YRC News
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MotoGP : Rossi clinches dramatic home victory at Mugello
Round: 5 - Mugello MotoGP
Circuit: Mugello
Date: 5 June 2005
Crowd: 90000
Temp: 27ēC
Weather: Sunny
Gauloises Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi produced one of the best
performances of his career today as he outwitted a trio of Italian compatriots
to take a stunning home victory at Mugello. The World Champion was passed by a
handful of riders from pole position but fought his way aggressively through the
pack to lead the way at the end of the first lap. Chased by Marco Melandri, Sete
Gibernau and Max Biaggi (all Honda) in the opening stages, Rossi set an electric
pace but was unable to shake off his pursuers. He was passed by Melandri on the
11th lap as he began to struggle with front-end problems.
By that time Gibernau had already crashed out of the race and it was left to
Loris Capirossi (Ducati) to join in the combat and provide a home crowd of over
90,000 with a thrilling all-Italian battle. Biaggi grabbed the lead on the 17th
lap but was stalked all the way by Rossi, who planned his move to perfection and
passed his rival with just three laps remaining, opening up a crucial advantage
that saw him take the chequered flag by 0.359 seconds. The fight for the final
podium position raged behind them, with Capirossi clinching third place after
holding off an attack from Melandri in the last corner.
Whilst Rossi's win extends his championship lead to 49 points, his Gauloises
Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards continued to struggle with the set-up of his
YZR-M1 machine today and could only manage ninth place. However, the American
will look to bounce back as the season continues at the Catalunya Grand Prix in
Barcelona next weekend.
In the lead up to the Spanish Grand Prix Ruben Xaus (Fortuna Yamaha Team)
finished a credible 14th after a lonely race ahead of Kenny Roberts (Suzuki).
Meanwhile his temporary team-mate David Checa ended his MotoGP debut in 19th
position after being forced to pit with traction issues. He returned to the fray
to continue familiarizing himself with the M1 just in case Fortuna Yamaha rider
Toni Elias is unable to make his comeback and Checa receives the opportunity to
ride again in Barcelona.
Valentino Rossi (Gauloises Yamaha Team) 1st
"That was an incredible race and the best possible finish for the crowd, with
four Italian riders in the top four positions. It was a great battle - full of
passes and full of attacks. In the beginning I tried to go alone but I had some
problems with the front and decided just to concentrate on my rhythm. Then
Melandri arrived and we had a great fight, also with Biaggi after that. We set a
high pace to the finish, I made my attack with three laps to go and it worked so
of course I am very happy. My team once again did a great job and everybody at
Yamaha has worked so hard to provide me with the bike I wanted - this is our
reward. I want to thank them and also the amazing crowd here at Mugello; it was
an honour to race in front of them."
Colin Edwards (Gauloises Yamaha Team) 9th
"It's hard to know what to say after a weekend like this because I'm as
mystified as anyone else. We made a great start to the weekend on Friday morning
but didn't seem to move on from there. Every refinement we made to the bike
seemed to leave us in exactly the same position. Today my start was not good and
I was way back at the first split. I passed about four people on the first lap
but from then on it was an uphill battle. We made a lot of progress with the
base set-up at Le Mans but we've struggled to get it working at this track -
hopefully we can be back where we need to be in Barcelona."
Davide Brivio, Gauloises Yamaha Team Director
"Another 25 points and another win! Of course, being an Italian team this is
more special for us and to see all the fans from up on the podium was
incredible. To win four of the first five races is a lot and, as Valentino said,
it is a sign of the great job we are doing. Gibernau and Biaggi have both been
in good shape to win races but they haven't been able to and we are proving very
hard to beat. But there are 12 races left and we have to keep our concentration.
Colin has had a difficult weekend but we will aim to get him back on the right
path for Catalunya to find again the level of result he achieved in Le Mans."
Ruben Xaus (Fortuna Yamaha Team) 14th
"I didn't get a good start today and I found myself making a hard pass on Kenny
Roberts to make up for it. I also had a good fight with Rolfo, but it took me a
while to get past him because his Ducati is just so fast down the straight. By
the time I did the group in front had already made a huge gap, so it was a
lonely race. The main goal today was to finish in the points, and we did manage
to do that. Because I kept a good rhythm I've managed to get more comfortable on
the bike and that put me in a good frame of mind for Barcelona."
David Checa (Fortuna Yamaha Team) 19th
"I had some problem with the rear of the bike so I had to come into the pits.
Even though I knew I would be one lap down I wanted to spend more time on the
bike so I went back out. I'm happy with the way the weekend went - the practices
and the qualifying. But I always knew the race would be hard given the limited
time I have spent on the bike. I hope Yamaha was happy too. I wish Toni all the
best with his recovery and hope that he's ready to return for the next race, but
if he's not ready to ride I'd be more than happy to give it another go in
Barcelona."
Race classification MotoGP
Round: 5 - Mugello MotoGP
Circuit: Mugello
Circuit Length: 5245m
Lap Record: 1' 50.117 (Max Biaggi, 2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1' 49.223 (Valentino Rossi, 2005)
Race: 23 Laps
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 V. Rossi Yamaha ITA 42'42.994
2 M. Biaggi Honda ITA +0.359
3 L. Capirossi Ducati ITA +3.874
4 M. Melandri Honda ITA +3.979
5 C. Checa Ducati ESP +7.898
6 N. Hayden Honda USA +8.204
7 A. Barros Honda BRA +11.572
8 M. Tamada Honda JPN +25.394
9 C. Edwards Yamaha USA +25.485
10 S. Nakano Kawasaki JPN +36.549
11 J. Hopkins Suzuki USA +41.637
12 A. Hofman Kawasaki GER +43.659
13 T. Bayliss Honda AUS +43.916
14 R. Xaus Yamaha ESP +51.575
15 K. Roberts Suzuki USA +1'10.275
16 S. Byrne Proton KR GBR +1'12.582
17 R. Rolfo Ducati ITA +1'13.047
18 F. Battaini Blata WCM ITA +1 lap(s)
19 D. Checa Yamaha ESP +1 lap(s)
Fastest Race Lap:
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 M. Biaggi Honda ITA 1'50.117
Championship standings MotoGP
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Points
1 Valentino Rossi Yamaha ITA 120
2 Marco Melandri Honda ITA 71
3 Max Biaggi Honda ITA 67
4 Sete Gibernau Honda ESP 53
5 Alex Barros Honda BRA 52
6 Colin Edwards Yamaha USA 48
7 Loris Capirossi Ducati ITA 39
8 Nicky Hayden Honda USA 36
9 Shinya Nakano Kawasaki JPN 33
10 Carlos Checa Ducati ESP 28
11 Olivier Jacque Kawasaki FRA 26
12 David Checa Yamaha ESP 26
13 Troy Bayliss Honda AUS 24
14 Jurgen vd Goorbergh Honda NED 18
15 Ruben Xaus Yamaha ESP 18
18 Toni Elias Yamaha ESP 15
Manufacturers standings MotoGP
Pos. Manufacturer Points
1 Yamaha 120
2 Honda 101
3 Kawasaki 53
4 Ducati 46
5 Suzuki 23
6 Blata WCM 4
7 Moriwaki 1
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