FIM MotoGP World Championship Sachsenring, Germany July 13, 2008 Race Results (wet conditions): 1. Casey STONER (Ducati), Bridgestone, 30 laps, 47:30.057 2. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha), Bridgestone, -3.708 seconds 3. Chris VERMEULEN (Suzuki), Bridgestone, -14.002 4. Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda), Bridgestone, -14.124 5. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda), Michelin, -42.022 6. Sylvain GUINTOLI (Ducati), Bridgestone, -46.648 7. Loris CAPIROSSI (Suzuki), Bridgestone, -64.483 8. Randy DE PUNIET (Honda), Michelin, -64.588 9. Shinya NAKANO (Honda), Bridgestone, -76.773 10. Anthony WEST (Kawasaki), Bridgestone, -89.275, crash 11. James TOSELAND (Yamaha), Michelin, -1 lap 12. Toni ELIAS (Ducati), Bridgestone, -1 lap 13. Nicky HAYDEN (Honda), Michelin, -2 laps, pitted 14. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha), Michelin, -10 laps, DNF, crash 15. Marco MELANDRI (Ducati), Bridgestone, -21 laps, DNF, crash 16. Dani PEDROSA (Honda), Michelin, -25 laps, DNF, crash 17. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha), Michelin, -28 laps, DNF, crash MotoGP World Championship Point Standings (after 10 of 18 races): 1. Rossi, 187 points 2. Pedrosa, 171 3. Stoner, 167 4. Lorenzo, 114 5. Edwards, 98 6. Dovizioso, 90 7. TIE, Vermeulen/Hayden, 73 9. Toseland, 65 10. Nakano, 64 11. Capirossi, 60 12. De Angelis, 38 13. Elias, 37 14. Guintoli, 34 15. TIE, John Hopkins/Melandri, 32 17. De Puniet, 30 18. West, 22 19. TIE, Tadayuki Okada/Ben Spies, 2 More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: TOP TEN FOR WEST AT WET SACHSENRING Anthony West overcame a painful back injury and treacherous conditions to match his best result of the season at Sachsenring today. The Kawasaki pilot crossed the line in tenth place aboard his Ninja ZX-RR after crashing and remounting earlier in the 30-lap race. West had a huge crash in practice on Friday, leaving him with what was originally thought to be a badly bruised back. However, a further medical examination and x-rays on Saturday evening revealed fractured vertebrae identical to the injury suffered by his teammate, John Hopkins, at Catalunya. The 26-year-old Australian struggled with the injury during this morning’s 20-minute warm-up session but simply gritted his teeth for the race, as he fought his way from the back of the grid to seventh place in the opening laps. West looked set to record his best result of the year so far, until an uncharacteristic mistake in the wet conditions saw him lose the front of his Ninja ZX-RR at the final turn, while battling for fifth position with Chris Vermeulen and Alex De Angelis. The Kawasaki pilot remounted and rejoined the race, quickly moving back up to tenth place despite his left foot constantly slipping off a damaged foot peg and a gear lever half it’s usual length. In the closing stages of the race West was one of the fastest riders on track, but although he managed to claw back more than four seconds on Shinya Nakano in ninth place, he simply ran out of laps and was forced to settle for tenth position at the chequered flag. West will undergo further treatment on his back injury ahead of next weekend’s USGP at Laguna Seca, where the Australian will be joined by Jamie Hacking, who will substitute for the injured John Hopkins aboard Kawasaki’s Ninja ZX-RR. Anthony West #13 – 10th Position “I’m disappointed because it was possible for me to finish much higher than tenth today. I got a good start and made up lots of places in the opening laps, eventually closing onto the back of Chris Vermeulen and Alex De Angelis, who were battling for fifth place. I was pushing hard to stay with them when I lost the front under braking for the final turn. It was a stupid mistake to make, but luckily the bike wasn’t too badly damaged and I was able to rejoin the race quite quickly. From then it was just a case of getting my head down and trying to retake as many places as possible. It was quite hard, because my injured back was really sore and I couldn’t push on the left foot peg, as most of it was snapped off in the crash. This is only my second top ten finish of the season but that’s no consolation when I know, but for a stupid mistake, I could have finished much higher today.” Michael Bartholemy Kawasaki Competition Manager “It’s been a difficult weekend for Anthony. The two big crashes during practice left him with a painful back injury, as well as knocking his confidence. They also put his crew under a lot of pressure, as they worked to rebuild two very badly damaged bikes between sessions. As a result his qualifying performance was affected and starting from the back row of the grid just made a tough job even tougher today. I’m happy that Anthony managed to finish the race in the top ten but, like him, I’m also a little disappointed because it was possible for him to do much better today. We’ve seen how good he is when conditions are wet, so he should have been in his element this afternoon. Instead he made an unforced error and that cost him an almost guaranteed top five finish today.” More, from a press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: ROSSI RETAKES TITLE LEAD WITH SECOND PLACE AT SOAKING SACHSENRING Valentino Rossi took the runner-up spot in the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring today and moved back to the top of the championship, after Dani Pedrosa crashed out of the lead on lap five. Rossi’s Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was another victim of the first fully wet race of the season, sliding out of the race on the third lap. This morning’s practice was run on a damp track but the weather worsened through the middle part of the day and the MotoGP race began in heavy rain. Rossi, starting from seventh on the grid, was caught up in the first lap confusion and lost some time but then made up two places on the second lap, before being elevated to fourth when Pedrosa went down. In the next few laps the Italian passed first fellow Yamaha rider Colin Edwards and then Andrea Dovizioso, which left him in second behind Casey Stoner. Rossi did his best to close the gap to the Australian but with the pair clocking similar lap times he was unable to make any headway into a deficit of more than three seconds, settling for second place and 20 points. Chris Vermeulen loomed behind him at mid-race distance but Rossi’s M1 and his Bridgestone tyres were working well in the wet and he was able to step up the pace somewhat, eventually crossed the line 3.708 seconds behind Stoner and more than 14 ahead of third-placed Vermeulen. Today’s result sees Rossi back at the top of the standings, 16 points clear of Pedrosa and 20 ahead of Stoner, whilst Lorenzo holds on to fourth despite taking no points today. The MotoGP paddock now packs up and makes the transatlantic trip to California for the US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca in a week’s time. Valentino Rossi Position: 2nd Time: +3.708 “I’m really happy with this result, even if racing in the rain today wasn’t quite as much fun as I’ve had in some of my past races here! For the championship this is very, very important; I made a mistake last week in Assen and today Dani did the same. It’s unlucky but this is racing and now we are back in front and this is a very good feeling. Dani is tough and we know he will be back fighting at the front, but sincerely at the moment we need to think about how to catch Casey because he has been very fast now for a few races. Once again here we lost some time during the practice trying to find the right setting and we can’t afford to keep doing this. Today we started from the third row and this meant that I had to deal with some confusion at the start and lost some time on the front riders. By the time I got behind Casey my M1 was working very well and I had very good grip with my Bridgestone rain tyres; I felt very confident and I tried hard to push but there was no way to catch him at that stage, so our aim must be to start at the front from now on. Thanks to all my team and engineers; now we have to try to extend this lead in Laguna.” Davide Brivio Team Manager “This was a very positive race for us because this result takes us back to the top of the championship standings. I hope that Pedrosa’s condition is not too serious and that he will be back at Laguna to fight as he has been doing so far. Today we have seen that we have a good set-up for the wet conditions and this is good news for us, as this was the very first full wet race since the beginning of the championship. Valentino pushed hard till the end of the race and the second place today was the maximum we could do, starting from the third row. Now we go to Laguna Seca, where we will launch another attack!” More, from another press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: UNLUCKY LORENZO SLIDES OFF IN RAINY GERMANY Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo was one of four riders who failed to finish the German Grand Prix today, falling victim to a soaking track on the third lap of a rainy race at Sachsenring. His team-mate Valentino Rossi meanwhile regained his championship lead by way of an important second place, after series-leader Dani Pedrosa crashed out of the lead early on. Lorenzo had lacked rear grip all weekend but was hopeful that the rain might improve the situation today. Unfortunately however the reverse was true and he was thrown from his M1 when his rear tyre spun up on the exit from turn four, on lap three of 30. The Mallorcan was luckily completely unhurt this time and will not have to wait long to get over his disappointment, as his first competitive visit to Laguna Seca beckons in just a few day’s time. The Michelin-shod rider holds onto fourth in the championship despite taking no points today, whilst Rossi’s second place behind Casey Stoner sees him take a 16-point lead, with eight rounds remaining. The paddock now heads straight to California for the US Grand Prix in a week’s time. Jorge Lorenzo Position: DNF Time: “I felt good this morning because I though that I would have a chance to do a good race in the rain. On the warm-up lap however I felt that something wasn’t quite right; I didn’t have enough grip and I lost some confidence then. I made a good start and passed two riders in the first corner, but then I ran too deep and lost the places so I had to push to try to make them up again. The crash happened when I opened the gas coming out of turn four and I lost the rear. It was a pity but I didn’t hurt myself this time and I am not feeling sad for myself tonight, I just feel very bad for the team because they worked too hard all weekend for a result like this. The positive thing about today is that at each race I am feeling better in myself, even though we’re having some problems getting our package work correctly, and now I am just looking forward to racing for the very first time at Laguna.’ Daniele Romagnoli Team Manager “Today it was very difficult to find enough grip on the rear, in fact it seems like our problems became bigger in the wet. The rear tyre was spinning a lot under acceleration and Jorge was not able to control the rear grip. We did not have the chance to test in full wet conditions during the weekend and this played an important role for us, because it meant that it was impossible to be completely prepared for a wet race like this. We hope for better weather next week in Laguna Seca so that we can sort out all of our problems, because we absolutely want to come back to the level we know Jorge is capable of.” More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda: REPSOL HONDA ENDURES TOUGH DAY IN GERMANY German Grand Prix, Sachsenring Race day, Sunday July 13 2008 The Repsol Honda Team endured its toughest day of the year so far at rain-lashed Sachsenring today. Dani Pedrosa led the early laps in superb style but crashed out, leaving Nicky Hayden the team’s only finisher in an unlucky 13th place after an early race pit stop. Watched by 98,000 fans, Pedrosa led from the start and set a fast pace. After five laps he was already seven seconds ahead of his closest rival but then he fell at high speed as he braked for the first turn for the sixth time. The Spaniard slid into the run-off, rolled through the gravel several times and finally came to a halt against the safety air fence. He has fractured the top bone of his left index finger and has a suspected fracture of his right ankle. He is due to fly to Barcelona to see his surgeon Xavier Mir in advance of next weekend’s US GP. Pedrosa had led the World Championship going into this event, he is now placed second with eight of 18 races remaining. Hayden was confident of a good race, wet or dry, but soon after the start the American realised he had traction issues. After a difficult first few laps he came in to change his rear tyre. After that pit stop Hayden’s pace improved but he still felt something was amiss with his machine. Nonetheless the former World Champion persevered, bringing his RC212V home in the atrocious conditions for three World Championship points. Nicky Hayden, finished 13th, eighth in World Championship “Today was a bit of a disaster, really. All weekend in the dry we had been going okay but conditions changed a lot for the race. I was actually glad it was raining because the bike has been working good in the rain recently, but the race turned into a disaster. The tyre choice wasn’t good and something also didn’t look right on the electronics, seems like it was a combination of problems. We came in and changed the rear tyre to a slightly different compound. Things were a lot better when I went out but I was right in the middle of everybody and I didn’t want to get in the way of people racing. We got a few points. Now it’s Laguna next weekend, so we’ll just keep pushing and hope to catch a break somewhere along the way.” Dani Pedrosa, DNF, 2nd in World Championship “It was a little strange. I had only just touched the brake and I crashed. It was a real pity because I’d got a great start and was going well. I had a good feeling. The front felt perfect, the rear was sliding just a little, but the general feeling was good considering the track conditions. It is a real pity.” Kazuhiko Yamano – Team Manager “Today was a bad race for us, with no real result. Dani was showing very good performance at the start of the race, he had a good feeling for the conditions but he was unlucky. It was a fast crash. Nicky had some difficulties with his machine and with his tyres. He came into change the rear tyre to see if that would improve things, he was faster after the pit stop but still it seems that things weren’t quite right. But he continued to the end and got some points. Racing is a tough sport, sometimes you have bad days. We hope for better at Laguna Seca next weekend.” More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner continued his spectacular return to form with victory at the Alice Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, his third win in as many races. The Ducati Marlboro rider braved the wet conditions of the Sachsenring circuit and appeared equally adept to the task as he had been in the dry practice sessions, a sign that will have his title rivals preoccupied for the second half of the season. The race had looked set to be a wet weather repeat of Dani Pedrosa´s comprehensive 2007 victory, after the Repsol Honda rider once again used his finely-honed launch control to take the holeshot. He stormed out of the blocks and immediately created a 2 second gap. The advantage increased to 7.5 seconds by the time the Spaniard crossed the line for a sixth time, but just moments later disaster struck as he lost control of the RC212V and picked up his first DNF of 2008. Pedrosa´s crash allowed Stoner to return to the script written in practice sessions for the German race, and the Australian needed no further invitation. He assumed the reins in the same style with which he had taken the win at the past two races, breaking free and riding solo for 23 laps right up until the chequered flag was waved. Second place from the third row of the grid was a more-than-respectable result for Valentino Rossi, and the runner-up spot allowed the Fiat Yamaha rider to reassume the leadership of the MotoGP World Championship. Heading to the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix in just a week´s time, the five-time title holder now holds a 16-point advantage over Pedrosa, whose broken finger picked up in the crash may affect his form in the Laguna Seca race. Rizla Suzuki´s Chris Vermeulen forced his way through the pack for a first podium of 2008, in doing so denying MotoGP rookie Alex de Angelis his maiden rostrum placing. Both had great rides in the wet, with the San Carlo Honda Gresini rider equalling his best premier class result to date and becoming the highest-finishing Honda man. Andrea Dovizioso finished in the top five for the fourth successive race, after getting a fantastic start onboard his JiR Team Scot Honda. Dovizioso came in ahead of Sylvain Guintoli, Loris Capirossi, Randy de Puniet, Shinya Nakano and Anthony West, with all riders outside the top ten lapped on the second shortest MotoGP circuit. Besides Pedrosa´s tumble, there were also crashes for Jorge Lorenzo, Colin Edwards and Marco Melandri as they fell foul of the tricky conditions. Casey Stoner Race Winner “I saw Dani (Pedrosa) riding off into the distance and thought `fair play´, there was no way I would have been able to go so fast at that time. We used a harder compound on the tyres and they were taking time to warm up. Then I saw Dani tumbling and rolling in the gravel. Given his past record in the wet, he was riding very well up until then. From then on it was just a matter of making sure of increasing a small advantage with every lap. We ran the harder compound on the left side, with just some small `loses´ during the race which worried me a bit. Thanks to the team for everything, and it´s nice to close the championship up a bit more.” 250cc Amidst difficult rainy conditions in Sachsenring, Marco Simoncelli stormed to his third victory of the season at the Alice Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland. Riding with a new Gilera RSA, the Italian dominated proceedings in the 250cc race to win the race and take the leadership of the World Championship heading into the summer break. Over seven seconds separated Simoncelli from the chasing pack with just a third of the race completed, and those behind him could do nothing to stop the Metis Gilera rider from breaking free. Simoncelli´s great escape to victory did not signal an end to the action, however, as a five-rider battle raged on for second place. Hector Barbera led the charge onboard his Team Toth Aprilia, taking his third rostrum finish of the year. He held off the challenge of Alvaro Bautista despite some tough competition from his fellow Spaniard. Bautista had experienced a terrible start to his race, and had to work hard to rejoin the podium fight. Mapfre Aspar´s former 125cc World Champion made a spectacular comeback on the slippery track, recording some of the fastest laps of the race and salvaging a fourth consecutive podium. Mika Kallio performed an exercise of damage limitation as he conceded the lead of the overall classification, ensuring that the advantage held by Simoncelli could be easily closed when the series returns in mid-August. The Red Bull KTM rider came in ahead of Repsol KTM´s Julian Simon, who took his best result of 2008 to date. Mattia Pasini and Thomas Luthi both picked up valuable points in sixth and seventh place, respectively, whilst Kallio´s teammate Hiroshi Aoyama completed the race in eighth despite breaking his fairing in a late crash. Yuki Takahashi and Roberto Locatelli were the remaining two riders in the first ten across the line. 125cc Mike di Meglio took his third victory of the 2008 season in the 125cc Alice Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland. The Frenchman controlled the latter stages of the race after taking the lead on lap seventeen, crossing the line with a two second advantage over his nearest rival and maintaining the lead in the World Championship classification. A 30-point cushion in the title chase means that it will be a relaxing summer for the Ajo Motorsport rider. Sachsenring runner-up Stefan Bradl gave German fans their first home 125cc podium in ten years with an assured display from third on the grid, battling to a best ever Grand Prix finish onboard the Grizzly Gas Kiefer Aprilia RSA. The teenager had taken the holeshot and had his turn at leading the race, and held off the challenge of World Champion Gabor Talmacsi in the fight for second place. Talmacsi had been gunning for his second consecutive victory after taking pole position for the German showdown, but gave his fellow riders a head start when he experienced a mechanical problem taking off from the top spot on the grid. The Bancaja Aspar rider had to work hard to bring himself back into contention, and was rewarded for his efforts with a fifth podium of the year. Bradley Smith once again led a race before missing out on the podium spots, finishing fourth after heading the field at the midway point. The Briton was unable to hold on after making a break, caught by the eventual rostrum finishers courtesy of some of the fastest laps of the race. He led Talmacsi on the final lap, but was unable to stave off the challenge of the reigning World Champion on the final corner. Front row starter Simone Corsi came home in fifth, ahead of Emmi-Caffe Latte´s home rider Sandro Cortese and his Jack&Jones WRB teammate Nico Terol. Scott Redding, Esteve Rabat and Marc Marquez completed the top ten. More, from a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki: Chris Vermeulen raced his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R through the Sachsenring rain to earn a well deserved podium in today’s German Grand Prix. Vermeulen started from 14th on the grid and not only had to fight his way through the field, but was also hampered by heavy rain and the spray from the bikes in front, making visibility almost impossible. He made his way up to third place and challenged Valentino Rossi for second place by lap 10. He couldn’t quite close the gap on Rossi and although he came under heavy pressure towards the end of the race from Alex de Angelis, Vermeulen showed tremendous skill in the appalling conditions to bring his bike home on the podium for the first time this season. Loris Capirossi produced a fantastically brave display today, competing not only with the conditions and the other riders but also the injured right arm that he has been suffering with all weekend. Starting from 13th, he made a solid first few laps before getting up into seventh on lap eight. He then got involved in a long battle with Randy de Puniet and was relegated down to eighth, but he never gave up the chase and overtook de Puniet on the very last corner to take seventh position. Today’s race was watched by over 98,000 people at trackside who braved the rain to see Bridgestone dominate with the first four riders and eight of the top-10, using the Japanese manufacturer’s tyres. The race was won by reigning World Champion Casey Stoner, with current championship leader Valentino Rossi second. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP now makes a transatlantic trip to Laguna Seca in America for round 11 of the season, next weekend on Sunday 20th July. Chris Vermeulen: “I am very happy to be on the podium here in Germany. It was a really difficult race, as there was a lot more water than we had practised in on this circuit. I have got to give full credit to Bridgestone as they pushed me to go for a much harder compound than I wanted and it definitely worked. I really want to thank my crew as well, and the Japanese Suzuki staff, as we didn’t really have a lot of set-up in the rain but the bike worked really well. It wasn’t perfect but it was more than capable of getting me home, so I am really pleased to have put it on the podium for them as well. Let’s hope this is the start of a good run and now we are off to a track I enjoy a lot so hopefully we can move up to the top step there!” Loris Capirossi: “I am really happy for the whole team because Chris did a great job to finish third and I know it means a lot to everyone. I had to fight a lot with myself for the whole race and by half distance I had quite a lot of pain and was finding it very difficult to change direction, but for me the wet conditions helped with the injury. I had a battle with Randy and on the last corner I was able to overtake him and that was really good for me because I was still able to fight even with the injury and I know it will have healed more next time and I’ll be a lot stronger.” Paul Denning Team Manager: “I said yesterday that we would do our best to salvage something from a difficult weekend, but the results today were well above our expectations. Certainly the weather levelled things up and helped us to an extent, but that doesn’t take away from the tremendous performances of both riders. Chris has had some bad luck this season and certainly deserves his and the team’s first podium of the year. This can only give him more confidence as we head to one of his favourite tracks next weekend. From 14th on the grid to challenging the top two by mid-race was an amazing job. We didn’t quite have enough speed to live with the front two, but third is a great reward for Chris and all his guys who have worked so hard all year. “Loris’s result on paper was not as good, but the effort shown to ride in the conditions out there and fight till the end was truly remarkable. Some riders can tend to make more of injuries than necessary and others sometimes try to hide them completely. Loris is certainly in the latter group and he was really hurting out there today, so again we have to thank him for his determination and effort, and for showing his never-say-die attitude. He will be fully fit by Brno and Loris and his guys are looking forward to that part of the season.” More, from a press release issued by JiR Team Scot Honda: Andrea Dovizioso fifth, consistent and fast at the Sachsenring For JiR Team Scot and Andrea Dovizioso the weekend of the German Grand Prix was very satisfying. After two days of free practice, which confirmed the team’s good potential for the race and a qualifying that gave the JiR Team Scot the best position of the season on the grid, Andrea Dovizioso started fast, and was flying in the heavy rain, behind Spain’s Dani Pedrosa. For at least a third of the 30 lap race, the JiR Team Scot rider remained in a podium position, but was then joined by Chris Vermeulen, Alex De Angelis and Colin Edwards. The American rider battled for a long time with Andrea until the crash, which put the Yamaha rider out of the race. Andrea eventually finished in fifth position for the third consecutive race, highlighting the constant growth of performance that the team hopes will signify even better results in the future. Today’s result has earned Dovi more valuable points that now sees him just eight points from fifth position in the championship standings behind Edwards. Gianluca Montiron Director JiR Team Scot “The German Grand Prix has shown the qualities of Andrea who has confirmed himself as a rider who is fast and consistent. In conditions that were not optimal for us, we managed to achieve a result that is difficult to attain and one, which shows our abilities. We are maintaining our position in the top five in the race, and this is a signal that repays the commitment and work of all the team. We will have to work with our partners, particularly with Michelin, to move further forwards to enjoy even better results in the future, especially in difficult conditions like today.” Andrea Dovizioso – Pilot JiR Team Scot MotoGP HONDA RC212V 5th position, 5th best time: 1’33 “923 “This fifth place is our third consecutive fifth-placed finish, so we have to be happy. I was also the first rider on Michelin tyres, but I do not know if we made the best choice of what was available or if the competition was better than us with the wet track, but overall I am happy with the quality of work we put in this weekend. We started ‘in the dark’, as everyone saw that the practice sessions were conducted in dry conditions and we chose a hard rear tyre, which did not allow me to lean to the limit and be fully-fast with my corner speed. When Edwards caught me I didn’t let him go, and maintained contact with him until he made a mistake and fell. I want to say after this good qualifying session and good start I was I was expecting a little more. Now we go straight to Laguna Seca in the United States, which is a very ‘particular’ and unique track, one which I’m very curious about as I’ve never raced there before.” Cirano Mularoni Team Manager JiR Team Scot “This was a good result that satisfies us, but not completely. For the race we made a choice of tyres for ‘heavy’ rain and our race was conditioned partly by the changing intensity of the pace during the whole race. In any case I do not think that we could have challenged the riders on the podium today. We still thought we could get a better end result, but I want to say that during the three days the team has shown the highest levels of skills and this is the way we must continue.” More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati: STONER DEDICATES THIRD STRAIGHT WIN TO HIS TEAM AS BAD LUCK STRIKES RESURGENT MELANDRI Casey Stoner paid tribute to his team after picking up his third consecutive winners’ trophy and his fourth of the season at Sachsenring. It was another extraordinary performance from the Australian in torrentially wet conditions, which saw several riders crash, including Marco Melandri. The Italian was in the process of a stunning charge through the field and had made his way up to seventh place from sixteenth on the grid, only to crash moments after setting the fastest lap of the race. Stoner, who started from pole, was fourth in the first turn but quickly made his way to second after passes on Colin Edwards and Andrea Dovizioso. He then waited patiently until the tyres were up to temperature before stepping up the pace and when race leader Dani Pedrosa crashed, he controlled a comfortable advantage over the field to take the flag by 3.708 seconds from Valentino Rossi. The reigning World Champion, who struggled throughout the race with a stomach upset, has closed the gap to series leader Rossi to 20 points, having trailed by 50 just three races ago, and is only four points behind Pedrosa in second place. CASEY STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team) – 1st “I saw Dani ride off into the distance and I thought ‘fair play’ – there was no way I could keep that pace in those conditions at that time. We definitely needed a bit more time to get the tyres up to temperature and Dani just kept edging away, but then after a few laps I was coming down the main straight and I could see his bike bouncing around in the gravel at turn one. It’s a shame for him but even though he crashed he was still very impressive today. From then on it was a case of keeping my concentration but that wasn’t easy because I’ve been a little sick all weekend and I wasn’t feeling at all good during the race. Also, we went with quite a hard rear tyre compound and I had quite a few small moments that made me nervous but kept me on my guard. I kept pushing where I could and managed to keep opening out the advantage with every lap, then kept it upright to the end. It’s nice to close the championship down a little bit more and once again I owe a huge ‘thank you’ to the team, who have adapted the bike to virtually any condition here. This win is dedicated to them.” MARCO MELANDRI (Ducati Marlboro Team) – DNF “This time I feel angry that we didn’t get the result we deserved, not disappointed that we haven’t been fast, as has been the case on other occasions. The crash was a real shame because even though there’s always the chance of making a mistake in the wet I felt good at that time, the tyres were up to temperature, the bike was working well and I was coming through fast. I don’t know how many riders I passed but it was a few and I felt fast, happy and positive. The group ahead of me were some distance away but I felt I could keep improving. In fact, we’d made progress with our pace in the dry and we’ll see how we go from here in America. It’s a nice track and I hope we can start out well.” LIVIO SUPPO (Ducati MotoGP Project Leader) “Another perfect race from Casey! He knew not to push too hard at the start and then controlled the race impeccably. He’s in incredible form and we’ll do everything we can to help him keep it going for as long as possible! Marco showed signs of improvement in the wet and in the dry. Only the result was missing today but the most important thing is that he wasn’t hurt in the crash. Laguna is just a few days away and I think he can continue to improve there.” More, from a press release issued by Honda: MotoGP, 250GP and 125GP race report Weather: wet, overcast Temperature: 14-degree ambient, 17-degree track Humidity: 82% Crowd: 98,000 LEADER DANI FALLS AS DE ANGELIS FIGHTS TO FOURTH Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) was leading this soaking wet race by more than seven seconds after just four laps when he fell braking for turn one. Casey Stoner (Ducati) eventually won from Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) with Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) just hanging onto third from a flying Alex de Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V). As rain sheeted down the lights went out and Dani hit the front from second on the grid. Andrea Dovizioso (JiR Scot Honda RC212V) snatched second from row two, Colin Edwards (Yamaha) was an early front-runner too and Stoner lay fourth having started from pole. At the end of lap one Dani had pulled out a staggering two second lead over Dovi. With a clear track in front of him Pedrosa was simply pulverising the rest of the grid. On a sodden track he set an early fastest lap of 1m 36.65s and the Spanish star was riding two seconds a lap faster than anyone. As he crossed the line for the start of lap six in this 30-lap encounter he enjoyed a seven second advantage over Stoner who had mover up to second past Dovizioso. Braking for the tricky right-hand turn one, Dani fell, his bike smashed beyond resumption of the race and Dani, fortunately, walking away, albeit carrying injuries. Now it was Stoner’s turn to enjoy a spray-less run at the front and the Aussie employed the same remorseless measures, hauling away from Dovi by more than two seconds in two laps. As the rain eased off slightly Rossi passed Dovi for second at turn one and Edwards moved past him for third shortly after. The order after one third race distance was Stoner by 2.9 seconds from Rossi with another 1.3 seconds back to Edwards, then Dovi, Vermeulen, De Angelis and Marco Melandri (Ducati) who would set a fastest lap before crashing out on lap 11. By mid-race distance the track was marginally less wet but still drenched in water and the order was Stoner by 4.4 seconds from Rossi, then a similar gap back to Vermeulen and De Angelis. Stoner by now had set a fastest lap of 1m 33.452s. De Angelis was working hard on Vermeulen, but try as he might the San Marinese rookie on his customer RCV couldn’t find a way past the acknowledged wet-weather expert Vermeulen on the factory Suzuki. It made for the most exciting duel of the race though. Edwards was to crash at two thirds race distance leaving Dovi in a safe fifth place. Stoner eased up in the final laps, Rossi taking a safe second then Vermeulen and De Angelis breasting the line just feet apart having lapped Toni Elias (Ducati) as they finished this cold, wet race. Dovi finished fifth, Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) eighth. Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) pitted early on with electrical difficulties and grip problems. He rejoined the race to finish 13th while Shinya Nakano (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) finished ninth to continue his record of having scored points at all ten races so far this season. Dani, now nursing fracture to the index finger of his left hand and a suspected fracture to his right ankle, said: “It was a little strange. I had only just touched the brake and I crashed. It was a real pity because I’d got a great start and was going well. I had a good feeling. The front felt perfect, the rear was sliding just a little, but the general feeling was good considering the track conditions. It is a real pity.” De Angelis said: “Considering the dreadful weather, the last thing I expected was to be fighting for the podium. Of course, I thought I could have a good race but for me that meant fighting for eighth or ninth place, so to finish fourth is very satisfying even if a podium wouldn’t have been bad either! I went for it but I was held up at the end by Elias both Vermeulen and myself were forced to change our line to get around him.” Fifth-placed Dovi, this his third fifth-place in a row, said: “This fifth place is our third consecutive fifth-placed finish, so we have to be happy. We started ‘in the dark’, as everyone saw that the practice sessions were dry and we chose a hard rear tyre, which didn’t let me to lean to the limit and be fully-fast with my corner speed. When Edwards caught me I didn’t let him go, and maintained contact with him until he made a mistake and fell I was expecting a little more though.” The unfortunate Nicky said: “Today was a bit of a disaster, really. All weekend in the dry we had been going OK but conditions changed a lot for the race. I was actually glad it was raining because the bike has been working good in the rain recently, but the race turned into a disaster. The tyre choice wasn’t good and something also didn’t look right on the electronics, seems like it was a combination of problems. We came in and changed the rear tyre to a slightly different compound. Things were a lot better when I went out but I was right in the middle of everybody but I didn’t want to get in the way of people racing.” De Puniet in eighth said: “Basically I never had enough grip on the right side of the bike throughout the race. I went into the gravel in the first corner on lap seven and after that I tried to set a rhythm battling with Capirossi. With two laps to go the rain got worse and then Capirossi passed me in the last corner before the straight. Honestly, I’m not very happy, but with these conditions eighth place is not so bad.” Ninth-placed Nakano said: “I’m really disappointed with this result; unfortunately I didn’t manage to find a good feeling with the bike at the start of the race. I lost grip on the front for a couple of laps and just wasn’t comfortable in those conditions generally. I tried to keep my pace up but the amount of water on the track made it really difficult for me. I’m disappointed for the team but looking ahead to the next race at Laguna Seca with optimism.” The World Championship points table now shows Rossi on 187, Pedrosa with 171 and Stoner third with 167 points. The next round is at Laguna Seca in the United States next weekend. 250cc Grand Prix The rain that threatened to mar the 125cc race fell before this race and continued to fall heavily throughout. With the 29-lapper declared ‘wet’ riders took to the grid with full wet rubber as rain pelted down. Julian Simon (KTM) led into turn one but it was pole-man Marco Simoncelli (Gilera) who would shortly take charge of this 29-lap race. The Italian established a seven second lead before the halfway point and it was up to a five-rider group that assembled in the closing laps to dispute the podium places and the points haul in his wake in this intriguing 250cc World Championship struggle. Simoncelli coasted over the line to take the lead in the World Championship while Hector Barbera fended off his Spanish rival Alvaro Bautista (all Aprilia) to take second. Championship contender Mika Kallio (KTM) was fourth to take vital points while another hopeful Alex Debon (Aprilia) fell and failed to score. Yuki Takahashi (JiR Scot Honda RS250RW) finished 9th for his eighth top ten finish of the season so far while Ratthapark Wilairot (Thai Honda PTT SAG RS250RW) was 16th. Simoncelli now leads the World Championship with 164 points to Kallio’s 153. Bautista lies third with 118 points. Takahashi said: “My start wasn’t good. As always I tried to recover, but in the first laps I was slowed by other riders. I had to push more, but by then I felt grip at the rear was not so good, especially in the fast corners. I tried to give the same gas, but I was scared of falling and losing more points. I thank the team and as always we all gave the very maximum.” Wilairot said: “We didn’t find a good setting for wet conditions in the warm-up, and I couldn’t go fast. It’s a bad result. I’m very disappointed to not score points and I apologise to the team and everybody who’s supporting me. I have to score points again. I can do much better than this and I’ll prove it in the first race after the summer break.” (250cc Grand Prix resumes at Brno on August 17). 125cc Grand Prix World Championship leader Mike Di Meglio (Derbi) won this 27-lap race from local hero Helmut Bradl with reigning World Champion Gabor Talmacsi third, just ahead of Bradley Smith in fourth (all Aprilia). This is Di Meglio’s third win of the season so far. Bradl led off the line with Smith in close contention, Talmacsi from pole suffering a dreadful start and having to work hard to get himself back in contention. By lap three a four-rider breakaway had been established with Bradl, Simone Corsi (Aprilia) Joan Olive (Derbi) and Smith. As Corsi and Olive faded Di Meglio and Talmacsi showed their class, carving their way through a congested field on a tight track to get back into podium contention. On the final lap this new foursome battled for the podium with the verdict going to the Frenchman Di Meglio. Louis Rossi (FFM Racing Honda RS125R) finished an encouraging 22nd after starting from way back in 39th on the grid. He said: “I’m starting to have fun riding my Honda now. I followed my team’s advice about braking and leaning the bike over, and it paid off. I felt confident despite the difficult weather. There’s still a lot of work to be done but this race is encouraging.” Of some note was the performance of German wild-card entry Marcel Schrotter who finished 14th on his RS125R. The Bavarian rider is under the tutelage of multiple World Champion Toni Mang, with tuning legend Sepp Schlogel preparing his machine. Schrotter said: “I’m very happy with my race. I was racing with Gadea, Webb and Rabat. I felt I could go away from them. I was tenth at one point in the race. But they pushed harder and I stayed with them. But near the end some people were crashing and I decided to take the place I was in. I have to thank my team for this result.” The World Championship table now looks like this: Di Meglio 166, Corsi (who finished 5th today) with 136, Talmacsi on 109 and Bradl with 101. The next 125cc round is at Brno on August 17. Honda rider quotes. GP Germany, Sachsenring Race. July 13, 2008. MotoGP: Alex De Angelis, San Carlo Gresini Honda: 4th. “Considering the dreadful weather today, the last thing I expected was to be fighting for the podium. Of course, I thought I could have a good race but for me that meant fighting for eighth or ninth place, so to finish fourth is very satisfying and even if a podium wouldn’t have been bad either! I went for it but I was held up at the end by Elias both Vermeulen and myself were forced to change our line to get around him. It’s a shame because I was really strong in T3 and I could have tried something at the top of the hill. Anyway, I’m happy with my race because I didn’t have any bad moments, I got a good feeling straight away and feel I rode really well.” Andrea Dovizioso, JiR Scot Honda: 5th. “This fifth place is our third consecutive fifth-place finish, so we have to be happy. I was also the first rider on Michelin tyres, but I do not know if we made the best choice of what was available or if the competition was better than us with the wet track, but overall I am happy with the quality of work we put in this weekend. We started ‘in the dark’, as everyone saw that the practice sessions were conducted in dry conditions and we chose a hard rear tyre, which did not allow me to lean to the limit and be fully-fast with my corner speed. When Edwards caught me I didn’t let him go, and maintained contact with him until he made a mistake and fell. I want to say after this good qualifying session and good start I was I was expecting a little more. Now we go straight to Laguna Seca in the United States, which is a very ‘particular’ and unique track, one which I’m very curious about as I’ve never raced there before.” Randy De Puniet, LCR Honda: 8th. “It was a very hard race because we did not test in the wet in the last two days and the warm up session was held on damp track. So we decided to start with hard compound tyres in the front and in the rear but probably we made a mistake because the rear one was too hard. Basically I never had enough grip in the right side of the bike throughout the whole race. Then I went out in the gravel in the first corner in the seventh lap because I lost the control of the front in the wet part of the track. After that I tried to set my rhythm battling with Capirossi for the 7th position. With 2 laps to go the rain became stronger and was more difficult for me to keep the position so Capirossi passed me in the last corner before the straight. Honestly I am not very happy but with these conditions the 8th place is not so bad.” Shinya Nakano, San Carlo Gresini Honda: 9th. “I’m really disappointed with this result; unfortunately I didn’t manage to find a good feeling with the bike at the start of the race. I lost grip on the front for a couple of laps and just wasn’t comfortable in those conditions generally. I tried to keep my pace up but the amount of water on the track made it really difficult for me. I’m disappointed for the team but looking ahead to the next race at Laguna Seca with optimism.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 13th. “Today was a bit of a disaster, really. All weekend in the dry we had been going okay but conditions changed a lot for the race. I was actually glad it was raining because the bike has been working good in the rain recently, but the race turned into a disaster. The tyre choice wasn’t good and something also didn’t look right on the electronics, seems like it was a combination of problems. We came in and changed the rear tyre to a slightly different compound. Things were a lot better when I went out but I was right in the middle of everybody and I didn’t want to get in the way of people racing. We got a few points. Now it’s Laguna next weekend, so we’ll just keep pushing and hope to catch a break somewhere along the way.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: dnf crash. “It was a little strange. I had only just touched the brake and I crashed. It was a real pity because I’d got a great start and was going well. I had a good feeling. The front felt perfect, the rear was sliding just a little, but the general feeling was good considering the track conditions. It is a real pity.” 250cc: Yukio Takahashi, JiR Scot Honda: 9th. “All weekend I’ve never been able to find the confidence with the front that I wanted to give me a good lap time, but after this morning’s warm-up the situation had improved and I feel we could have had a good race. The rain which began to fall before the race certainly could have helped. My start was not so good, but as always I tried to recover but in the first laps I was slowed by other riders. I had to push more, but by then I felt the grip on the rear wheel was not so good, especially in the fast corners. I tried to give the same gas, but I was scared of falling and losing more points. I thank the team and as always we all gave the very maximum.” Ratthapark Wilairot, Thai Honda PTT SAG: “The beginning of the race was quite good, I started with the second group but I went back quickly because I had no confidence on the wet track. Wedidn’t find a good setting for wet conditions in the warm up, and I couldn’t go fast. It is a bad result, I’m very disappointed to not score points, and I apologize to the team and everybody who is supporting me. I have to score points again, I can do much better than this and I’ll prove it in the first race after the summer break.” 125cc: Marcel Schrotter, Toni Mang Team Honda: 14th. “I am very happy with my race. I was racing with Gadea, Webb and Rabat and I felt I could go away from them. I was tenth at one point in the race. But they pushed harder and I stayed with them. But near the end some people were crashing and I decided to take the place I was in. I have to thank my team for this result.” Louis Rossi, FFM Honda: 22nd. ” I feel more at ease aboard my Honda since this morning’s damp warm up and I am starting to have fun riding it. I got mentally prepared for the race and was able to keep my concentration. I had a good start but unfortunately made a few mistakes in the first two laps, with several riders passing me. I was nevertheless able to close on the group ahead of me and overtake some of my opponents, until I was just behind fellow countryman Alexis Masbou. I put into application my team’s advice regarding braking and leaning the bike over, and it paid off. I felt confident despite the difficult weather conditions, with the outburst of rain. There’s still a lot of work to be done but this race is encouraging.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Stoner leads all-Bridgestone podium at wet Sachsenring Round 10: Germany Race Sachsenring Circuit Sunday 13 July 2008 Ducati’s Casey Stoner scored his third consecutive victory of the season at a wet Sachsenring this afternoon leading an all-Bridgestone podium with Fiat Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi in second place, and Rizla Suzuki’s Chris Vermeulen in third. The thirty lap race was held in difficult wet conditions, but Bridgestone’s wet weather tyres proved competitive for the full race distance. Eight Bridgestone-shod riders finished in the top ten today at a circuit where success has previously eluded the tyre manufacturer. Stoner’s win represents the first time a rider on Bridgestone tyres has won at Sachsenring. Rossi’s second place takes him back to the top of the championship with a 16-point margin over Dani Pedrosa, who did not score points in today’s race. Stoner’s 25 points for the win bring him to within four points of second place in the standings heading into the United States GP at Laguna Seca next weekend, where Bridgestone enjoyed a podium clean sweep with Stoner in dominant form. Vermeulen’s third place today marks his and Suzuki’s first podium of the season and elevates him to seventh in the championship. San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Alex De Angelis missed out on his debut MotoGP podium by just 0.1s but claimed an excellent fourth position right behind Vermeulen, equalling his best result of the season. Alice Team rider Sylvain Guintoli took his best result of the year with a fine sixth position ahead of Loris Capirossi in seventh for Rizla Suzuki. De Angelis’s team-mate Shinya Nakano took ninth spot, while Kawasaki ensured all six Bridgestone-supported teams achieved top ten results with Anthony West in tenth. Hiroshi Yamada Bridgestone Motorsport Manager, Motorcycle Sport Unit “It was a tough race for everyone today, but it was a fantastic feeling to see the podium filled with red Bridgestone caps for the first time this season. Casey’s performance this weekend has been outstanding, and his win today was truly deserved. Valentino and Chris also rode very well to second and third positions, so well done to them for this achievement. All our teams showed a good performance level and I’d like to thank each of them for today’s result. To see so many of our riders finish in the top ten is always a pleasure and today is certainly no exception. A lot of our on-track team come from Germany, so it is a fitting result, and the fact that it is the first MotoGP win on Bridgestone tyres at Sachsenring makes it even more special.” Tohru Ubukata Bridgestone Motorsport Manager, Motorcycle Race Tyre Development “Sachsenring is always one of our biggest technical challenges of the season and I am so pleased with this result and the general performance of our wet weather tyres. Most of our riders used the harder of our two soft wet tyre specifications and the durability of these tyres over 30 demanding laps, especially on the left-hand side, was good. In the initial laps, the tyres naturally took some time to get up to the optimum temperature but the lap times after that were quick and consistent with Chris and Alex setting their fastest laps on the final lap when they were fighting for the final podium place.” Casey Stoner Ducati Corse Race Winner “I saw Dani riding off into the distance and I thought ‘fair play. There was no way I was going to go that fast in those conditions at that time. We used a harder compound on the tyres today and they were taking time to warm up. Then I saw Dani tumbling and rolling in the gravel. Given his past record in the wet, he was riding very well up until then. From then on it was just a matter of making sure of increasing a small advantage with every lap. Thanks to the team for everything, and it´s nice to close the championship up a bit more.” Bridgestone-shod Riders’ Race Results and Tyre Choices Pos. Rider Team Race Time Gap Front Tyre (all 16.5”) Rear Tyre (all 16.5”) P1 Casey Stoner Ducati Corse 47m30.057s Winner Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P2 Valentino Rossi Fiat Yamaha Team 47m33.765s +3.708s Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P3 Chris Vermeulen Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 47m44.059s +14.002s Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P4 Alex De Angelis San Carlo Honda Gresini 47m44.181 +14.124s Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P6 Sylvain Guintoli Alice Team 48m16.705s +46.648s Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P7 Loris Capirossi Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 48m34.540s +1m04.483s Wet-Soft Wet-Soft P9 Shinya Nakano San Carlo Honda Gresini 48m46.830s +1m16.773s Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P10 Anthony West Kawasaki Racing Team 48m59.332s +1m29.275s Wet-Medium Wet-Soft P12 Toni Elias Alice Team 47m43.954s +1 lap Wet-Soft Wet-Soft DNF Marco Melandri Ducati Corse 14m50.161s +21 laps Wet-Medium Wet-Soft Weather: Wet Air 14°C, Track 17°C More, from a press release issued by Michelin: DIFFICULT RAINY DAY FOR MICHELIN MEN Michelin had high hopes of another strong race at the Sachsenring today after packing the front of the grid with five riders in the top six in yesterday’s qualifying session. But race day turned out to be a very different story, with heavy rain falling soon after noon and the race getting underway on a soaking track. At first, things looked good for Michelin. World Championship leader Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V-Michelin) set a lightning-fast pace in the soaking conditions, pulling away from eventual winner Casey Stoner (Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici) at the rate of more than a second a lap. The Spaniard said he had a good feeling from the front tire and was thus surprised when he lost front grip at the start of the sixth lap and crashed. At the end of the 30 laps Michelin were disappointed to have only two riders in the top eight, MotoGP rookie Andrea Dovizioso (JiR Team Scot Honda RC212V-Michelin) coming home fifth in his first wet MotoGP race, Randy de Puniet (Honda LCR RC212V-Michelin) finishing eighth, just one tenth of a second behind Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki GSV-R) “The race turned out to be really difficult for us,” said Jean-Philippe Weber, Michelin’s director of motorcycle racing. “At the beginning of the race when the rain was quite heavy Dani was able to go very fast. After five laps he was already more than seven seconds ahead of Casey Stoner and he said he had good feeling with the tires. Unfortunately he crashed while braking into the first corner. We are disappointed with the result, mainly because we’ve had comments from several riders explaining that rear tire grip wasn’t good enough for them to run the rhythm of the race. Now we need to speak more deeply with them so we can try to understand where that lack of grip came from, whether it is a problem specific to the Sachsenring, because at other tracks this year we have had better grip in wet conditions. Today we used medium-range tires today because we didn’t know whether the rain would get heavier or lighter. Should we have used softer tires? Now we will sit around the table with our riders and we will work to improve the situation.” More, from a press release issued by Indianapolis Motor Speedway: MotoGP RACE REPORT: GRAND PRIX OF GERMANY Stoner climbs closer to top with third straight victory; Pedrosa injured in wet fall INDIANAPOLIS, Sunday, July 13, 2008 Valentino Rossi regained the MotoGP points lead from Dani Pedrosa on July 13 at the Grand Prix of Germany, but now there’s no question that the top two are focused more on the red storm rising Casey Stoner and Ducati than each other. Stoner won the 30-lap race in wet conditions at the Sachsenring on his red Ducati Marlboro Team Ducati/Bridgestone, his third consecutive victory and fourth overall of the season. Stoner, who was fourth and 46 points out of the lead June 1, now is third and just 20 points behind Rossi and four points behind second-place Pedrosa. “It’s nice to close the championship down a little bit more,” Stoner said. Rossi bounced back from his crash and 11th-place finish June 29 in the British Grand Prix to place second on his Fiat Yamaha Team Yamaha/Bridgestone, 3.708 seconds behind Stoner. Wet-weather specialist Chris Vermeulen rode to third on his Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki/Bridgestone, holding off Alex de Angelis by .122 of a second for the final podium spot. “Dani is tough and we know he will be back fighting at the front, but sincerely at the moment we need to think about how to catch Casey because he has been very fast now for a few races,” Rossi said. It was a race to forget for American riders. 2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden finished 13th on his Repsol Honda Team Honda/Michelin, two laps behind Stoner, after being hampered by poor tire choice and electronics problems. He was forced to make a pit stop to change the rear tire. Colin Edwards crashed with 10 laps remaining on his Tech 3 Yamaha Yamaha/Michelin and was credited with 14th place. He was unhurt. It was only the second race this season in which Edwards didn’t score points. The third full-time American rider on the MotoGP grid, John Hopkins, did not compete in this race due to a broken leg and ankle suffered in a crash during the British Grand Prix on his Kawasaki Racing Team Kawasaki/Bridgestone. Pedrosa jumped pole sitter Stoner at the start and shot away in the wet conditions, building a lead of 7.5 seconds after just five laps on his Repsol Honda Team Honda/Michelin. But Pedrosa fell in Turn 1 on Lap 6, rolling through the gravel. He broke his left index finger and suffered a possible fracture of his right ankle. Stoner then rode solo for the rest of the race, trying to stay focused despite not feeling well and riding with a hard-compound rain tire in the tricky conditions. The next race is the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix on July 20 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the first of two MotoGP events in America this season. The inaugural Red Bull Indianapolis GP is Sept. 14 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. *** RESULTS HOHENSTEIN-ERNSTTHAL, Germany Results of the 30-lap Grand Prix of Germany MotoGP race, with position, rider, country, motorcycle/tire, time behind winner: 1. Casey Stoner Australia Ducati/Bridgestone 2. Valentino Rossi Italy Yamaha/Bridgestone +3.708 seconds 3. Chris Vermeulen Australia Suzuki/Bridgestone +14.002 4. Alex de Angelis San Marino Honda/Bridgestone +14.124 5. Andrea Dovizioso Italy Honda/Michelin +42.022 6. Sylvain Guintoli France Ducati/Bridgestone +46.648 7. Loris Capirossi Italy Suzuki/Bridgestone +1:04.483 8. Randy de Puniet France Honda/Michelin +1:04.588 9. Shinya Nakano Japan Honda/Bridgestone +1:16.773 10. Anthony West Australia Kawasaki/Bridgestone +1:29.275 11. James Toseland Great Britain Yamaha/Michelin +1 lap 12. Toni Elias Spain Ducati/Bridgestone +1 lap 13. Nicky Hayden United States Honda/Michelin +2 laps 14. Colin Edwards United States Yamaha/Michelin +10 laps 15. Marco Melandri Italy Ducati/Bridgestone +21 laps 16. Dani Pedrosa Spain Honda/Michelin +25 laps 17. Jorge Lorenzo Spain Yamaha/Michelin +28 laps Fastest lap: Stoner, 1:32.749, Lap 23 Pole lap: Stoner, 1:21.067 *** POINTS Riders: Rossi 187, Pedrosa 171, Stoner 167, Lorenzo 114, Edwards 98, Dovizioso 90, Vermeulen 73, Hayden 73, Toseland 65, Nakano 64, Capirossi 60, de Angelis 38, Elias 37, Guintoli 34, Hopkins 32, Melandri 32, de Puniet 30, West 22, Spies 2, Okada 2. Manufacturers: Yamaha 216, Honda 184, Ducati 172, Suzuki 96, Kawasaki 47. *** PODIUM QUOTES CASEY STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team Ducati/Bridgestone, winner): “I saw Dani ride off into the distance, and I thought, “Fair play.” There was no way I could keep that pace in those conditions at that time. We definitely needed a bit more time to get the tires up to temperature and Dani just kept edging away, but then after a few laps I was coming down the main straight and I could see his bike bouncing around in the gravel at Turn 1. It’s a shame for him but even though he crashed he was still very impressive today. From then on, it was a case of keeping my concentration, but that wasn’t easy because I’ve been a little sick all weekend and I wasn’t feeling at all good during the race. Also, we went with quite a hard rear tire compound and I had quite a few small moments that made me nervous but kept me on my guard. It’s nice to close the championship down a little bit more.” VALENTINO ROSSI (Fiat Yamaha Team Yamaha/Bridgestone, second): “I’m really happy with this result, even if racing in the rain today wasn’t quite as much fun as I’ve had in some of my past races here. For the championship, this is very, very important: I made a mistake last week in Assen, and today Dani did the same. It’s unlucky, but this is racing and now we are back in front and this is a very good feeling. Dani is tough and we know he will be back fighting at the front, but sincerely at the moment we need to think about how to catch Casey because he has been very fast now for a few races. Once again here we lost some time during the practice trying to find the right setting, and we can’t afford to keep doing this. Today we started from the third row, and this meant that I had to deal with some confusion at the start and lost some time on the front riders. By the time I got behind Casey, my M1 was working very well and I had very good grip with my Bridgestone rain tires. I felt very confident and I tried hard to push, but there was no way to catch him at that stage, so our aim must be to start at the front from now on. Now we have to try to extend this lead in Laguna.” CHRIS VERMEULEN (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki/Bridgestone, third): “I am very happy to be on the podium here in Germany. It was a really difficult race, as there was a lot more water than we had practiced in on this circuit. I have got to give full credit to Bridgestone as they pushed me to go for a much harder compound than I wanted, and it definitely worked. I really want to thank my crew, as well, and the Japanese Suzuki staff, as we didn’t really have a lot of setup in the rain, but the bike worked really well. It wasn’t perfect, but it was more than capable of getting me home, so I am really pleased to have put it on the podium for them, as well. Let’s hope this is the start of a good run, and now we are off to a track I enjoy a lot, so hopefully we can move up to the top step there.” *** AMERICAN RIDER QUOTES NICKY HAYDEN (Repsol Honda Team Honda/Michelin, 13th): “Today was a bit of a disaster, really. All weekend in the dry we had been going OK, but conditions changed a lot for the race. I was actually glad it was raining because the bike has been working good in the rain recently, but the race turned into a disaster. The tire choice wasn’t good and something also didn’t look right on the electronics. Seems like it was a combination of problems. We came in and changed the rear tire to a slightly different compound. Things were a lot better when I went out, but I was right in the middle of everybody and I didn’t want to get in the way of people racing. We got a few points. Now it’s Laguna next weekend, so we’ll just keep pushing and hope to catch a break somewhere along the way.” COLIN EDWARDS (Tech 3 Yamaha Yamaha/Michelin, 14th): “All I can say is it was a very tough race right from the start. The conditions were not easy, but I got a reasonable start and just wanted to get into a steady pace. But it was obvious from quite early on that it was going to be difficult. I didn’t have a lot of feel from the rear tire, and I tried everything I could to hang in there and keep a top-five finish for the team, who have been great all weekend. It would have also kept my own personal good run going. But as the race wore on, it wasn’t getting any better, and I lost the rear at the downhill left-hander. I had no warning at all, and I didn’t feel I was particularly pushing too hard because by that stage a podium had already gone. I was trying to keep Dovizioso behind me to at least finish top Michelin rider. I’d tried to follow Casey and Valentino, but I just didn’t have anything for them. Fifth was going to be the best result I could have managed today, and that’s a bit disappointing because in the dry I think I could have been fighting for a podium. I’m just grateful I didn’t get hurt in the crash because I’ve got my home race coming up, and I desperately want to put on a good performance for the American fans, Tech 3 and Yamaha at Laguna Seca. After this disappointment, I’ll be looking to bounce straight back.” *** MotoGP SUPPORT CLASS WINNERS 250cc: Marco Simoncelli, Italy, Metis Gilera Gilera 125cc: Mike Di Meglio, France, Ajo Motorsport Derbi. American Stevie Bonsey placed 18th and is 13th in series points. *** NEXT RACE Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, July 20. Round 11 of 18. *** Red Bull Indianapolis GP tickets: Tickets are on sale for the inaugural Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Sept. 14, 2008. Tickets can be purchased either online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com at any time; on the phone by calling (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or (317) 492-6700 locally between 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday; or visiting the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Ticket Office on the first floor of the IMS Administration Building at 4790 W. 16th St. in Indianapolis from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. All tickets for this event are three-day tickets, with both reserved and general admission seating available.