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Post by BADGER on May 4, 2008 11:19:13 GMT
Full race results from the Chinese Grand Prix at Shanghai, round four of the 2008 MotoGP season.
1. Valentino Rossi ITA Fiat Yamaha Team (B) 44min 8.061 secs 2. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team (M) 44min 11.951 secs 3. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team (B) 44min 23.989 secs 4. Jorge Lorenzo SPA Fiat Yamaha Team (M) 44min 30.555 secs 5. Marco Melandri ITA Ducati Marlboro Team (B) 44min 35.018 secs 6. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team (M) 44min 36.430 secs 7. Colin Edwards USA Tech 3 Yamaha (M) 44min 37.841 secs 8. Toni Elias SPA Alice Team (B) 44min 38.286 secs 9. Loris Capirossi ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP (B) 44min 39.501 secs 10. Shinya Nakano JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini (B) 44min 44.030 secs 11. Andrea Dovizioso ITA JiR Team Scot MotoGP (M) 44min 44.307 secs 12. James Toseland GBR Tech 3 Yamaha (M) 44min 51.252 secs 13. Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP (M) 44min 51.503 secs 14. John Hopkins USA Kawasaki Racing Team (B) 44min 53.916 secs 15. Sylvain Guintoli FRA Alice Team (B) 44min 54.391 secs 16. Alex de Angelis RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini (B) 44min 58.654 secs 17. Anthony West AUS Kawasaki Racing Team (B) 45min 13.654 secs
DNF: Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP (B) 12min 37.734 secs
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Post by BADGER on May 4, 2008 11:24:03 GMT
Rossi smashes losing streak in China.
Valentino Rossi smashed a seven-race losing streak with his first ever Bridgestone victory in an action-packed Chinese Grand Prix, as the Italian became the fourth different MotoGP race winner in as many 2008 events.
Slicks were the tyres of choice for the damp track conditions - the lengthy Shanghai circuit drying steadily after heavy morning rain - and Rossi earned his breakthrough victory after a tense race-long battle with Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa.
Pedrosa took advantage of some frantic opening laps to make a small break up front, before being caught and passed by Fiat Yamaha rider Rossi, who took the lead for the first time on lap 6 of 22.
But Pedrosa then matched Rossi blow-for-blow and was still just a fraction from the Italian ten laps later, when Rossi made his victory push - pumping out new lap records to finally break the Jerez winner and take a 1.3secs lead with three laps to go.
Pedrosa later explained that there a strong tailwind along the giant 1.km back straight - which pushed up the top speeds substantially - had caused his Repsol Honda to over-rev and he was happy to settle for second under the circumstances.
Pedrosa had thus dropped rapidly away from Rossi by the flag, The Doctor taking his first victory since last September's Portuguese Grand Prix - with both fists waving in delight - by a margin of 3.890secs.
Having broken his longest losing steak since his debut 2000 season, a relieved Rossi parked his M1 at the side of the track, took off his helmet and soaked up the moment - before kissing his Yamaha and making his way slowly back to the pits.
MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner also looked set to play a starring role, after qualifying on the front row for the first time this year and holding the lead several times in the early stages, but was forced to watch in frustration as the top two rode away from him.
The Ducati Marlboro star, who hit a staggering 343.2km/h along the back straight, finally finished 12secs behind Pedrosa and 6.5secs ahead of fourth placed Jorge Lorenzo. Stoner later revealed that a softer tyre, in response to the cooler weather conditions, had proved his undoing
Lorenzo came into the race holding a perfect podium record and the joint world championship lead, but had badly injured his ankles during a huge Friday highside - then stalled on the grid as the formation lap began.
The MotoGP rookie attempted to re-fire his Fiat Yamaha with a bump start, doing little to reduce the pain from his injured ankles, before getting assistance from officials and taking his fourth place on the grid.
The Spaniard, who celebrated his 21st birthday today, looked understandably cautious in the early stages - and had been mercilessly pushed back to eighth by the halfway mark - but retaliated with a combative performance during the last ten laps to pull a comfortable 4.4secs clear of fifth place.
The tailwind on the back straight contributed to a multitude of braking mistakes into the ultra-tight hairpin, with pole sitter Colin Edwards one of the most high profile victims.
The Texan swapped the lead with Stoner during the opening laps but - having been passed by Rossi and Pedrosa - had looked more than capable of holding third, until he ran wide on lap 6.
That dropped the Tech 3 Yamaha rider to seventh, where he eventually finished - in the middle of a close five-man pack - behind Marco Melandri and Nicky Hayden, and ahead of Toni Elias and Loris Capirossi.
Melandri delivered by far his best race of the season, the Italian looking like a man transformed as he charged from 12th on the grid to fifth, shattering his previous best race finish of eleventh and releasing some of the huge pressure on his shoulders after a nightmare start to his Desmosedici career.
Capirossi was the only Rizla Suzuki rider to reach the flag after Chris Vermeulen retired with chain problems, whilst James Toseland endured his toughest MotoGP race yet - crossing the line in twelfth, albeit just a fraction behind fellow rookie Andrea Dovizioso, who faded backwards in the closing stages.
Kawasaki endured a race to forget, John Hopkins managing just 14th after several mistakes whilst trying to force his way forwards from 12th on the grid, while team-mate Anthony West finished in a distant last place - where he had started.
In the world championship standings, Pedrosa has now broken seven points clear of Lorenzo, with Rossi just two points behind his team-mate in third. Stoner remains fourth, but has slipped 25 points - one race win - behind Pedrosa.
Sunday's race was rumoured to be the final Chinese Grand Prix for the foreseeable future - a new round in Hungary, feeding on the huge support for 125cc world champion Gabor Talmacsi, is tipped to replace the Shanghai event from next season
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Post by bikesnoopy on May 4, 2008 14:33:11 GMT
Good to see normal service has been resumed. . . . . . rock on Vale . . .
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Post by Young Burchy on May 4, 2008 17:34:25 GMT
Don't ya just want Colin to win from the front one day, im gutted for him! Good racing today, up untill thge last couple of laps. Shame about the British guys today though, J.T not to clever, and all our 125 chaps fell off in the wet. How long did Vale take to get back to his pits, dunno who he was waving at, as there was no one in the stands??? Good win though ;D
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Post by BADGER on May 4, 2008 19:43:28 GMT
Good to see normal service has been resumed. . . Well , It's not been "normal" for a while now. Which i like I want to see close racing, which today it was. Ok Rossi rode like a demon , Pedrosa was well on form Edwards : Life in the old dog yet. The rest of the pack was well worth watching too
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Post by jefflthomas on May 5, 2008 3:27:15 GMT
Don't ya just want Colin to win from the front one day, im gutted for him! i just want to see him win
don't give a fcuk where he wins from
it was a pleasure watchin' Rossi though!!!
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Post by brakeline on May 16, 2008 14:05:48 GMT
ur wee talkin aboot Colin Backwards, he'll never win a race even if he wis the only ane tae start. An Rossi is back (a hope).
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