BAYLISS AND THE DUCATI XEROX TEAM TAKE SECOND PLACE TWICE
OVER IN VALENCIA
 Australian
Troy Bayliss (Ducati Xerox) increased his championship lead
today in Valencia after taking an impressive second place
finish in Race 1 and then repeating that performance again
in Race 2. Towards the end of Race 1 Troy was lying in fourth
place but due to the unexpected crash between frontrunners
Neukirchner and Checa in the very final stages, he took a
very useful 20 points. In Race 2, a strong start put Bayliss
immediately ahead of the pack but a hard battle against Haga
ensued and ultimately Bayliss relinquished the win to the
Yamaha rider.
Race 1 proved more difficult for team-mate Michel Fabrizio
who, after a less than perfect start, quickly managed to move
up several places but then pushed too hard in his efforts
to pass Biaggi and came off in lap four, unable to get back
on track. Fabrizio subsequently completed Race 2, fighting
hard throughout, but had difficulty moving up through the
ranks and problems with grip which meant he ultimately finished
in thirteenth place.
Bayliss, the current championship leader, now has 128 points
and a 48 point advantage over second-placed Nieto while Fabrizio
lies in ninth place with 37 points. Ducati leads the manufacturers
championship with 140 points.
Troy Bayliss (2nd place - race 1, 2nd place - race
2)
"I was very happy with my results today, although it
was a bit of a strange weekend, having had some problems with
the bike in practice and qualifying. My congratulations go
to Lorenzo (Lanzi), I'm very happy for him to have taken the
win and he really deserved it. I thought I was going to finish
in fourth and couldn't believe what then happened with Neukirchner
and Checa on the last lap but that's racing I guess and gave
me a second place finish. In race 2 I had a good battle with
Nori. At one point I was in a position to fight for the win
but in the end Hagi was in control. Anyway, I was hoping for
good points as points make prizes and so we move on to the
next round in a strong position."
Michel Fabrizio (DNF - race 1, 13th place - race
2)
"In Race 1 I didn't make the best start and then, although
I was able to move up several places quite easily, unfortunately
in trying to pass Biaggi, I just pushed too hard and went
down. I already knew that this track is one of those places
where, if you don't get a good start, it's very hard to catch
up and in race 2 I demonstrated this. Anyway next week we
go to test in Monza and then we have the next round in Assen,
a track I really enjoy and have done well at in the past,
so we'll carry on working hard and hopefully do better in
Holland."
RESULTS:
Race 1 - 1. Lanzi (Ducati), Bayliss (Ducati Xerox), Corser
(Yamaha)
Race 2 - 1. Haga (Yamaha), 2. Bayliss (Ducati Xerox), 3. Checa
(Honda)
CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: Riders - 1. Bayliss
(Ducati Xerox) 128; 2. Nieto (Suzuki) 80; 3. Corser (Yamaha)
72; 4. Checa (Honda) 72...... 9. Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) 37.
Manufacturers - Ducati 140; Yamaha 95; Suzuki 86; Honda 73;
Kawasaki 22
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