Valentino Rossi finishes second in the Rally de Monza

Monday, 30 November 2009

The MotoGP World Champion proved very competitive, winning four of the nine time trials.

Valentino Rossi finished second in the Rally de Monza, which he competed in this weekend. Driving a Ford Focus WRC, the Italian rider was very fast throughout the race, taking four out of nine stage wins, but two errors on special stages 4 and 5 handed victory to Dindo Capello, driving a Citröen C4.
Valentino also took part in the Master’s Show, a competition involving all the participants of the rally in an elimination round special stage. Despite having the best overall time, Rossi reached the semi-finals where he lost to Capello, after beating Marco Simoncelli in the quarter final round.
After the race Rossi said “I finished the rally by winning the last super special “Grand Prix” test in the rain and I am satisfied to have taken the fastest time as well in the Master’s, where I was hoping to take revenge on Capello but I was not able to do so. In recent years the level of the Rally de Monza has risen a lot and in order to win it is not enough just to be fast, it is also necessary to make few mistakes. In any case, the last twenty days have been very entertaining for me, firstly with the motocross in Cavellara, then with a Ferrari GT in Vallelunga and now with the rally.”
The sports activities of Valentino Rossi outside the world of two wheels will continue next weekend with the “Bettega Memorial”, a rally show which is celebrated each year as part of the Bologna Motorshow.

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Héctor Barberá

Barberá concludes the Jerez test

Saturday, 28 November 2009

The Valencian had been riding the Ducati Desmosedici for two days. Now he will stop until February when he will reappear in the Sepang test.

On Friday Héctor Barberá completed his second day of testing the handlebars of the Aspar Team’s Ducati Desmosedici at the Jerez circuit.
The new Aspar rider carried out two runs of ten laps each, alternating each exit between motorbikes configured in a different way. In the afternoon he completed five more turns and finished off his work with a best time of 1’41.7, less than 2 seconds off the record he established in this season’s Gran Premio de España.
"Today has been a day of very complete work. We have centred our efforts in doing tests with the motorbike and the traction control. We have not pursued the times, more we were seeking a good line of work. At the end of the day I have given 20 good laps and I am happy. The results are not excellent but I feel that we are on the right road" said the newcomer to the premier category.
The next time that the new Aspar rider will ride the Desmosedici again will be in the month of February next year, in the scheduled test in Malaysia.
“Now I am going to prepare myself very well, to return to Sepang at one hundred percent. I think that one of the keys of the season will be to strengthen the physical form during the winter months” said the Valencian rider.

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Bridgestone survey 2009 MotoGP season

Thursday, 26 November 2009

Hiroshi Yasukawa, Director of Bridgestone Motorsport, assesses the company’s first season as sole tyre provider to the premier class.


This year’s MotoGP season saw Bridgestone tasked with being the official tyre supplier to the World Championship, and it was a successful one for the manufacturer.
Increasing their supply from seven teams and a total of 13 riders by the end of the previous year to the whole of the class in 2009, Bridgestone enjoyed seeing five different race winners throughout the campaign on their tyres.
A first MotoGP win for Andrea Dovizioso and a first on Bridgestone tyres for both Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa, combined with 11 different riders finishing on the podium made for an exciting season, and Yasukawa gave his thoughts on the year.
“The 2009 season was an important one for us because it marked our move to the single tyre supplier in MotoGP, having only entered the sport in 2002,” said Yasukawa. “The challenges for Bridgestone this year were very different as it was our first in MotoGP without tyre competition. In the past our objective was to provide tyres that allowed the riders using them to be faster than the competition, whereas this year our role was much more involved, providing not just tyres but support to every team and rider in the series.”
“We have seen some thrilling racing, and our appointment as the sole tyre supplier has been well received by teams, riders and of course Dorna and the FIM, for which I would like to thank them all. Casey Stoner’s victory at the Australian Grand Prix this year also marked the 50th premier class win on our tyres from the 133 Grands Prix we had competed in by that point in the season.”
Yasukawa concluded, “The economic climate has changed this year but MotoGP remains very valuable to the Bridgestone brand worldwide for the exposure it affords us and the platform it gives us to demonstrate our technical expertise. With our existing agreement with Dorna we are committed to supporting the series as the official tyre supplier for the next two seasons, and I think this reflects the value of MotoGP to Bridgestone Corporation.”

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Valentino Rossi’s first World title

Friday, 20 November 2009

motogp.com begins a series which looks back over Valentino Rossi’s nine World titles, starting at the very beginning…

The start of something special: Rossi's first world title
The start of something special: Rossi's first world title

Valentino Rossi was already assured of his legendary status before this year’s MotoGP title was secured at Sepang, but the confirmation of his ninth World Championship across all classes in Malaysia added to his status as a legend.
Fourteen seasons have passed since the Italian made his debut in the 125cc class, and it was in this category that he claimed his first World title back in 1997 as an 18 year-old. In his second campaign, Rossi’s 11 Grand Prix wins – 13 podiums in total – delivered him the title on his Aprilia.
It was at Brno, where he finished third behind Noboru Ueda and Tomomi Manako, that Rossi was crowned champion in 1997 with three races of the season still to go. The young Italian’s celebration gave a hint of things to come, as he paraded down the track with a giant number one strapped to his back. Valentino Rossi had arrived…
Next week, motogp.com will bring you further Rossi celebration videos as his 250cc title and premier class triumphs are also recalled.

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Melandri settling back in at Gresini



Friday, 13 November 2009
Marco Melandri’s reacquaintance with the RC212V got off to a good start at the Valencia test this week, with Marco Simoncelli also making progress.



After a two-year absence, Marco Melandri was again aboard the RC212V for San Carlo Honda Gresini at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit earlier this week.

Starting his preparations for the 2010 season with the test at Valencia, Melandri worked with the Gresini crew as he enjoyed a productive three days, setting a best lap of 1’32.936 in the final session and outlining his targets for next year.

“At the start I though we had a problem with the setting but on reflection it was probably more to do with the fact we were on a used hard tyre,” said Melandri of his final day’s work. “When we put a fresh one on the bike felt unbalanced but I still managed to improve my lap time. Anyway, I'm happy because we have been able to gather a lot of useful data that will help us in a variety of circumstances during the season ahead. It has been a good three days - not easy but we have worked well and now I just hope that the new bike works and adapts well to the new tyres because my objective is to be back challenging for the podium.”

Simoncelli, who gained valuable track time following his move up from the 250cc class, was also pleased with how his time had been spent.

“My confidence in the bike is increasing even though I still don't feel totally comfortable - especially in braking into the first part of the corner and then getting out of the corner, although I think the main problem is in braking,” he explained. “All in all I am satisfied because I've been setting the lap times on my own out there. I have also learned a lot over the three days about the working methods in this category and have also developed a good relationship with the Honda engineers - they are very open and honest with their thoughts and equally open to listen to yours. It is a good way to work towards joint success and I think we are all pulling in the same direction.”

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Positive evaluations from Pedrosa and Dovizioso

Thursday, 12 November 2009
Repsol Honda team riders Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso concluded their post-season test at Valencia with some good feedback on their factory machines.





Testing the 2010 version of their Honda RC212V bikes alongside their old prototypes at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit this week, Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso were pleased with the results gathered as they look forward to next season.

Pedrosa was sampling Ohlins suspension and recorded the second-fastest lap on the final day of testing on Wednesday with a 1’31.944.

“We had a good day out there. The track conditions were very good and there was a lot of grip, so we were able to improve our speed quite a lot,” said Pedrosa. “My feeling with the new suspension really improved and that was our main focus here. It’s a big change because I’ve been riding with Showa (suspension) since 2003, so of course it takes a while to get used to something new. We didn’t spend a lot of time working specifically on adjustments with the new chassis because it was important to concentrate on one thing at a time.”

Dovizioso, who sustained a hairline fracture to his left hip in a fall on Tuesday, was back on board his bike on Wednesday as he set his best time of the three days in the final session with a hot lap of 1’32.825.

“We confirmed some of the setting improvements we found earlier, and we also tested some solutions that we couldn’t get round to on Tuesday because of my crash,” explained the Italian rider. “I improved my lap time and I was able to go faster than during the whole race weekend, so this is positive. All in all I’m very confident because I could lap at 1’32.8 at the end of today’s session, and this lap time is as good as race pace.”

He continued, “The stability while braking has improved and I think that we are working in the right direction, though we still need to take a step forward. For instance, we can still improve the drivability on the exit of corners and that’s something we’ll work on in February.”

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Final straight of the CEV Buckler sees three titles at stake at Jerez

Thursday, 12 November 2009

The Jerez circuit hosts the sixth and penultimate round of the CEV Buckler 2009 this weekend with three titles at stake, as 136 riders from 16 countries participate, including seven from the forthcoming Moto2 category.

Traditionally, the two final rounds of the CEV Buckler bring together a number of riders from around the world, after the conclusion of their respective national championships. For those in the 125GP category this provides a perfect platform to display their credentials for a possible inclusion in the World Championship, with MotoGP teams watching on with great interest.
Cadiz rider Alberto Moncayo looks well placed to be crowned Spanish Champion in the 125GP category, which he can achieve by scoring one point more than Maverick Viñales. Moncayo, whose participation in the 2010 World Championship was confirmed this week, will face rivals who will make their debuts in the 2009 CEV Buckler such as World Championship rider Johann Zarco, and some of the most promising riders from the Red Bull Rookies Cup will also come up against Moncayo. South African Matthew Scholtz and Japanese Daijiro Hiura will be riding, as well as regular rivals Miguel Oliveira, Adrian Martin and Louis Rossi.
Carmelo Morales finds himself in a situation similar to that of Moncayo, as he travels to Jerez with a 29-point advantage over Bernat Martinez, and 33 ahead of Ivan Silva in the Extreme category. With two races – and 50 points – still to be disputed, Kenny Noyes, Jose Luis Cardoso and Javier del Amor have mathematical chances of catching Morales, however remote. One certainty is that it will be an exciting race.
Sharing the track with the Extreme, seven Moto2 machines will meet in the highest number seen so far. Apart from Dani Rivas and Shuhei Aoyama (both Blusens Honda BQR), Javier Forés (Laglisse YM2) and Dani Arcas (AJR La Selva), there will be two rider replacements and one new incorporation. Once the participation of Antonio Banderas’ team – to be led by Dani Devahive – is confirmed in the Moto2 World Championship, Joan Olivé will ride the bike developed thus far by Aleix Espargaró. Spanish Supersport champion in 2007, Brit Graeme Gowland, returns to the CEV Buckler with the FTR team of Joe Darcey, who presented Diego Lozano at Montmeló. Finally, the new incorporation is Pablo Barrio from the AJR team Ateconsa will also attend CEV Buckler for the first time this season.
In the Supersport category, following the redistribution of points after the sanction for Angel Rodriguez was confirmed, Scottish rider Kev Coghlan could be crowned champion. Tenth at Jerez will be enough for him to win the title, even if second-placed Iván Moreno wins the race. Also defending their positions in the standings will be Adrián Bonastre and Jordi Torres. The presence of some riders who will ride in the Moto2 World Championship has also been confirmed, with Roberto Pietri and Yannick Guerra as well as the still to be confirmed Xavier Simeon.

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Bautista off to Estoril for further Suzuki test

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

Álvaro Bautista will travel to Estoril next week for another three-day test ride with Suzuki.

It was a good debut on the Suzuki GSV-R for Álvaro Bautista at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit, as he made his first strides in MotoGP at the traditional Valencia test.
Wednesday saw the Spaniard set his best lap on the third and final day with a 1.34.163, and Bautista will now travel to Estoril in Portugal with Rizla Suzuki team test rider Nobuatsu Aoki, as he continues his education on the machine.
“I’ve enjoyed it so much, the people here are very professional and I feel so good working with them,” said Bautista. “I’ve taken it step by step and have improved; each time I went out on the bike I felt better. Each day we went faster, and I’m happy with the three days.”
Suzuki team manager Paul Denning said of Bautista’s performance, “Álvaro’s transition to the four-stroke and to the team has been seamless; he looks very comfortable on the bike and appears to have ridden within his own abilities in this first test on the GSV-R. He has treated the three days not so much as a test, but as an extended track-day. He has certainly had some fun as well as beginning to understand the characteristics of the bike.”
Denning added, “He didn’t run any of the updated parts, so to make consistent low 1’34s is a very positive start. He’s very focused and is an enthusiastic character to have in the pit and we are looking forward to having an enjoyable and hard-charging atmosphere with Loris (Capirossi) and Álvaro for 2010.”

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Final day another good one for Marlboro Ducati


Wednesday, 11 November 2009

The final day of the Valencia test saw Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden first and third fastest respectively on the timesheet.


Ducati Marlboro completed their test at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit on Wednesday with Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden having made good progress on their Desmosedici prototypes.
Both were pleased with the changes made to their machines by Filippo Preziosi, with Stoner’s best lap of 1’31.900 the fastest of all riders across the three days, as he tested a new engine configuration.
“We were able to understand the bike a little better today and the fantastic weather conditions certainly helped. It was a pleasant surprise when we got up this morning and it allowed us to work well,” said Stoner. “I’m satisfied with this three-day test and with the new characteristics of the bike, in particular the extra traction in corner exit. It is still difficult to figure out exactly the best time to open the throttle, but we’re getting there and it is a case of more practice and improving the set-up.”
Hayden, whose 1’32.805 was the third quickest lap of the final day, was also content with what had been achieved.
“We worked on confirming a few things today and I think we found what we were looking for,” he said. “I like the changes we’ve introduced to the bike; the power delivery is definitely more progressive although we still need to find the ideal setting for it. I’m happy – I think we’re on the right track and have had three important days here that should help us make a lot of progress in the next test, and close the gap to the front guys down even more.”

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Valencia test finishes with Stoner fastest on day three

Wednesday, 11 November 2009

The final day of the post-season test at Valencia concluded with Casey Stoner the fastest rider at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit.



Casey Stoner led the lap times in the final day’s session of the Valencia test on Wednesday, as he finished the first phase of the fine-tuning of his Ducati Desmosedici machine with a best time of 1’31.900.
Testing new forks and a revised engine configuration on his factory prototype before the test was wrapped up at 1pm, Stoner put in 35 laps during the session, with his top time placing him 0.044s ahead of Dani Pedrosa.
Pedrosa, who has been testing Ohlins suspension on his 2010 RC212V prototype, was the only other rider to break the 1’32” barrier, with Stoner’s team-mate Nicky Hayden completing what has been a strong test for the Ducati factory bikes as he ranked third fastest, just under a second off his Australian colleague’s pace.
Andrea Dovizioso made a vast improvement on his previous two days’ work as he also came within a second of Stoner’s marker, completing a good final session for the factory Honda team.
Continuing his re-acquaintance with the Honda RC212V, Marco Melandri finished fifth quickest for the San Carlo Honda Gresini team. The new aluminium swing arm used by Mika Kallio helped the Finn continue well on his Pramac Ducati, with new team-mate Aleix Espargaró also enjoying the last day of the test as his best lap saw him rank seventh-fastest as he took in 55 laps.
Loris Capirossi completed 43 turns on his Suzuki, while Héctor Barberá led the 250cc graduates with a best time of 1’33.787 on his Aspar Ducati, lapping at just under 1.9s off Stoner. Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini), Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) and Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP) were also present on the final morning of testing at Valencia as well.

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Day two of test sees Lorenzo top timesheet

Day two of test sees Lorenzo top timesheet

Tuesday, 10 November 2009

Aboard his Yamaha M1 prototype, Jorge Lorenzo set the fastest lap on the second day at Valencia, in his final session of the three-day test.

Post-GP Valencia Test Highlights - Day 2
Post-GP Valencia Test Highlights - Day 2
Jorge Lorenzo was the only rider to break the 1’32” barrier on Tuesday at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit, as he set the quickest lap of the second day of the post-season test on his M1 prototype with a 1’31.939.
Taking his factory bike round for 62 laps as he and Fiat Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi tested a new chassis – a new engine is expected to be available to work with in the new year – the Spaniard was 0.256s faster than Monday’s quickest rider Casey Stoner.
On his Ducati Desmosedici meanwhile, Stoner was second fastest on the timesheet as he made 44 laps on the circuit, 12 more than he completed on Monday as the Australian continues to fine tune his 800cc race machinery.
World Champion Rossi emerged only in the afternoon, coming out onto the track just before 2pm to take his M1 out for the final time for this test, as he lapped at just over half a second slower than Lorenzo.
The focus of the Valencia test for Ben Spies remains acquainting himself with his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 bike as he tries various tyre and wheel options, but the experimental nature did not stop the Texan from posting the fourth-fastest time of the day at just under half a second behind Rossi. His team-mate Colin Edwards’ test appears to have come to a premature end however, as he failed to take part on Tuesday due to illness.
Nicky Hayden, who finished the season on a high with his fifth place in Sunday’s race, matched that placement on the timesheet as he recorded 84 laps on his factory Ducati. The 2006 World Champion was trying out the new rear spec Bridgestone tyres for 2010, along with several other riders.
Ohlins suspension was again tested by Dani Pedrosa, as both he and Repsol Honda team-mate Andrea Dovizioso took their 2010 RC212V prototypes out for the second day. Sunday’s race winner Pedrosa was sixth fastest on Tuesday, with Dovizioso 12th as he continued to adjust to the weight distribution caused by the realignment of his engine. The Italian crashed shortly after 1pm, but was back out on the track shortly afterwards.
Randy de Puniet took his RC212V out as the LCR Honda team tested suspension and electronics updates on the Frenchman’s 2009 machine, in a bid to improve the rear set-up of the bike.
Mika Kallio (Pramac Racing), testing a new aluminium swing arm and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) both came inside the top-ten lap times, as did Marco Melandri whose return to the San Carlo Honda Gresini team sees him riding the RC212V after a two-year absence. New Pramac arrival Aleix Espargaró’s familiarisation with the Ducati continued as he builds on his 13th-placed race finish from Sunday.
The four riders making the graduation from the 250cc class were also gaining more track time, as Héctor Barberá recorded the quickest time of the quartet. The Valencian rider was using the Desmosedici GP9 as he becomes accustomed to the power delivery offered by the 800cc machines. The Aspar rider has also been assigned three new crew members by Ducati Corse, and he completed 100 laps, the most of any rider on Tuesday.
Marco Simoncelli’s (79 laps) education on the Gresini Honda, Álvaro Bautista’s (74) on the Rizla Suzuki and Hiroshi Aoyama’s (88) on the Interwetten Honda all carried on as well.

 

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Stoner and Hayden make strong test starts

Stoner and Hayden make strong test starts

Monday, 09 November 2009

It was a productive first day of testing at Valencia for the Ducati Marlboro team, as Casey Stoner recorded the fastest lap and Nicky Hayden rode well in preparation for the 2010 season.


Casey Stoner set the fastest lap of the first day of the Valencia test, taking his Desmosedici round in a best time of 1’32.660, and the Australian was pleased with the response of his machine.
A crash on the warm-up lap of Sunday’s race – the last of the season – due to a cold tyre meant Stoner was unable to take his place on the grid, but a positive day’s work at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit on Monday left him at the top of the timesheet.
“We tried a new engine configuration designed at improving the rideability of the bike and for the moment it is going really well,” said Stoner. “The feedback is smoother and we improved traction with the same set-up we used over the weekend, so that is positive. We also tried some different forks and in general I am satisfied.”
Stoner set his hot lap on his 22nd of 32 turns, and added, “We didn't do many laps today – just tried to make sure we were working in the right direction. I think we are and I can't wait to get back on track tomorrow, when hopefully it won't be as windy.”
Riding the other Ducati factory machine, Nicky Hayden clocked the fifth-fastest lap of the day at 0.698s off his team-mate’s mark.
“I was really looking forward to getting back out on track today and starting work on next season,” said the American. “We have a direction to work in and loads of work to do but we made a lot of progress already today. We don't have a lot of tyres available and just worked with two sets – a hard one and a softer one – with very similar times on both that were not far off my qualifying time from Saturday.”
He added, “We tried some engine updates on one of the bikes, some forks and a couple of different settings but this is just the start and it is early to say which is best because the lap times have been very similar. Generally it's been a good first day and I'm happy.”

 

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Hayden assesses first season with Ducati

Hayden assesses first season with Ducati 

Monday, 09 November 2009

Two top five finishes in the final two rounds could not lift Nicky Hayden any higher than 13th in the final standings but he is ready to start the hard work for Ducati’s 2010 project this week in Valencia.


Nicky Hayden is no stranger to hard work and is a big fan of testing his MotoGP machinery whenever he gets the chance, so after a frustrating first season with the Ducati Marlboro team – which has seen him suffer bad luck on several occasions – the American rider will be an enthusiastic participant in this week’s three day Valencia test.
It would be no surprise to see Hayden total up more laps than any of his MotoGP rivals this week on the latest model of the Desmosedici, as the former World Champion completes a year since first testing with the Italian factory at the end of last season.
Reading through the final 2009 World Championship classification after the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana will be an uncomfortable experience for the Kentuckian competitor, but Hayden has undoubtedly been on an upwards trend throughout the year and Sunday brought him a second top five result in two races.
“It’s not spectacular, but we’ve ended the season with two top fives and we know we have a direction to work in over the winter,” stated Hayden after the Valencia race. “It hasn’t been a great season for me in terms of results but the improvements we have made since the start are huge and I’m excited about the future. We’re 13th overall, which looks awful on paper, but we are only eleven points off seventh and I had three first-lap incidents that weren’t my fault – just one of those could have made the difference. Next season starts on Monday and I can’t wait to get back to work.”
Reviewing the final race of the year in detail, Hayden also commented, “I thought it might be possible to do a little better but I didn’t get the best start. The clutch was slipping a little bit down the first couple of straights and I lost some positions. After that I managed to pull myself up again and from there it was a case of doing my best to try and bridge the gap to Colin (Edwards).”
“The bike was working quite well but every time I closed a tenth or two he had an answer and pulled it back out. Towards the end I had some issues in a couple of left-handers and my pace dropped too much. Anyway, I had an enjoyable race, going back and forth with a few guys at the beginning especially.”

 

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Stoner on top once more

Sunday, 08 November 2009

The cold conditions at the Ricardo Tormo circuit did little to halt Casey Stoner’s dominance of the weekend so far, as the pole holder lapped quickest in the warm up session.


It was a case of business as usual for Casey Stoner on Sunday morning as the Australian topped the timesheet in the warm up session, with a best lap of 1’32.856 making him well over half a second faster than second quickest Valentino Rossi.
In chilly conditions, the Australian pole holder timed ahead of the World Champion – who will start the race from the head of the second row on the grid – with Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro) going round third and fourth fastest respectively.
Wildcard rider Ben Spies (Sterilgarda Yamaha Racing) and Jorge Lorenzo were next up on the lap times, with Andrea Dovizioso, Mika Kallio, Alex de Angelis and Marco Melandri also registering top-ten times. Dani Pedrosa, who will start from second on the grid, was eleventh-fastest in the session.

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motogp.com team go for a Stoner win

Saturday, 07 November 2009

The motogp.com live commentary team has revealed their tips for how they see the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana unfolding on Sunday.

Expert Eye: motogp.com commentary team
Expert Eye: motogp.com commentary team

motogp.com’s live commentary team of Gav Emmett, Nick Harris and Ian Wheeler have all predicted a third consecutive Grand Prix victory for Casey Stoner at Valencia this weekend, after making their predictions in the final round of Fantasy MotoGP 2009.
After the Flag Presenter Emmett believes Stoner will be joined on the podium by Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi, whilst pit lane reporter Wheeler thinks it will be Dani Pedrosa and Rossi who will complete the top three. Harris, who has been following Motorcycle Grand Prix racing since the 1970s, went for Pedrosa and Lorenzo to place second and third.
This is your last chance to play Fantasy MotoGP this season and to boost your rankings, so if you are ready to submit your predictions now, visit the Fantasy MotoGP 2009 section of this website.

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