From his second pole position start of the season, Fiat Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi dominated the seventh round of the MotoGP championship in Assen.
Using medium compound front and rear Bridgestone slicks, the Italian controlled the pace throughout, setting a new race lap record en route to clinching his 100th grand prix victory and taking the lead of the world championship.
Also using the medium compound slicks, Jorge Lorenzo finished second to take second position in the championship, and Ducati Team’s Casey Stoner finished a lonely third, still suffering from the illness he experienced in Catalunya. The top three are still only separated by nine points.
The competitive action however focused on a great race-long battle for sixth place. James Toseland, Mika Kallio, Nicky Hayden, Randy de Puniet, Toni Elias and Loris Capirossi were split by less than one second for most of the race, trading positions almost every lap. Of this group, only Kallio and Elias opted for Bridgestone’s soft compound rear slicks but were able to match the race pace of the medium compound runners, demonstrating the cross-over between Bridgestone’s compound options.
Despite the threat of rain intensifying in the morning and forecasts predicting a wet track, both the warm-up session and the 26-lap race were run in the dry. As predicted, and with a track temperature slightly higher than for yesterday’s qualifying session, the most popular tire combination was the medium compound front and rear Bridgestone slicks, favoured for their durability.
Hiroshi Yasukawa – Director – Bridgestone Corporation
“I wish to congratulate Valentino for his fantastic result and reaching his 100th grand prix victory this weekend, especially as it has taken him into the lead of the world championship. I would also like to wish Casey a fast recovery from his illness, and hope that he is back on top form by Laguna next weekend. I am very pleased that with every rider now on Bridgestone tires, we are seeing some very close competition this season which is excellent for the sport and for the spectators.”
Tohru Ubukata – Bridgestone Motorsport – Manager, Motorcycle Race tire Development “Although the gaps at the front were quite big today, the pace that Valentino set was faster than the circuit’s lap record from last year, and Jorge also lapped at the same pace as the existing record, so I am happy with the performance of the medium compound Bridgestone slicks today. We saw that the medium compound was clearly the faster option over a race distance, although the performance of the soft compound was also good. The close battle for sixth position that lasted until the chequered flag showed that our tires had good durability and consistency for the race distance, even the softer option.”
Valentino Rossi – Fiat Yamaha Team – Race Winner
“Great, I am so happy! It’s a special day I will never forget in my life. To arrive at 100 wins is fantastic, and here is a special place because my father won here in 250cc. I am the second rider in history along with Agostini to reach this result. I felt confident on the bike from Thursday and made a good start in the race. With more temperature today I had great grip from the tires so is possible to improve my time from yesterday. It was a perfect race. I have to thank all the guys close to me who help me so much, I am so happy.”
Valentino Rossi won his 100th Grand Prix, took his second triumph in succession and became the undisputed leader of the MotoGP World Championship with a stellar performance at the Alice TT Assen. The Fiat Yamaha rider had a peerless performance from pole position and, unlike two weeks previous in Barcelona, needed no ‘Hail Mary’ last lap at the Cathedral of Motorcycle Racing.
A vintage Rossi performance was celebrated with his unraveling a backdrop and posing for a classic photo with antiquated cameras, the Italian’s latest post-race show with his faithful fan club.
Teammate Jorge Lorenzo was once again forced to settle for second place, his third on the bounce. The Spaniard got off to a bad start from third on the grid and, although he was able to fight back up to the front, could not provide Rossi with the same challenge that he had done last time out.
Ducati Marlboro’s Casey Stoner completed the podium with a solitary ride chasing Lorenzo. The Australian now trails Rossi and his Spanish rival in the overall standings after the trio had been level on points heading in to the Assen race.
Colin Edwards equaled his best result of the year with fourth place, at the head of an enthralling battle between the ‘best of the rest’. Rizla Suzuki’s Chris Vermeulen and Edwards’ Monster Yamaha Tech 3 teammate James Toseland were also in the top six with their best finishes of the season to date.
Repsol Honda riders Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso had been in with a shout at the rostrum, but both took tumbles before the race took its full shape. There was also a late fall for Pramac Racing’s Mika Kallio when the Finn was challenging for sixth on the final lap.
250cc
Hiroshi Aoyama claimed his second win of the 2009 season at the 250cc Alice TT Assen, taking the leadership of the World Championship as a consequence.
The Scot Racing rider’s immediate rival, Álvaro Bautista, had looked to be on course to push Aoyama to the line as the duo broke free and dashed for the chequered flag. However, Mapfre Aspar rider Bautista smashed into the back of Aoyama’s Honda on the fast chicane, ending the Spaniard’s race and leaving the race winner lucky to stay upright. Regaining his composure, Aoyama nursed his machine across the line for an exhilarating win.
Bautista´s late retirement meant that the battle behind him became one for the runner-up spot, with poleman Héctor Barberá eventually getting the better of reigning World Champion Marco Simoncelli.
Mattia Pasini and Thomas Luthi ended their hopes of catching up with the leaders when they collided midway through the race, Pasini losing his fourth position in the overall classification with a third DNF of the year. Metis Gilera rider Simoncelli now assumes the place as he attempts to remount his title challenge.
125cc:
A three-way battle at the front of the 125cc race in Assen saw the order of the podium positions decided on the very last lap, with Sergio Gadea earning his first win of 2009.
The Spaniard emerged victorious ahead of fellow countrymen Nico Terol and Julián Simón in a dry race that went down to the wire, saw Terol penalised twenty seconds and left Simón at the head of the overall classification.
The trio had battled against one another since just past the halfway mark in Assen, when third row starter Gadea joined up with the two leaders and mounted his own attempt at victory. With neither rider able to get away, a waiting game took place until the final lap, when Terol made a move that did not pay off and ran along the asphalt run-off strip. He caught up with Gadea on the home straight, but the Bancaja Aspar rider had enough of an advantage to take the win. The move was the subject of an enquiry by Race Direction, and the decision was made to relegate Terol to fifth place despite his having stepped onto the rostrum. – FIM
The Dutch TT at Assen was a mixed bag of emotions for the San Carlo Honda Gresini Team as both Toni Elias and Alex de Angelis made positive steps forward in their performances on the bike. However the hard work was tempered after the race, with the decision of Race Direction to give Elias a 20-second penalty for running across the chicane on the final lap.
After a difficult start to the race, Toni Elias had fought his way admirably through the MotoGP pack and looked set for a sixth place finish until misfortune befell him at the final chicane. Attempting to seal the sixth place finish he ran too hard into the right-hand entry and ran across the gravel, crossing the line in eighth place. With the penalty he dropped back to twelfth, with his team-mate Alex de Angelis promoted to tenth spot. The two had enjoyed eventful races which saw a much improved performance from the duo.
Alex De Angelis (10th; 43’00.621): “From the first lap to about three quarter distance it was a good race for me, fighting in a group for seventh place. We’ve been working hard to find rear traction recently and made some progress at the Barcelona test that has helped us here and I think we have gathered more interesting data to help us move forward. Unfortunately it was the front tire that we struggled with today. From about halfway through it was pretty worn and the front was folding on me more and more. I almost crashed on a few occasions so decided it was best to back off and settle for the position I was in. It is not exactly where we want to be but I think we are getting closer and I’m excited about taking this progress to America.”
Toni Elias (12th 43’14.385): “I’m happy because it looks like little by little we’re making progress. The problem here was that I qualified badly yesterday, I got a bad start today and a lost so much time at the start of the race fight with Sete, Talmacsi, Takahashi and Canepa. It was only three laps but it felt like a lifetime! Once I got free of them I was able to keep passing riders until there was three seconds of clear track in front of me to the second group, which I was able to close down. There were some really hard riders in that group and it was a lot of fun. I want to publicly apologise to Capirossi though because I was very late into the last chicane and ran us both off track. I feel bad for him but I just had to give it everything I had today. Race Direction have decided to penalise me for it, which I have to accept, but the most important thing about today was the performance and not the result.”
Fausto Gresini – Team Manager: “It is disappointing that Race Direction have decided to penalise Toni because other than his start I thought he had a great race today, but to be honest it doesn’t bother us too much because the points are virtually irrelevant at the moment – the important thing is that we make progress and as far as we’re concerned we scored a solid eighth place. The team have done a great job on his bike and proved that we’re ready to fight much higher up the order. Alex also had a good race today and stepped up his pace from practice, which is exactly what we were looking for. Hopefully we get a bit more luck at Laguna!”
Vermeulen races to season best at Dutch TT
Chris Vermeulen brought his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R home in fifth place at today’s Dutch TT in Assen to record his best result of the season so far.
Vermeulen got a great start from the fourth row of the grid and was in touch with the top-three at the end of lap one. He was forced back to sixth place on lap six, but with a rider falling just in front of Vermeulen on the 11th lap it left the Australian racer in a lonely and comfortable fifth. He kept up a consistent rhythm and Vermeulen was pleased with his result, he believes it will be a stepping stone to better performances as he now heads to a run of circuits that he really enjoys.
Loris Capirossi was heavily involved in what was the battle of the race. Suzuki’s experienced Italian got a poor start by his usual high standards and was relegated down to 11th – from sixth on the grid – at the end of the first lap. From there Capirossi was in a huge fight that featured up to seven riders at any one time. He battled through the field and made his way up to ninth, before being pushed wide, forcing him to run off the track. After re-joining in 12th he set about getting back in touch with the group and as the high-speed formation reached the last chicane Capirossi had used all his experience to muscle into sixth, but a move from Toni Elias pushed Capirossi into the gravel and although he stayed onboard his machine he had lost all momentum and brought his GSV-R home in 10th.
Following a post-race investigation into the incident with Capirossi and Elias, the latter was awarded with a 20-second penalty, which relegated him down the classification and moved Capirossi up into ninth place.
Today’s race was held in front of packed grandstands and the big crowd of 96,152 were treated to a bit of history as Valentino Rossi rode his Yamaha to victory – the 100th Grand Prix win in the Italian’s illustrious career.
Rizla Suzuki now embarks on a hectic trans-Atlantic dash as it heads to Laguna Seca in America for the eighth round of the MotoGP World Championship next Sunday.
Chris Vermeulen:
“I’m obviously happy because this is my best result of the year and we have shown that we have made a step with the bike after the Barcelona test – especially on the chassis side of things. At this track – and the next couple that we are going to – it is not so important on the motor front, so the slight speed disadvantage that we have is not so bad and we can still be competitive. I got a good start to the race and got in with the front guys early on. I tried as hard as I could to stay with them, but didn’t quite have the lap-times to hang in there. I kept pushing all race and when Colin came past I tried to hang on to him, but he seemed to have a bit more rear grip than me. Most of the race after that was pretty boring as I was on my own. I’m happy with fifth and it gives us some valuable points in the championship and a good result to take forward into Laguna Seca.”
Loris Capirossi:
“It was not a good result today and it began with a bad start by me, it made it very difficult all race because it is not very easy to overtake here. When I was pushed wide I was really disappointed because it meant I had to start all over again and chase the other guys to get past. I got past three riders on the last lap and I was just behind Kallio on the last few corners and then he crashed, so I was sixth. I thought that would be not too bad, but on the last corner Elias tried to overtake me and put me out and that was it, it was is all over. I am upset because I really think if I had got a good start today I would have had a good race and we’d have been competitive, but it’s finished now and we have to move on.”
Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“It is nice for the team to have been in the top-five at the last three GPs. It is also great for Chris to find a good improvement here at Assen that will give him a step forward in confidence as we head to three of his favourite tracks. He rode a strong race today and it’s a good platform to build on.
“Up until the last corner of the race it looked like we’d have fifth and sixth after an interesting race – to say the least – for Loris. It was always a battle where something could happen at any time and the slightly desperate move on the last corner by Elias was evidence of that. There are some positives we can take out of this weekend, but we didn’t quite have the pace on race day that we were hoping for – compared to the top guys – so we need to keep pushing for improvements and make sure we get the maximum out of our potential in Laguna Seca next weekend.”
Assen, 27 June: the LCR Honda MotoGP rider Randy De Puniet was involved in a thrilling race crossing the line in 7th place in today’s 26-lap Ducth Grand Prix at Assen race track reinforcing his place as one of the championship’s top privateers. The seventh round of the season started today at 14:00 local time and was held in dry conditions and cloudy skies with Rossi celebrating his 100th victory followed by Lorenzo and Stoner.
Riding the Honda RC212V nr. 14, the 28-year-old showed his trademark getting good lap times on race trim in every session throughout the week end at the 4.555 Km circuit obtaining the quickest lap time on Thursday first free session. The Frenchman started from the fourth row and was up into ninth by the end of the first lap beginning a close battle with Hayden, Toseland, Elias and Capirossi for a top ten finish.
De Puniet: It has been a thrilling and stressful race for me. The grid position did not help us and I took a bad start but after the first corner I overtook some riders and was up to ninth by the end of the first lap. After that I caught a group of riders faster than me with better engines and could not pass them. Suddenly Toseland passed me after the back straight but he was on the limit and hit my machine. Once again I had to push to catch the group but then Elias came up and hit me on turn no. 3. However I stay focused and when Capirossi and Elias made a small mistake in the last corner I was ready to take the chance to pass them. After a difficult qualifying we deserve this 7th place. My squad made a very good job on the electronic system between the warm up and the race”.
TT Assen: victory, fastest lap and leadership of the Championship for Hiroshi Aoyama
A well deserved victory, the fastest lap, the head of the Championship: almost a perfect day, for Hiroshi Aoyama, who, in Assen, won the 250 race in front of Barbera and Simoncelli. Now he leads with 121 points; Bautista follow at 108, and Barbera at 95. His teammate, Raffaele De Rosa, got a tenth place who put him at the top of the special rookie standing.
Yuki Takahashi had to take a painkilling before the beginning of the race, still suffering for the finger he broke in Barcellona. Gabor Talmacsi, the Hungarian newcomer, is steadily progressing in his apprenticeship of the MotoGP class, improving day by day.
Hiroshi Aoyama (250cc) 1st: “First of all, let me say thank you to my team. They did a great job, providing me with an excellent bike to fight for the top prize in a circuit that could be not easy for us. My start was not perfect, and I had to push to make up. Then, I found a good pace, and in the second part of the race I was able to get the leadership and cross first the finish line. My position in the championship begins to be interesting. The most important thing, now, is to keep the rhythm. Then, we will see”.
Raffaele De Rosa (250cc) 10th: “At the beginning, I experienced the same problem I had in Barcelona: with the tank full, I’m not able to do what I want, with the bike. And, unfortunately, I added to it a couple of mistakes. Everything went by far better in the second part. If I can fix that problem that I have in the first laps, I’m certain I can improve a lot”.
Yuki Takahashi (MotoGP) 15th: “I did not have had a perfect start. Moreover, in the very first part of the race, I almost touched with a competitor, and was forced into a wide line. Mid-race, my back began to ache, and lap by lap I lost sensitivity in the finger I broke in Barcelona. I wanted to finish at any cost. I did it, and I’m satisfied. But not happy: I can do better, and I’ll do in the next races”.
Gabor Talmacsi (MotoGP) 16th: “The start was fun. I practised, when possible, and I saw that I was good at that. So, we decided for a soft tire at the rear, and a medium at the front. For ten laps I was able to stay with the other of my group. I’m very pleased with my race weekends in MotoGP: I’m improving race by race, day by day. Next, we are going to have a technical meeting, to decide how to work on the setup for Laguna Seca”.
Lady luck turns her back on Pedrosa and Dovizioso in Assen
The riders in the Repsol Honda Team, Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso, both fell when they were in 4th position in the Dutch GP. The race was won by Valentino Rossi, his 100th victory in the World Championship, Jorge Lorenzo was second and Casey Stoner third.
A race to forget for the Honda Repsol team as its two riders fell when they had a good chance of getting a good result in the race. Dani Pedrosa got off to a great start as is normal for the Spaniard and was leader for a large part of the first lap. But Valentino Rossi rapidly overtook him and got away from the rest of the riders, a group of four title favourites had formed up to that point. When it seemed that Pedrosa was going to be up with the leaders on his modified bike he fell on a corner just after being overtaken by Lorenzo who had been following him closely. A big pity because Pedrosa had shown some great form during the whole weekend, and the pain from his injuries was becoming less and less.
His teammate Andrea Dovizioso did not have any better luck. After Pedrosa`s fall he moved into 4th position, and he began to ride at a faster pace so he could catch the three at the front. He fell on a left-hander when he was setting his fastest laps. And so the race was left with three riders way out in the lead, taking away any excitement towards the end of the race. Valentino Rossi won, and he now leads the World Championship by five points, Jorge Lorenzo was 2nd and Casey Stoner 3rd.
