Mugello GP Results

Rossi takes another win in a rain shortened race. Results are below.



From a press release issued by Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha:

ROSSI VICTORIOUS AND PEERLESS IN FRONT OF MUGELLO HOME CROWD

Valentino Rossi held his nerve and maintained his race-long aggression to outpace his rivals not once but twice at Mugello in today's Italian Grand Prix. In doing so he seized his second win since joining the Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha Team, in outstanding style. His team-mate Carlos Checa fell on the 4th lap in the first sector of a two-race event, putting himself out of the subsequent re-start, the only one which would count for points.

The initial race was stopped with five laps remaining after the riders raised their hands to signal that the threatening rains had actually started. A six-lap restart would determine the ultimate classification of the race, with the first section now nullified.

Rossi, who had led Sete Gibernau's Honda on the last of the laps in the first running, repeated the trick in seemingly impossible conditions. The 25-year-old from Tavullia won by 0.361 seconds in the restart. With treacherous conditions to deal with Rossi was in a six-rider group at one stage, before asserting his class and quality to outrun Gibernau and third placed Max Biaggi (Honda) in what proved to be a sprint race of maximum risk and changeable traction.

If the second running was a minor classic, the opener was conducted on a no less grand scale. Rossi drew roars from the crowd as he took the advantage from the start, leading into the first corner with his great Italian rival Max Biaggi in second place. Checa, in eighth position, had already made a three place jump from his 11th place start, only to fall on lap four. A huge crash on the main straight for Shinya Nakano (Kawasaki) saw debris littering the track surface; the Japanese rider escaped serious injury by a whisker, although the race continued until the rains descended on lap 17.

The riders lined up for the restart in the order in which they finished the first segment, with Rossi on pole, Gibernau second and Biaggi third. Checa, having fallen in the first part, was not allowed to restart. With this second Yamaha victory Rossi now sits second in the championship on 76 points, ten behind leader Gibernau and four ahead of Biaggi. Checa ended his Mugello race weekend in overall fifth, with 36 points.

VALENTINO ROSSI (1st)

"To win in front of all these people is incredible. It's hard to explain the emotion I felt when I heard the crowds cheering for me on the last few laps. I need to say thank you to all of them. It was like winning twice today. The first one was in the dry, where it seemed like I made thirty or forty overtaking manoeuvres. Every lap there was a fantastic battle with Sete, Max and Tamada. It would have been difficult to win in the dry with Gibernau, but the new race in the rain was held in incredible conditions. To run with a slick on a wet track was very strange at the beginning but fortunately it stopped raining and it was possible to push to the win."

CARLOS CHECA (DNF)

"I passed Capirossi through the second chicane and then on the next corner I opened the gas and lost the rear. Obviously I'm very disappointed and I don't really know what to say. It has dented my morale a little bit. One good thing is that I have been able to retain fifth position in the championship. Now we're going to Barcelona where a good result is really important in front of my home crowd. I hope things will go better there. "

JERRY BURGESS -VALENTINO ROSSI'S CREW CHIEF

"It was very satisfying to win after the second running as Valentino did so well in the first race, which didn't count in the end. We always make preparations in case of rain so we were ready. We had to put him on full slicks in the six-lap race, just like most others. It was a little tricky as the rain was probably heavier then than it had been when they first stopped it, but it all worked out."

DAVIDE BRIVIO - GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR

"That was a really strange day but what a result! Valentino and the team worked so well to come out on top from the restart in such difficult conditions. I think we will all remember this race for a very long time. Unfortunately at the same time it was not a good day for Carlos; he started a difficult race from 11th on the grid, he knew it would be hard and didn't make it to the end. Hopefully he can keep his motivation because he's done a good job in the past rounds and Barcelona could be a great chance for him.


MotoGP running order when the race was stopped:

1. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 17 laps, 31:52.012
2. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, -0.076 second
3. Max BIAGGI, Honda, -1.303 seconds
4. Alex BARROS, Honda, -3.051 seconds
5. Marco MELANDRI, Yamaha, -10.487 seconds
6. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati, -18.209 seconds
7. Norick ABE, Yamaha, -19.570 seconds
8. Colin EDWARDS, Honda, -19.661 seconds
9. Ruben XAUS, Ducati, -21.660 seconds
10. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, -30.473 seconds
11. Neil HODGSON, Ducati, -36.480 seconds
12. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, -36.668 seconds
13. Shane BYRNE, Aprilia, -39.372 seconds
14. Jeremy McWILLIAMS, Aprilia, -50.969 seconds
15. Nobuatsu AOKI, Proton, -60.588 seconds
16. Andrew PITT, Moriwaki, -79.887 seconds
17. Michel FABRIZIO, Harris WCM, -81.675 seconds
18. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, -4 laps, out , mechanical
19. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, -5 laps, out, tire failure
20. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, -7 laps, out, crash
21. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, -8 laps, out, mechanical
22. Carlos CHECA, Yamaha, -14 laps, out, crash
23. Kurtis ROBERTS, Proton, -14 laps, out, mechanical

Final MotoGP Race Results:

1. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 23 laps
2. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, -0.361 second
3. Max BIAGGI, Honda, -1.540 seconds
4. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati, -1.782 seconds
5. Ruben XAUS, Ducati, -2.389 seconds
6. Alex BARROS, Honda, -2.446 seconds
7. Norick ABE, Yamaha, -5.842 seconds
8. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, -6.228 seconds
9. Marco MELANDRI, Yamaha, -6.461 seconds
10. Shane BYRNE, Aprilia, -7.198 seconds
11. Neil HODGSON, Ducati, -9.048 seconds
12. Colin EDWARDS, Honda, -9.626 seconds
13. Nobuatsu AOKI, Proton, -14.201 seconds
14. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, -48.091 seconds
15. Michel FABRIZIO, Harris WCM, -50.498 seconds
16. Jeremy McWILLIAMS, Aprilia, -56.572 seconds
17. Andrew PITT, Moriwaki, -59.267 seconds

Not starting final leg:

Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki
Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki
Makoto TAMADA, Honda
Nicky HAYDEN, Honda
Carlos CHECA, Yamaha
Kurtis ROBERTS, Proton


MotoGP World Championship Point Standings:

1. GIBERNAU, 86 points
2. ROSSI, 76 points
3. BIAGGI, 72 points
4. BARROS, 48 points
5. CHECA, 36 points
6. EDWARDS, 33 points
7. CAPIROSSI, 28 points
8. HAYDEN, 27 points
9. BAYLISS, 23 points
10. MELANDRI, 22 points
11. ABE, 21 points
12. TAMADA, 15 points
13. XAUS, 13 points
14. Kenny ROBERTS, 12 points
15. NAKANO, 11 points
16. TIE, BYRNE/FABRIZIO, 7 points
18. TIE, HODGSON/AOKI/HOFMANN, 5 points
21. J. HOPKINS, 4 points
22. McWILLIAMS, 3 points
23. Kurtis ROBERTS, 1 point