2007 FIM MotoGP World Championship Donington Park, England June 24, 2007 Race Results (wet conditions): 1. Casey Stoner (Ducati), Bridgestone, 30 laps 2. Colin Edwards (Yamaha), Michelin, -11.768 seconds 3. Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki), Bridgestone, -15.678 seconds 4. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), Michelin, -21.827 seconds 5. John Hopkins (Suzuki), Bridgestone, -35.518 seconds 6. Randy de Puniet (Kawasaki), Bridgestone, -36.474 seconds 7. Alex Barros (Ducati), Bridgestone, -38.094 seconds 8. Dani Pedrosa (Honda), Michelin, -38.992 seconds 9. Alex Hoffman (Ducati), Bridgestone, -39.239 seconds 10. Marco Melandri (Honda), Bridgestone, -61.526 seconds 11. Anthony West (Kawasaki), Bridgestone, crash, -66.986 seconds 12. Toni Elias (Honda), Bridgestone, -94.074 seconds 13. Kurtis Roberts (KR Honda), Michelin, -1 lap 14. Shinya Nakano (Honda), Michelin, -1 lap 15. Makoto Tamada (Yamaha), Dunlop, -2 laps 16. Sylvain Guintoli (Yamaha), Dunlop, -2 laps 17. Nicky Hayden (Honda), Michelin, -4 laps, crash 18. Loris Capirossi (Ducati), Bridgestone, -6 laps, crash 19. Carlos Checa (Honda), Michelin, -26 laps, crash 2007 FIM MotoGP World Championship Standings (after 8 of 18 races): 1. Stoner, 165 points 2. Rossi, 139 points 3. Pedrosa, 106 points 4. Vermeulen, 88 points 5. Hopkins, 83 points 6. Melandri, 81 points 7. Edwards, 65 points 8. Barros, 60 points 9. Capirossi, 57 points 10. Elias, 49 points 11. Hofmann, 45 points 12. Hayden, 41 points 13. De Puniet, 40 points 14. Nakano, 21 points 15. Checa, 20 points 16. Tamada, 17 points 17. Guintoli, 16 points 18. TIE, West/Fonsi Nieto, 5 points 20. TIE, Olivier Jacque/Kenny Lee Roberts, 4 points 22. Kurtis Roberts, 3 points More, from a press release issued by Konica Minolta Honda: More points for KONICA MINOLTA Honda at a ‘difficult’ Donington Park KONICA MINOLTA Honda scored more points at a difficult British Grand Prix today. With weather conditions expected to stay wet throughout the 30-lap race, the rain actually stopped falling after a few laps and then the conditions quickly dried-up. Despite the tricky conditions, 29-year-old Japanese rider Shinya Nakano secured two World Championship points, allowing the KONICA MINOLTA Honda Team to move up a place in the overall MotoGP rider’s championship. The hectic pace of the series now continues with the Team immediately heading to Assen in Holland for round nine of the series, which takes place at the legendary Circuit Van Drenthe on Saturday 30th June. Gianluca Montiron Team Manager KONICA MINOLTA Honda “Today’s race was very hard for us due once more to the very changeable weather conditions that we experienced! We really wanted a full-wet race and I think like many Teams, we were expecting the rain to stay, but after a few laps the rain stopped and the track began to dry. From the middle of the race, the conditions quickly dried out, making things difficult for Shinya especially in the last few laps but he managed to hold on for some points. This has meant that we have overtaken a Team in the overall championship standings. Now we have to concentrate on the next race, which is less than a week away at Assen, in Holland. We hope that we can have a race where the conditions stay constant for everyone!” Shinya Nakano Rider, KONICA MINOLTA Honda (14th position) “With the conditions changing so much that was a difficult race. I think my start was not so bad, but then during the first lap I had a slide with the rear tyre and I had to catch it before I fell down, this meant I lost a couple of places. For the first 10 laps things were OK, but then the conditions began to change and the track started to dry out. This meant that I could not push hard as I would have liked, as when the track began to dry, the tyre would slide more. When this began to happen I decided to hang on and get some points for the overall championship positions.” Giulio Bernardelle Technical Director, KONICA MINOLTA Honda “This morning in warm-up our position was not so bad with the tyre we chose as the conditions were so wet. We decided to start the race with the same rear tyre as the feeling from Shinya this morning was better in comparison to Friday when we first tested in the wet. With the rain falling just before the race, this was the correct choice for us. Unfortunately for us the conditions changed about a third of the way through the race and the rain stopped and the track began to dry. When conditions are stable either full wet, or full dry Shinya is able to be more consistent, but when the track is constantly changing the feeling for our rider is not so good. We have scored points though and we have learned a lot which we can take with us to Assen.” More, from a press release issued by Team Roberts: POINTS FOR ROBERTS WITH BEST-EVER RESULT Donington Park, England – June 24, 2007: Kurtis Roberts survived a rain-hit British GP to claim 13th position, adding to the team’s point score and claiming a personal best MotoGP finish. Roberts started from 19th on the grid, but ran strongly in the early stages, passing several riders to get to 11th place by the tenth of 3 laps of the 2.5-mile circuit outside Derby. That was on a streaming wet track, but the rain was already easing off, and as the track dried he found his soft tyre choice was no longer effective. He started to drop back, but was able to save a position in the World Championship points. Kurtis, younger son of team principal Kenny Roberts, has been racing in the US after one low-key MotoGP season. He is riding the England-made KR212V, powered by a Honda V4 engine, in place of his brother, former World Champion Kenny Junior. This was his third race on the machine, after being brought in to try to speed up development of the all-new motorcycle. The race was won by World Championship leader Casey Stoner (Ducati), his fifth win of the year. Team Roberts is constructing a revised chassis to solve handling problems with their prototype racer, the first 800cc MotoGP machine they had built. This is targeted for the US GP in July, and Kenny Junior is expected to return to the saddle at that time. KURTIS ROBERTS – 13th position I fell this morning in warm-up, and I’m still pretty sore, so it took me a lap or two to get the confidence back. When I started catching guys -(Shinya) Nakano and (Marco) Melandri, I felt good. Went around them pretty easy. Then maybe four or five laps after, when a dry line was developing, the bike started moving around a lot on full lean, and was getting worse and worse. The track was so dry in some places, and wet in others. I was searching for water to cool the tyre down. Once I started losing places again, I was just on salvage mode just looking at the lap countdown. I couldn’t go any faster – if I leaned it over the thing moved all around. We picked too soft a rear. It was great when it was wet, but once it started drying up it was terrible. But we got points, and at least I didn’t fall off again. KENNY ROBERTS – TEAM PRINCIPAL We did better than I thought we were going to do, anyway. It wasn’t a useful day – we didn’t learn anything in terms of what problems we have. You couldn’t with this weather. It looked like we were going forward for half the race, then it dried out and we weren’t good. Which was surprising, because we’re usually better when it starts to get a dry line. That was a tyre issue, but Kurtis was able to get some mileage and get comfortable. Assen should be better. If we get a bit of weather help and improve our set-up, we could start working our way back up again. More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Storming Stoner takes great British win on Bridgestone tyres Round 08 Great Britain – Race Donington Park, Britain – Sunday 24 June 2007 Bridgestone-shod Ducati rider Casey Stoner extended his lead of the MotoGP world championship to 26 points after a storming victory at Donington Park in Britain this afternoon. His compatriot Chris Vermeulen added more Australian feeling to the podium, excelling in the damp-drying track conditions this afternoon to take his Suzuki to an excellent third place. Persistent rain during the morning rendered Saturday’s dry practice programme obsolete as riders were forced to switch to wet tyres for today’s 30-lap race. Bridgestone’s ten riders all opted for the soft option wet weather tyres, which were tested in the wet free practice sessions on Friday, and could benefit from the tyres longevity over the gruelling race distance even as a dry line developed towards the end of the race. Suzuki’s John Hopkins, Kawasaki’s Randy de Puniet and Pramac d’Antin’s Alex Barros proved the strength in depth of Bridgestone’s teams this afternoon claiming fifth, sixth and seventh positions respectively, while Alex Hofmann produced a strong ride to finish in ninth position. Stoner’s great British win takes his victory tally to five in eight races which equals the most wins by a single rider on Bridgestone tyres, a feat obtained by his team-mate Loris Capirossi. It was the sixth win on Bridgestone tyres this season and the first at Donington Park since Masao Azuma, now Bridgestone’s field engineer for the Suzuki team, won in the 125cc class back in 1999. Hiroshi Yamada- Bridgestone Motorsport Manager, Motorcycle Sport Department “That was another masterful race performance from Casey Stoner, so I would like to thank him and the Ducati team for another fantastic result. Chris Vermeulen also rode brilliantly to take the third podium for the Suzuki team this season, so well done to them. The weather conditions this weekend have been far from ideal but our teams have worked very well and the results today show that we can be confident in all types of weather. I am particularly pleased that we have been able to show a good performance in Britain, one of our toughest tracks in the past, and I hope the 85,000 loyal and passionate British fans who braved the weather today enjoyed the show.” Tohru Ubukata Bridgestone Motorsport Manager, Motorcycle Race Tyre Development “We have experienced a weekend of ever-changing weather conditions, but I am very happy with the competitiveness of our slick and wet weather tyres here in Donington. After the fully wet start, about halfway through the race a dry line started to emerge and our wet tyres showed that they could also withstand such intermediate conditions. All ten riders used the soft specification wet tyre for the first time in a GP and I am pleased with the durability in damp-drying conditions, something that did give us some concerns on Friday. Our slick tyres were more competitive here than in the past and I think we have found the British breakthrough we have been working hard to achieve.” Casey Stoner Ducati Corse Race Winner and Championship Leader “Everything has been working very well here at Donington this weekend and the result is fantastic. The weather has played a big part but the Bridgestone tyres have been performing in both dry and wet conditions. Midway through the race when the track was starting to dry up, I was a little worried that maybe I was destroying the rear tyre, so I started going over all the wet patches that I could. I got to the last five laps and realised that the tyre was still okay and I had a pretty good feeling with it still, so I continued to use the dry line. The tyre still looked pretty good at the end of the race considering it was the softest option wet tyre we have, so thanks to Bridgestone for all their continued efforts.” Bridgestone Race Results Front Rear P1 Casey Stoner Ducati 51m40.739s WINNER Wet Soft Wet Soft P3 Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 51m56.417s +15.678s Wet Soft Wet Soft P5 John Hopkins Suzuki 52m16.257s +35.518s Wet Soft Wet Soft P6 Randy de Puniet Kawasaki 52m17.213s +36.474s Wet Soft Wet Soft P7 Alex Barros Pramac d’Antin 52m18.833s +38.094s Wet Soft Wet Soft P9 Alex Hofmann Pramac d’Antin 52m19.978s +39.239s Wet Soft Wet Soft P10 Marco Melandri Honda Gresini 52m42.265s +1m01.526s Wet Soft Wet Soft P11 Anthony West Kawasaki 52m47.225s +1m06.286s Wet Soft Wet Soft P12 Toni Elias Honda Gresini 53m14.813s +1m34.074s Wet Soft Wet Soft DNF Loris Capirossi Ducati 41m47.579s +6 laps Wet Soft Wet Soft Weather: Wet. Air 14°C, Track 18°C, Humidity 90% More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: DE PUNIET AND WEST IN THE POINTS AT DONINGTON A delighted Kawasaki Racing Team are today celebrating the first time this season both their riders have come home with championship points, after the British Grand Prix at Donington Park. As a result of steady rain all morning, the 30-lap race was run in the wet: not regarded as an entirely bad thing in the Kawasaki garage. But the track started to dry out and grip became unpredictable on the notoriously unforgiving circuit, making for a hugely exciting eighth round of the season. Randy de Puniet managed a well-deserved sixth place on his 800cc Ninja ZX-RR having started on the third row of the grid. In front of nearly 85,000 spectators who braved dismal conditions at the Leicestershire circuit, the 26-year-old Frenchman lost a couple of places on the first lap but soon made his way back up through the pack. A crash in this morning’s warm up session had failed to dent his confidence and, towards the end of the race, he held off rival, Alex Barros, whilst simultaneously giving the man in front, John Hopkins, something to worry about. Randy’s sixth spot earns him 10 points, taking his total so far this season to 40. Maintaining his 13th position in the championship overall, he’s just one point behind 2006 world champion, Nicky Hayden. In his first ever MotoGP race, team newcomer Anthony West put in a staggering early performance, firing up from 17th on the grid to ninth by the end of lap one. When he overtook Valentino Rossi on the fourth lap, the seven times world champion got him straight back but West passed him again, rising to a remarkable fifth place. There was no sign of a let up in his extraordinary progress until a lack of grip saw the 25-year-old Australian in the gravel at Coppice on lap seven. He quickly remounted the bike and rejoined the track in 15th position. During the rest of the race, West managed to make up ground, passing the likes of Elias and Nakano, eventually crossing the line in 11th place. He scored five points on his first outing and is, already, officially 18th out of 22 riders in the championship. Earlier in the day, the premier class rookie had topped the timesheets after a wet warm up, beating none other than current world championship leader, Casey Stoner, and today’s pole position man, Colin Edwards: the men who claimed first and second places in the race itself. Next weekend sees yet another round of the MotoGP world championship, at Assen in the Netherlands: the end of an exhausting run of four races in five weekends for the teams. Another hugely popular round, the Kawasaki team will be spurred on to improve by the recent upsurge in their prospects, and by the podium finish they achieved last year at the Dutch circuit. In the meantime, it’s smiles all round at Randy and Anthony’s hugely promising achievements in the UK. Randy De Puniet 6th Position “That was a hard race and I was very happy to see the flag! The first few laps felt a bit slow but I found it difficult to improve as I didn’t want to make a mistake. Tyres were a problem at the end, with the track becoming dry, and it was difficult to control the machine. Grip wasn’t good but it was the same for everybody and, overall, the bike worked well in the difficult conditions. I finished in sixth position and, for me, it was my best race because it was so, so hard, so I’m very happy. It’s great for me and the team to continue to do well after the result in Barcelona.” Anthony West 11th Position “I felt really strong in the wet and it didn’t feel like I was pushing too hard. Nicky Hayden crashed right in front of me in the same place a few laps before and there was no grip there. I’d struggled with it all weekend. But the rear came round so quickly and I don’t really know what happened. After that, when the track started drying out, I found it hard to get any traction and couldn’t lay the power down. Later, it started to feel better but by then it was too late to make a move back on Melandri. I’m disappointed I crashed because I wanted to get a good result for these guys but I’m happy I finished and got some points.” Michael Bartholemy Kawasaki Competition Manager “I am happy with our performance today, and throughout the whole weekend. Randy rode a sensible race to secure his second successive top ten finish in difficult conditions, while Anthony showed just how quickly he’s adapted to our Ninja ZX-RR with an impressive performance early on in the race. He’s completed only three full days on the bike, and yet he was running in fifth place before a mistake at Coppice saw him run off the track. But, he fought back and was unlucky to miss out on a top ten finish as conditions improved towards the end. This is the first race in which both bikes have finished in the points this season, so Randy and Anthony can congratulate themselves on a job well done. I think we’ve shown that the Ninja ZX-RR is capable of finishing high up the order regardless of the conditions and I hope we can continue this trend for the remainder of the season.” More, from a press release issued by Gresini Racing Honda: MELANDRI AND ELIAS STRUGGLE THROUGH THE DONINGTON RAIN The rain that has hindered the British GP throughout practice returned on race day to make conditions extra tough for the eighth round of the championship. Team Honda Gresini riders Marco Melandri and Toni Elias battled against the slippery Donington Park circuit, which became even more difficult to negotiate as the track dried slightly over the course of the 30-lap race. The pair started from the 3rd and 4th rows respectively and tried their best to make up positions but they struggled for grip at the start of the race in the wet and only began to get a comfortable feeling from their bikes as the track dried – Elias setting the fastest lap of the race with a time of 1’41″428. MARCO MELANDRI (10th in the race, 6th in the championship on 81 points): “We tried a few set-up modifications in the warm-up and improved the feeling on the front but couldn’t do the same on the rear. When the track was really wet I struggled because the bike was sliding a lot. Then as it started to dry out the situation improved because the bike felt more balanced. The lap times show that because I went from doing a 1’46.4 to a 1’41.4 on the last lap.” TONI ELIAS (12th in the race, 10th in the championship on 49 points): “It’s been a difficult weekend and it hasn’t ended as we wanted. I struggled in the race because I couldn’t get the tyre up to temperature and find grip. I had a problem in braking and ran wide a few times, which made me lose time and this meant I couldn’t recover positions as I wanted. When the track began to dry I was able to set the fastest lap of the race. The positive thing is that we’ve gathered a lot of information in the wet which we’ll be able to use together with Bridgestone and try to solve some of the problems we’ve had this weekend.” More, from a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki: Vermeulen on the podium at Rizla Suzuki MotoGP’s ‘home’ Grand Prix Chris Vermeulen raced to a tremendous third-place at Donington Park today to give Rizla Suzuki MotoGP a podium in front of nearly 85,000 home fans at the British Grand Prix. Heavy rain had fallen over the 4km English circuit all day, including during this morning’s warm-up session that saw Vermeulen become a victim of the treacherous conditions as he suffered another big crash. As the race began the rain started to ease off and Vermeulen got off to a great start, getting up to third position by the second lap, but a problem with misting inside his helmet visor saw the Australian’s visibility hampered and he dropped back to fifth and at one point ran off the track. As the rain ceased Vermeulen was able to lift his visor and clear the misting, and then set about chasing down the riders in front of him. He caught and passed both team-mate John Hopkins and then Valentino Rossi, and was catching second-placed man Colin Edwards in the closing stages, but just ran out of laps as he tried to haul him in. Today’s race was won by championship leader Casey Stoner on his Bridgestone-shod Ducati. Hopkins recorded his best ever wet race finish by crossing the line in fifth position. The Anglo- American got a good start and was in a podium place early on in the race, but as the track started to form a dry-line he was unable to take advantage. His fifth place today was also his fifth top-five finish of the season so far, and leaves him in fifth place in the championship overall, with team-mate Vermeulen just above in fourth. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP stays in third place in the team’s championship and it will be looking to continue with its strong run of form when the next GP gets underway at Assen in the Netherlands in only six days time on Saturday 30th June. Chris Vermeulen: “It was very wet to start with and then dried out later on and that made the conditions very difficult. But my team and Bridgestone deserve full marks for picking the best tyres for today they certainly knew what they were doing! I also want give my crew an extra special thank-you because for the second day running I crashed heavily in the morning and they again managed to get the bike rebuilt in time, so thanks guys! As far as the race went, I felt comfortable early on, but then had some trouble seeing through my visor. A couple of riders came past me and I ran off the track, I was struggling to see so much that I could have hit a wall or a spectator or anything and not have known! When the rain stopped I was able to lift my visor up a bit and that cleared the misting and I was able to push harder again. I passed John and Valentino and very nearly caught Colin but I ran out of laps. I am very happy to be on the podium and now let’s go and do it again preferably in the dry!” John Hopkins: “Firstly congratulations to Chris, it is great to see a Suzuki on the podium again, I wish it had been me but he is pretty good in the wet! I got a decent start to the race and had a couple of battles early on with other riders. As the rain stopped falling it created a dry line which was difficult for me because although most riders take that line it’s not the one that I always take! For the most part I’m pleased with the result; we finished in the top-five again and got some good points. We need to get a run of dry races now because I think with the Suzuki and Bridgestone package can be competitive wherever we go. I hope it will be dry at Assen next weekend as that is a place I really enjoy and I want to get a good result there so I can climb up that championship table.” Paul Denning Team Manager: “A great team result in awful conditions. Chris has had a really tough weekend having crashed three times but he put it all together today and rode a strong race. The way he hunted down Valentino from so far back was just great to watch. “John also performed really well today, especially in the full wet conditions at the start when it looked like he could have passed anyone on the brakes at any point on the circuit. I think it became very difficult for both the guys when the track started drying out and it was tough to read the conditions and know how hard to push. I would like to say well done to everyone in the team for preparing the bikes so well and to both the riders for keeping their wits about them and bringing the GSV-Rs home in high points scoring positions.” More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Returning to the scene of his first ever road race appearance, MotoGP World Championship leader Casey Stoner took win number five of the 2007 season and his premier class career at the Nickel & Dime British Grand Prix. The Australian extends his lead at the top of the standings to 26 points courtesy of a great performance at a tricky circuit, prompting Ducati MotoGP project manager Livio Suppo to describe his 21 year-old protégé as ‘a genius’. Like all genii, Stoner did things very much his way at Donington Park, having to make up a number of positions after an atrocious start. Back up to seventh by the end of lap one, Stoner needed just three more laps to put himself amongst the podium spots during the ‘wet weather’ stage of the proceedings, finally passing leader Colin Edwards at the halfway point. From there he never looked back; knowing when to back off as a dry line was established on the track and saving his tyres to take his Desmosedici GP7 through to victory. Once again, the rider on pole failed to win the race, but Colin Edwards at least had a better race than at Le Mans where he took his maiden top spot. Finishing second in his best result of the past two years, ‘The Texan Tornado’ will have confidence at an all-time high when he returns to Assen next Saturday to avenge some of his personal demons from 2006. Having crashed three times over the course of the weekend, Chris Vermeulen rewarded the mechanics that he had kept so busy over the weekend with the final podium position. A fantastic start from twelfth on the grid gave the wet weather expert the chance to show his stuff, and he didn’t disappoint with a masterful display. Overtaking seven-time Donington victor Valentino Rossi at the death, the second Australian on the rostrum held off any attempt at an immediate comeback from the Italian to earn his second top three finish of the year. Rossi’s tyres were destroyed at the end of the race, as the Italian pushed his Yamaha M1 to the limit, and he had to be wary of any mistake allowing the second Suzuki of Anglo-American John Hopkins to close him down. Randy de Puniet followed up his fifth place at Catalunya with another top six finish onboard the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR. The Frenchman has had little time to recover from an operation on his knee, making his gritty showing all the more impressive. Alex Barros took seventh on the last lap, ahead of 2006 race winner Dani Pedrosa. After a good start, the factory Honda rider was in true British schoolyard style- bullied into eighth by some of MotoGP’s ‘bigger boys’, as first the Suzuki riders and then Barros imposed themselves on the 21 year-old Spaniard. Alex Hofmann and Marco Melandri completed the top ten, with the latter only coming into form as the track dried to suggest that perhaps his tyre choice was not quite what was required. Making his debut for Kawasaki in MotoGP, the Nickel & Dime British Grand Prix was Anthony West’s first chance to show what the premier class has been missing over the past six years. The 25 year-old had been fastest in the warm-up, and was one of the outstanding riders of the day. Showing no respect for reputations, West passed the likes of World Champion Nicky Hayden, fellow Australian Vermeulen and five-time MotoGP title holder Rossi to ascend to fourth position in the early going, and almost impressed just as much after a crash soon after. Dusting off his bike, West returned to the track and set about salvaging something from the race, eventually finishing a respectable eleventh. 250cc In the first race of the day, Andrea Dovizioso took his second victory of the season and cut the gap between the 250cc top two to just 11 points, taking advantage of crashes by poleman Alex de Angelis and series leader Jorge Lorenzo in a soaking wet occasion. Up until this race, every quarter litre Grand Prix of the year had been won by the rider on pole, something that looked to be on the cards up until lap 25. De Angelis had been the runaway leader since taking the holeshot, and looked to be a sure bet for the win as he undertook a cautious ride of the slippery Donington surface. Held up by backmarkers late on, the San Marino rider saw Dovizioso close him down, and then crashed when put under pressure from the Team Scot man. With a huge gap between the top two and the remainder of the field, De Angelis was still able to rejoin the race in second place, putting himself on the podium once more. The rostrum was completed by Hiroshi Aoyama in his first top three finish of the season, engaged in a sprint to the line with compatriot Yuki Takahashi. The crash which allowed Dovizioso to cut down the lead in the title chase came on lap 10, with Jorge Lorenzo highsiding his factory Aprilia at Coppice corner. Alvaro Bautista had given Lorenzo an early warning of the dangers of the treacherous corner two laps earlier, when he crashed out from fourth, but Lorenzo was by no means the last to fall foul of the right hander. Julian Simon was another to take a spill there, eventually finishing seventh behind Shuhei Aoyama and Mika Kallio. Kallio added his name to the list of crashees on the final lap, but only gave up one place as the final rider to go round without being lapped. Thai rookie Ratthapark Wilairot earned his best ever finish in eighth, ahead of home rider Dan Linfoot at the Briton’s first race of the season. Cardion AB’s Karel Abraham concluded the top ten in a mature ride from the young Czech. There were also crashes for amongst others- Marco Simoncelli, Hector Barbera, Thomas Luthi and Roberto Locatelli. 125cc After a long run of misfortune this season, Mattia Pasini took a popular first victory from pole in a dry 125cc race to close the Nickel & Dime British Grand Prix. The Italian had qualified at the head of the grid for the fifth time this season, and was not going to let previous events affect him as he chased down his first win since Sachsenring last year. Pasini was not about to let anyone get in his way, and after taking the lead definitively the Polaris World rider had a nervous final lap as he awaited the chequered flag. Greeted in pit lane by members of not just his team but a multitude of other mechanics, the 21 year-old was clearly delighted to break the curse which prompted him to adorn his bike with a black cat, and will hope that his season can finally begin in earnest. The seventh different 125cc winner of the season came in just over three seconds ahead of the victor of the previous round; Red Bull KTM’s Tomoyoshi Koyama. The Japanese rider was once again in the mix for the top spot of the podium in a tricky race declared dry but threatening rain. Hector Faubel completed the 125cc podium, and leapfrogged team-mate Gabor Talmacsi to take the lead in the overall standings by just three points. Talmacsi was forced into retirement from the race with a mechanical problem, ending any chance of another podium finish for the Hungarian. Sergio Gadea came out on top in a back-and-forth battle between himself and Joan Olive which went right down to the wire, whilst Team Scot rider Mike di Meglio rounded off the top six. British hope Bradley Smith was the highest finishing home rider of the day, but had to settle for seventh at Donington Park. The top ten was completed by Raffaele de Rosa, Pablo Nieto and Simone Corsi. The next round of the MotoGP World Championship takes place in Assen next Saturday. More, from a press release issued by Michelin: MICHELIN MAN EDWARDS SECOND AT DAMP DONINGTON Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin) took a strong second-place finish at Donington Park this afternoon. The Texan, who led Michelin’s domination of yesterday’s qualifying session, led more than a third of the race but had to be happy with a runner-up finish on the drying track behind Casey Stoner (Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici). Edwards’ teammate Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin), who had qualified a close second quickest, finished fourth to maintain his second place in the World Championship. Edwards chose a medium front/soft rear rain tire combination, while Rossi ran medium front and rear rain tires. Early leader and eighth finisher Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V-Michelin) also used a medium/medium rain mix. “I got a good start, got away and put my head down,” said Edwards. “Like you do when you’re in front you pretend you’re in practice ? just chip away, do the lap times and look at your pit board. I stayed pretty consistent but someone was coming with me. Once it started drying out I was braking harder and harder and I locked the front a couple of times. After Casey got by me I tried to stay with him but it didn’t turn out that way. Hats off to him, he rode an incredible race. We’ve gained a lot of confidence this weekend, we were fast in the dry and fast in the wet, so I’m really looking forward to Assen.” Next Saturday’s Dutch TT at Assen is the halfway point of the 2007 season, round nine of 18. “I think Colin made quite a good tire choice,” said Jean-Philippe Weber, Michelin’s director of motorcycle racing. “After a race you can always think you should have used a harder tire but harder tires mean slower warm-up and riders have to be very smooth on the throttle especially in the early laps to get the rear tire up to temperature, so they might waste time. Valentino’s choice was also quite good, though he had some wheelspin when the track started drying out, so I think we have to improve the consistency of our rain compounds. It’s been a strange weekend ? with heavy rain on Friday, a dry track yesterday, then a drying track today. Now we go to Assen, where we will focus all our efforts on the next race.” More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati: ‘GENIUS’ STONER WINS AT TRICKY DONINGTON, CAPIROSSI ON THE CHARGE UNTIL HE FELL Ducati Marlboro Team rider Casey Stoner continued his remarkable run of performances with a masterfully judged victory in treacherously slippery conditions at rainy Donington Park today. Team-mate Loris Capirossi was charging hard in the late stages when he crashed out of fifth place. Stoner and his Desmosedici GP7 have proved themselves at all kinds of racetracks and in all kinds of conditions so far this season – this was their fifth victory from eight races. The Australian didn’t get the best of starts, entering the first corner in twelfth, but he stayed cool and cautious until he’d got a good feel for the conditions. Then he started moving forward, taking the lead from Colin Edwards just after half-distance and increasing his advantage to over 11 seconds as the track began to dry, cannily cooling his tyres through any wet patches. Capirossi came through from 12th and was the fastest man on track at one point before he slid off without injury at Redgate. CASEY STONER, 1st, World Championship leader on 165 points “This proves to people that the Ducati doesn’t just have power. We’ve been improving the bike and now it doesn’t have any particular weak points, we just need to improve it as a complete package. Obviously today it was the best bike out there. I got a perfect jump at the start, a perfect clutch release, but then I must’ve hit a white line and it spun up straight away. I was panicking a little bit because everybody was zooming past and I thought I’d be last into the first corner. We still got in there in a reasonable position and we were able to pick our way through. Colin seemed to be nice and smooth, but I knew I could go quicker. Then I saw the track getting drier and drier. I was worried about destroying the rear tyre, so I started going over all the wet patches. When we got to the last five laps the tyre still had a pretty good feeling and it looked pretty good at the end of the race, considering it was our softest option. I’m not looking at the championship yet, I’m just enjoying all these races whether I win or don’t finish on the podium. It’s just nice to be out there, I’ve got the confidence in myself and in the bike to really get involved in the race and really enjoy it.” LORIS CAPIROSSI, ritirato, 9° in classifica con 57 punti “I’m really sad about the crash because I was feeling really good and very confident. I didn’t get a perfect start but I pushed very hard and caught a lot of people until I got into fifth place. My rhythm was really good and I was feeling pretty confident, so when I saw Valentino [Rossi] and Chris [Vermeulen] ahead I thought I could also catch them because I was lapping a second a lap faster. Unfortunately I lost the front at turn one and my race ended there. The tyres were working brilliantly, even though we were using a softer type. It’s a shame but I’m happy with my pace and because my feeling on the bike continues to improve. If we can keep moving forward like this at Assen I think we can do well.” LIVIO SUPPO, Ducati MotoGP project director “I think that this victory proves once and for all that top speed isn’t Casey’s advantage, because top speed means nothing at this track, especially in these conditions. Casey is a genius, he is so good at managing a race. He started today’s race very calmly, then when he was ready to go, bang, he could go away at the front. I’m really sorry for Loris because he was also going so well. But he is okay after his fall and the fact that he obviously found a good feeling for the bike is a very positive point. Once again the Bridgestone rain tyres were fantastic, especially considering the lack of grip here. As always, our thanks to them and also to Shell Advance for today’s performance. This weekend, the Shell scientists and Ducati team worked closely to organise the airfreight delivery of an alternative blend of Shell V-Power Racing fuel from the Shell Global Solutions laboratories in Hamburg, Germany that gave us extra flexibility to adjust the engine settings for today’s race.” More, from a press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: EDWARDS RETURNS TO THE PODIUM WITH SECOND PLACE AT DONINGTON Fiat Yamaha Team rider Colin Edwards finished second in the British Grand Prix at Donington Park today, taking his second podium of the season after a fighting ride from pole position. His team-mate Valentino Rossi was disappointed to finish fourth but nonetheless managed to set another record in the process, overtaking Mick Doohan to take the title of most prolific points-scorer ever in the premier class, with a total of 2,303 points. After a brief respite yesterday the British weather closed in again and the race was declared wet, although the rain failed to deter the 84,785 fans who had turned out to see their adopted heroes in action. Edwards, starting from pole for the second time this season, got a fantastic start and held the lead; whilst Rossi was edged out by Dani Pedrosa and was third into turn one. Pedrosa found his way past Edwards on the first lap but the Texan stayed on his tail and was able to take the lead again on lap five. For the next ten laps things looked promising as Edwards held the lead over Casey Stoner, who had risen to second from seventh on the grid. However as the rain stopped and a dry-line appeared Edwards began to struggle with grip and Stoner came through. Despite keeping up a fairly consistent pace until the end, Edwards was powerless to stay with the Australian and eventually crossed the line 11.768 seconds behind the championship leader. Rossi meanwhile had a somewhat more eventful race, finding himself as far down as eighth at one point and making a small foray off-track on lap eleven. After fighting back through the order he looked like holding onto the last podium place behind Edwards, but with four laps to go Chris Vermeulen passed him and he was relegated to fourth. Today’s race sees the gap from Stoner to Rossi stretched to 26 points, whilst Edwards’ haul of twenty points moves him three places up the order to seventh. Colin Edwards Position: 2nd Time: +11.768 “We had good race! I had a great start, better than any of my practice ones during the weekend, and then I just got my head down and kept pushing lap after lap. My bike was feeling good in the wet but then it started to dry out. I started braking a bit harder and feeling more confident, but then the front locked once into the chicane which gave me a bit of a scare. Then at the next corner, down at the hairpin, I locked it again, ran wide and Casey came through. After that I tried everything but I couldn’t stay with him and it was clear that I didn’t have the grip he had. It was pretty tough, but then I guess it was tough for everyone! You could see the dry line forming and rain tyres with a dry track don’t work well! I just had to pay attention and take care not to spin it too much, using half throttle instead of spinning it up. Anyway, we did the best we could today and it feels good to be back on the podium, so a big thanks to all my guys. We’ve made a lot of progress this weekend and now we’ll carry the momentum on to Assen next week! Hats off to Casey too, he did a great job today.” Valentino Rossi Position: 4th Time: +21.827 “Unfortunately today the conditions were not good for us at all and we had a lot of problems. In the full dry we would have been at our strongest, in full wet we would have been also quite good, but with a drying track like this we struggled a lot. I made a mistake and ran off the track when I was going the best I went during the whole race and then as the track began to dry I had less and less grip; it seems that this year, when the conditions aren’t perfect, we suffer a lot. I had to go very carefully just to be able to finish and, because we were riding with a wet tyre on a dry track, my tyre was destroyed by the end. Colin did a great job in difficult circumstances so congratulations to him. We’ve had a very long meeting tonight and now we have to try to improve the situation for Assen.” Davide Brivio Fiat Yamaha Team Director “We’re very happy for Colin to be back on the podium, he did a great job all weekend so well done to him. Now he has found his confidence again and hopefully he can carry on like this. For Valentino it was a very difficult race and he had quite a lot of problems in the difficult conditions. We have some work to do but Colin’s result is very encouraging for the whole team and now we go straight to Assen to have the chance to make up for this weekend with Valentino. We’ll keep working as hard as we can and hopefully we can get back to our best very quickly.” More, from a press release issued by Honda: British Grand Prix at Donington Park Sunday June 24, 2007 Weather: 250cc and MotoGP races wet.125cc dry. Temperature: Air 14 degrees, ground 18. Crowd: 85,000. STONER WINS AGAIN, HAYDEN ON PACE BEFORE FALL This saturated MotoGP race gave World Championship points leader Casey Stoner (Ducati) another win in treacherous conditions from Colin Edwards (Yamaha) in second with Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) third in front of 85,000 rain-sodden spectators. Reigning World Champion Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V), who had put in his best qualifying performance of the season so far, starting from fourth on the grid, was third on lap one and always in contention with the leaders before he fell on lap five. What looked a promising ride ended in the gravel at the tricky Coppice corner. But he proved that he is back near his best. His team-mate Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) was also looking like a contender for victory, leading the field until lap four when he was overhauled by Edwards, then dropping down the order to finish eighth. Dani had chosen a rear tyre that proved too soft for the conditions as the track began to dry. He did, however, further destroy the myth that he cannot perform in wet conditions. Edwards led from the start with Dani right on his rear wheel and at the Melbourne Loop Pedrosa stole inside under braking and headed the Texan into Goddards and over the start/finish line into turn one. The order was Pedrosa, Edwards, Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), John Hopkins (Suzuki), Vermeulen and then Hayden. Stoner suffered a poor start, but by lap five the Aussie had powered through the field to lie fourth. Another Aussie man Anthony West (Kawasaki) was on the move and held fifth by lap six, the same lap that Carlos Checa (LCR Honda RC212V) crashed out of contention. Stoner set an early fastest lap of 1m 42.414 on the eighth tour of this 4.023km track. While Stoner was gradually getting the measure of the slowly drying conditions, West was a victim of them, running into the gravel at Coppice while fourth, but regaining the track for an 11th place finish. At mid-race distance of this 30-lap encounter on a drying track Edwards led from Stoner with Rossi eight seconds adrift of the lead duo. Edwards now held only a slender 0.7 second advantage over Stoner. On lap 15 Stoner overtook Edwards into the Melbourne Loop and immediately began to pull clear of the American. Stoner was away now in a race against the conditions only, a full seven seconds clear of Edwards by lap 23. Loris Capirossi (Ducati) who had made a spirited ride through the field fell while fifth on lap 24 while Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) was improving his pace dramatically in the closing stages setting a fastest lap of the race of 1m 41.4s on lap 25. Chris Vermeulen finally overhauled Rossi for third slipping inside the former Champion at the Foggy Esses after getting superior drive out of Coppice. Rossi had no answer to the Australian man’s pace and settled for fourth. Dani, eighth at the flag, said: “At the start of the race things were going quite well and I was able to lead the race and felt quite comfortable. After few laps the track was becoming drier and it turned out we’d chosen a rear tyre that was too soft for those conditions and I just couldn’t maintain the pace. This was definitely a disappointing race for us, although we had a promising performance in practice and qualifying which is positive.” Marco Melandri, who eventually finished tenth, said: “We tried a few set-up modifications in the warm-up and improved the feeling on the front but couldn’t do the same on the rear. When the track was really wet I struggled because the bike was sliding a lot. Then as it started to dry out the situation improved because the bike felt more balanced. The lap times show that because I went from doing a 1m 46.4s to a 1m 41.4s on the last lap.” His team-mate Toni Elias (Gresini Honda RC212V) was 12th. He said: “It’s been a difficult weekend and it hasn’t ended as we wanted. I struggled in the race because I couldn’t get the tyre up to temperature and find grip. I had problems braking and ran wide a few times, which made me lose time. When the track began to dry I was able to set the fastest lap of the race. The positive thing is we’ve gathered a lot of information in the wet which we’ll be able to use together with Bridgestone and try to solve some of the problems we’ve had this weekend.” Kurtis Roberts (Roberts KR212V) rode a dogged race to 13th. He said: “When I started catching guy I felt good. Then maybe four or five laps after, when a dry line was developing, the bike started moving around a lot on full lean, and was getting worse and worse. The track was so dry in some places, and wet in others. I was searching for water to cool the tyre down. We picked too soft a rear. It was great when it was wet, but once it started drying up it was terrible.” Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda RC212V) finished 14th and said: “On the first lap I had a slide with the rear tyre and I had to catch it before I fell, this meant I lost a couple of places. For the first ten laps things were OK, but then the conditions began to change and the track started to dry out. This meant that I could not push as hard as I would have liked.” Nicky Hayden was 17th at the flag after visiting the pits before carrying on to the end. The American World Champion said: “The bike felt really good early in the race and I was trying to be a little bit patient when a few guys came past and I started going back and forth. Still, I felt like I could go towards the front and I was enjoying the race. Then I just got in a little bit hot at the top of the hill and lost the front. It sucks to crash out of the race but it wasn’t as if I crashed while going backwards and struggling at least I was up front and so I’m going to take the positives from this weekend.” Faller Checa said: “After four laps I had a better feeling and was able to pass Melandri and was hoping to improve my lap times and gain some confidence. But I lost the front at turn eight just as I was starting to push and I’m not sure why, maybe a little too much front brake. It’s a pity, in the dry I was competitive, but today it rained and I want to forget this race.” The World Championship points table now shows Stoner on 165 points to Rossi’s 139, with Dani in third place with 106 points. Chris Vermeulen is now fourth on 88. The soaking wet 250cc race, the first of the day, proved a triumph for Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Honda RS250RW) whose smooth style and relentless will to win gave him victory over Alex de Angelis (Aprilia) in second and Hiro Aoyama (KTM) third. De Angelis led from pole from the off but the track was always going to be a danger factor today and among the riders the slippery conditions claimed, series points leader Jorge Lorenzo (Aprilia) was the biggest. The Spanish rider fell at Coppice on lap 10 while holding second place and could not restart for a points finish. His lead of 36 points is now reduced to just 11 over Dovizioso in the World Championship standings. After Lorenzo’s departure this became a straight fight between de Angelis and Dovizioso and what a battle it was. Not for incessant lead swapping and daring moves but for the unbending pressure Dovi heaped on the leader. Such that on the penultimate lap de Angelis lost the front-end through Craner Curves handing Dovizioso the win. The lead pair were an amazing one minute ahead of third-placed Hiro Aoyama when this happened. And de Angelis still had enough time to remount and finish second. Julian Simon (Repsol Honda RS250RW) fell on lap 19 entering Coppice while chasing Hiro Aoyama for third, but got going again to finish seventh. Dovizioso said: “Sure this is a good result in terms of the World Championship and it was a good race too. It was just so difficult to stay on the bike. De Angelis was riding really well and he was very hard to stay with. I pushed on the last three laps and so did he but he crashed. I have to thank my team and everyone involved for this win.” His team-mate Yuki Takahashi (Scot Honda RS250RW) who finished an encouraging fourth after a series of injuries said: “My start was not so bad and I tried to push straight away but it was difficult to find a good feeling for the track. I eased off a little and when I found a better feeling I began to push again. The bike was good and I had few problems, just some slides.” Shuhei Aoyama (Repsol Honda RS250RW) was fifth, Ratthapark Wilairot (Stop And Go Racing Honda RS250R) eighth while rookie Eugene Laverty (LCR Honda RS250R) fell on lap six. In the 125cc class Mattia Pasini (Aprilia) won by a comfortable 3.2 seconds from Tommy Koyama (KTM) with Hector Faubel (Aprilia) third. This was Pasini’s first win since the German Grand Prix last year, despite his five pole positions so far this season. Pasini was the fastest man out there on a track that had a dry line but was damp off line causing many riders to fall if they drifted off the racing line. By mid-race distance of this 25-lap contest a nine-rider group had broken clear of the field and Pasini was the man in charge. Esteve Rabat (Repsol Honda RS125R) was involved in a three-rider crash at Goddards corner on lap 14 which ended his involvement, while series points leader Gabor Talmacsi (Aprilia) retired on lap 16 hoisting Honda men Mike di Meglio (Scot Honda RS125R) and Bradley Smith (Repsol Honda RS125R) up to sixth and seventh at the flag. Di Meglio said: “I’m very tired but very satisfied! We had a good race, always fighting towards the higher positions, and I could have fought for the podium too if Talmacsi hadn’t forced me onto the kerb slowing me down and making me lose contact with the leading group. Next week it’s Assen and I hope to ride another good race like this one, if not better.” Smith said: “This has been a very complicated weekend. I was racing at home and wanted to do a good job. As it went, with the weather and everything, it’s been very difficult. I got onto the grid, and it was still raining, but we didn’t really know what to do. I finally chose a soft tyre and it didn’t work out. I wasn’t able to push at a 100% and I’m a bit disappointed because I felt that I was able to do a bit better. But, anyway, we’ve learned from this mistake.” The World Championship table now looks like this: Faubel 116 points, Talmacsi 115, Lukas Pesek (Derbi), who finished 18th here on 94 points, Sergio Gadea (Aprilia) 92. Honda rider quotes Donington Park race. June 24, 2007. MotoGP. Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 8th.”At the start of the race things were going quite well and I was able to lead the race and felt quite comfortable. After few laps the track was becoming drier and it turned out we’d chosen a rear tyre that was too soft for those conditions and I just couldn’t maintain the pace. I tried to stay with de Puniet and I had battle with Barros in the last few laps but I had very little traction at the rear and unfortunately I couldn’t hold him off. This was definitely a disappointing race for us, although we had promising performance in practice and qualifying which is positive. It’s a pity because, with Casey winning again, the gap in the championship has opened up quite a lot. We’ll just have to fight back quickly at the next race.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 17th.”The bike felt really good early in the race and I was trying to be a little bit patient when a few guys came past and I started going back and forth. It felt like I could go quicker, though when Stoner came through I was having quite a hard time seeing because of the spray. Still, I felt like I could go towards the front and I was enjoying the race. Then I just got in a little bit hot at the top of the hill and lost the front. I’d been passed there earlier once or twice and just didn’t want to go back any further. I felt really good everywhere except on the brakes where I was quite weak. Some of the guys were really strong on the brakes, although I felt like had better exit grip and better traction. It sucks to crash out of the race but it wasn’t as if I crashed while going backwards and struggling at least I was up front and so I’m going to take the positives from this weekend. Being fastest in the dry on Saturday morning was a big boost for me and I definitely feel that I’ve been the most competitive I’ve been all year.” Marco Melandri, Gresini Honda: 10th “We tried a few set-up modifications in the warm-up and improved the feeling on the front but couldn’t do the same on the rear. When the track was really wet I struggled because the bike was sliding a lot Then as it started to dry out the situation improved because the bike felt more balanced. The lap times show that because I went from doing a 1’46.4 to a 1’41.4 on the last lap.” Toni Elias, Gresini Honda: 12th. “It’s been a difficult weekend and it hasn’t ended as we wanted. I struggled in the race because I couldn’t get the tyre up to temperature and find grip. I had a problem in braking and ran wide a few times, which made me lose time and this meant I couldn’t recover positions as I wanted. When the track began to dry I was able to set the fastest lap of the race. The positive thing is that we’ve gathered a lot of information in the wet which we’ll be able to use together with Bridgestone and try to solve some of the problems we’ve had this weekend.” Shinya Nakano, Konica Minolta Honda: 14th. “With the conditions changing so much that was a difficult race. I think my start was not so bad, but then during the first lap I had a slide with the rear tyre and I had to catch it before I fell down, this meant I lost a couple of places. For the first 10 laps things were OK, but then the conditions began to change and the track started to dry out. This meant that I could not push hard as I would have liked, as when the track began to dry, the tyre would slide more. When this began to happen I decided to hang on and get some points for the overall championship positions.” Kurtis Roberts, replacement rider for Kenny Roberts Jnr. 13th. “I fell this morning in warm-up, and I’m still pretty sore, so it took me a lap or two to get the confidence back. When I started catching guys (Shinya) Nakano and (Marco) Melandri, I felt good. Went around them pretty easy. Then maybe four or five laps after, when a dry line was developing, the bike started moving around a lot on full lean, and was getting worse and worse. The track was so dry in some places, and wet in others. I was searching for water to cool the tyre down.””Once I started losing places again, I was just on salvage mode just looking at the lap countdown. I couldn’t go any faster if I leaned it over the thing moved all around. We picked too soft a rear. It was great when it was wet, but once it started drying up it was terrible. But we got points, and at least I didn’t fall off again.” Kenny Roberts Snr Team Principal..”We did better than I thought we were going to do, anyway. It wasn’t a useful day we didn’t learn anything in terms of what problems we have. You couldn’t with this weather. It looked like we were going forward for half the race, then it dried out and we weren’t good. Which was surprising, because we’re usually better when it starts to get a dry line. That was a tyre issue, but Kurtis was able to get some mileage and get comfortable. Assen should be better. If we get a bit of weather help and improve our set-up, we could start working our way back up again.” Carlos Checa, LCR Honda: dnf crash.”After four laps I had a better feeling and was able to pass Melandri and was hoping to improve my lap times and gain some confidence. But I lost the front at turn eight just as I was starting to push and I’m not sure why, maybe a little too much front brake. It’s a pity, in the dry I was competitive, but today it rained and I want to forget this race.” 250cc: Andrea Dovizioso, Kopron Scot Honda: 1st.”That race was very, very difficult the grip level was unbelievably poor. In the race Lorenzo tried to follow De Angelis and was pushing a lot and ended up crashing. There was even less grip today than in the very wet conditions of Friday and we were faster today! It was so difficult for me to follow De Angelis he was so fast and running consistent fast lap times. When he crashed I could ease off a little. I am very happy with this victory.” Yukio Takahashi, Kopron Scot Honda: 4th.”My start was not so bad and I tried to push straight away but it was difficult to find a good feeling for the track. I eased of a little and when I found a better feeling I began to push again. The bike was good and I had few problems, just some slides. In the middle of the race I caught Hiro Aoyama and I wanted a podium finish but I could not pass him. Anyway I am happy with this result. “ Shuhei Aoyama, Repsol Honda: 5th. “I had a better feeling on the bike this morning during the warm-up and I think that I might have been fighting for a place on the podium. But I wasn’t able to follow the leading riders after the start, because the feelings in the front end weren’t the best. I wasn’t able to enter the fast corners well, but it was good in the slower ones, though I also had trouble in the middle of the corners. In any case, I didn’t crash today, so I managed to score some points and finish happy.” Julian Simon, Repsol Honda: 7th.”My start was very good and on the second lap I was in fourth place and everything was running really good. When Bautista crashed I had a real race with Hiro (Aoyama) it was real fun. The track conditions were changing all the time and when I crashed I was off line but I got back on the bike and finished seventh a position I am not really happy about. But it will be good practice for Assen, where it might be a wet race.” Ratthapark Wilairot, Thai Honda PTT-SAG: 8th.”It was a very tough race, but the result was worth the effort. From the very start, I knew that I had to settle for a constant pace – I had to be comfortable but also able to gain positions. Today’s race was all about not getting hot-headed and avoiding to make any mistakes. In the end I was able to stick with my strategy and I got my best result so far, we did a great job this weekend.” Eugene Laverty, LCR Honda: dnf crash.”I lost the front, it just tucked from under me, the conditions were terrible. There was so much spray I was probably too careful and lost some positions from the start, and then I got forced wide by Locatelli. It was a silly crash that annoyed me as I was just getting comfortable in the wet conditions”. 125cc. Mike Di Meglio, Kopron Scot Honda: 6th.”I’m very tired after that hard race but also very satisfied. I rode a good race always in the lead group. I was fighting for a podium place when Talmacsi forced me wide and I lost contact with the leaders. Anyway, I’m happy and we go too Assen next week and if I an have a race like I did today maybe I will have a better result.” Bradley Smith, Repsol Honda: 7th. “This has been a very complicated weekend. I was racing at home and wanted to do a good job. As it went, with the weather and everything, it’s been very difficult because it rained sometimes and then it didn’t and in the end, we haven’t been able to really set the bike up. Things went OK yesterday afternoon but the rain showed up this morning again. I got onto the grid, and it was still raining, but we didn’t really know what to do. I finally chose a soft tyre and it didn’t really work out. I wasn’t able to push at a 100% and I’m a bit disappointed because I felt that I was able to do a bit better. But, anyway, we’ve learned from this mistake and the good part is that we’re going to be back n the track next Thursday. Let’s hope for a better result there.” Enrique Jerez replacement rider for the injured Dino Lombardi, Kopron Scot Honda: 14th.”That was a very difficult race for me as I have never raced here before. The suspension was set up for the wet and I could not push to the limit without taking risks. Many thanks to the team for the good work they have done for me this weekend and the chance to race again for them at Assen were I hope to give another good performance.” Alexis Masbou, FFM Honda: 19th.”I was starting lap two and felt confident. I tried to pass Gabor Talmacsi on the brakes but down shifted too fast. The bike started to wobble immediately and I was unable to slow down enough and stay on the track. I was flung into the dirt and eventually crashed. Luckily I was able to resume the race and I pushed as hard as I could to pass as many riders as possible. But I was too far back and was unable to score championship points. I hope we will be able to perform well in Assen, which is where I achieved my personal best ­ 5th in 2005. Since then the track has been modified and I don’t appreciate it as much. Furthermore, the weather out there can be fickle. It can be very warm or rain like mad. It’s difficult to anticipate on what will happen but my position here during practice is really encouraging.” Joey Litjens, Molenaar Honda: 21st.”I raced below my own level today and I am disappointed with the race result it could have been better. Yesterday we had no power off the corners but today it was top speed. If I had a little more power maybe I could have caught the group ahead of me. But I also chose an intermediate front tyre and that was a mistake. We have to improve.” Danny Webb, Molenaar Honda: 25th.”In the beginning of the race I was too cautious I just didn’t have the feel to know how hard I could push. The bike was good and when Sandi passed me I stayed in behind him and we were catching a group of wild card riders we knew would tire. When Sandi crashed I closed on the group but there was not enough time left to get a better result. I chose the wrong tyre but all in all we are on the way up I’m looking forward to Assen next week.” Tito Rabat, Repsol Honda: dnf crash. “I made a good start and I was able to remount. But halfway the race I went wide in a corner, touched another rider and crashed. It’s a shame, because the whole work of the weekend wasn’t worth anything, I didn’t score a single point. But we’re already thinking about Assen. We have to try to get there highly motivated and strong, and above all not to be discouraged after what happened today.”