ROSSI’S TENTH VICTORY SECURES TEAM TITLE FOR GAULOISES
YAMAHA
Just six days after lifting the MotoGP title with Valentino
Rossi in Malaysia, the Gauloises Yamaha Team were celebrating
again today as Valentino Rossi’s record-breaking tenth
victory of the season secured the Teams’ World Championship
at the Qatar Grand Prix. Rossi became the first Yamaha rider
ever to take his win total for a single season into double
figures after an exhilarating last-lap battle with Marco Melandri
(Honda), whilst his team-mate Colin Edwards boosted the team’s
points tally to unbeatable status with a determined ride to
fourth place. Rossi’s 79th victory of his career came
after 22 dramatic laps of the Losail International Circuit,
with Loris Capirossi (Ducati) taking an early lead from pole
position before Sete Gibernau (Honda) took over. The Spaniard
had built up a solid advantage by the halfway stage but he
was eventually reeled in by the chasing pack and made a critical
error with five laps remaining, running into the gravel when
trying to repel an attack from Melandri. With Nicky Hayden
(Honda) in close attendance, Rossi closed in on Melandri and
the two Italians went head to head in a gripping finale, Rossi
taking the lead with three laps remaining and holding off
one last attempt from Melandri just two corners from the end
to secure victory. With the riders’ and teams’
titles now in the bag, Yamaha needs to be just 50 points clear
after Phillip Island to clinch the Manufactures’ Championship.
VALENTINO ROSSI (1st – 43’33.759) “What
a race! For me that was the best of the season, it was so
much fun. I had bad memories from this circuit from last year
so I really wanted to win and after practice yesterday I knew
it was not impossible. I had two great rivals and all three
of us showed that we were in very good shape until the end.
We gave more than 100% and had a fantastic battle from the
beginning to the end. I have to thank Yamaha and my whole
team because my bike was very fast over the final few laps,
which it needed to be because Marco Melandri was very strong
and we had a great battle. He tried to pass me on the last
lap but I was able to hold on and win – my tenth of
the season. I am very, very happy.”
VALENTINO ROSSI (1st – 43’33.759)
“What a race! For me that was the best of the season,
it was so much fun. I had bad memories from this circuit from
last year so I really wanted to win and after practice yesterday
I knew it was not impossible. I had two great rivals and all
three of us showed that we were in very good shape until the
end. We gave more than 100% and had a fantastic battle from
the beginning to the end. I have to thank Yamaha and my whole
team because my bike was very fast over the final few laps,
which it needed to be because Marco Melandri was very strong
and we had a great battle. He tried to pass me on the last
lap but I was able to hold on and win – my tenth of
the season. I am very, very happy.”
COLIN EDWARDS (4th; + 14.737)
“I felt we had the pace yesterday but we were looking
for a little bit more rear grip to take that extra step and
went with a different tyre this morning. It was the same as
the other guys were using but my bike was set up around the
tyre we had yesterday and I couldn’t turn the thing.
It was pushing the front a lot in the corners and I kept having
to run it straight. We need to figure out why that was and
take the lesson to Phillip Island in a couple of weeks. I’m
disappointed for my team today because I was confident I could
be up there fighting for the win and in the end it just didn’t
happen. On the up-side, my points today contributed to the
teams’ championship, so that’s a good thing to
take away from here.”
DAVIDE BRIVIO – GAULOISES YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR
“Today we saw a fantastic race, scored another victory
and won another title so of course we are delighted. Valentino
clearly wanted to win the race after what happened last year
and he came out on top of another incredible battle, so congratulations
to him. Colin finished in fourth place, which is not what
he had hoped for, but he scored some important points and
closed the gap to second in the championship so we are happy
for him. The team have worked extremely well since Thursday,
finding the right set-up for both bikes early in the weekend
and then just fine-tuning for the race. We’ve won the
Teams’ Championship today and both riders have contributed
to this, so congratulations to everybody. Both Valentino and
Colin like Phillip Island so now we all looking forward to
going to Australia in two weeks.”
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