to my break, but also the tests. It’s time for us to get our heads down and start working for next year after some fun riding the bike in the last few races. I’m happy to be World Champion, even if it were to be only once in my life.” More, from a press release issued by d’Antin Ducati: THE ALICE TEAM IS BORN: TELECOM ITALIA AND PRAMAC D’ANTIN TOGETHER IN MOTOGP FOR THE NEXT TWO SEASONS. Thanks to the agreement signed between Telecom Italia and the Pramac-d’Antin Team, the racebikes of the Italo-Espanol team will compete for the next two seasons in the World Championship of MotoGP bearing the colors of Alice, the Italian multinational internet conglomerate. Thus, the Alice Team is born, a new alliance to obtain the best sporting results in the most competitive and emotional world of motorcycling. Alice is a division of Telecom Italia, and is a primary service provider for internet using ADSL technology. This company provides all types of advanced communication services, including telephone landlines, mobilephone service, Internet, Media services, Information Technology, and innovative solutions for business and office systems. The philosophy of Alice, from their beginnings, is to work mainly to provide the global services for the young populations of such significant countries as Italy, France, and Germany. For this reason, the sporting projects that the multinational telecommunications giant sponsors are designed to target the younger generation, with special attention to sports that demonstrate a person’s potential, courageousness, and personality. This new and important adventure of the Alice Team, continuing the collaboration between the Pramac d’Antin Team and Ducati Corse, will be armed with the new GP8 Sat, mounted with Bridgestone tires, and piloted by two fast and furious riders in MotoGP, with proven experience despite their youth, Toni Elas and Sylvain Guintoli.