Results 500cc Australian GP

Valentino Rossi (Nastro Azzurro Honda) is treading in the footsteps of Italian heroes of motorcycle racing like Carlo Ubbiali and Giacomo Agostini. It could be argued that at 22, he has already surpassed their achievements in the '50s, '60s and '70s and with a career that can be expected to last at least another 5 years, it is likely that he will become the most successful racer of all time.

For the race at Phillip Island, he simply needed to finish in the top 8 to ensure that the crown was his, but this is not his style. Instead he participated in a titanic battle with Max Biaggi (Marlboro Yamaha), with a group of 6 other riders as supporting cast. It turned into one of the classic races of the season, perhaps of the decade, with 5 other riders at some time leading the field as places were swapped at virtually every corner. Biaggi had a very strong race, tactically putting together a plan that saw him take the lead with 3 laps to go, and pull a slight advantage on Rossi. Rossi pegged him back and was shadowing him on the first half of the last lap. With the long sweeping lefthander leading onto the finish straightaway, it is not good to be leading at the entry of this corner and this might have been why Biaggi did not defend his place going into the slow right-hander in the middle of the last lap. Rossi therefore led into the last turn with Biaggi right behind, going for the drafted slingshot. As they straightened up onto the straightaway, Biaggi held the draft for maybe 30 meters, before pulling alongside the Honda rider. He started to inch alongside Rossi, but came up short by half a bike length. Rossi won the race in the greatest of style and became the 2001 World Champion.

Biaggi had once again set pole position during qualification, his seventh of the year, with Rossi in second place. Both of them got good starts, but so did Olivier Jacque (Gauloises Tech 3 Yamaha), Alex Barros (West Pons Honda) and Nori Haga (Red Bull Yamaha). For the first half of the race, it was this group that fought amongst themselves for the honor of leading the race. The pace was not especially hot and the continuous passing moves amongst the riders helped keep lap times down. This worked to the advantage of the riders behind them who were able to catch the leaders by lap 14, led by Loris Capirossi (West Honda Pons). The pace might not have been very hot, but the action was, with Haga riding the YZR 500 as if it was his R7 from last season, using lines quite different in many places from the rest who have come through the GP world. It was hugely entertaining, but also nailbitingly exciting as there was every chance that one of the riders would fall and upset the championship race by taking out Rossi or Biaggi. Barros came closest to this when moving over on Rossi at the end of the front straightaway, and clipping the Italian's front wheel as they get on the brakes for the first turn. Fortunately a simple puff of blue smoke was the only evidence that they really had touched.

Barros had spent the most time at the front of the field during the first half of the race, but on lap 14, with Capirossi and Ukawa (Repsol Honda) joining the back of the group, Rossi moved to the front and attempted to break away. He held first place for 3 laps, until Biaggi slipped past on lap 17, with Capirossi moving past a lap later. On the next lap Capirossi even held the lead for some time, but he had wasted his tires in catching the group and Biaggi and Rossi got by on the next lap. For the rest of the race, it was the huge struggle between the Italians and in the end Biaggi was not even granted the consolation of winning the race that saw Rossi become champion. If Biaggi were to show some sort of generosity in defeat, you could almost feel sorry for him as he has raced very hard this season and would have probably been champion, if only Rossi had been somewhere else. Instead, the only contact between the two after the race, was Biaggi's instinctive handshake with Rossi when Rossi put out his hand on the podium. During the post-race interviews, there were no words of congratulations from Biaggi, and he even managed to describe the race from his perspective without mentioning Rossi by name. Winners are by nature bad losers, but even the greatest of winners, Mick Doohan, would have had some words of felicitation.

Next race Malaysian GP 21 October 2001