MARCO MELANDRI TAKES A SPECTACULAR PODIUM AT DONINGTON
FORTUNA HONDA rider Marco Melandri, just two weeks after
his horrendous crash in Catalunya, put in a courageous and
determined performance at Donington to finish third at the
British GP following a spectacular battle with Valentino Rossi.
Sitting third on the grid, Melandri made a superb start to
take the early lead and set a hot pace. The Italian was stalked
by Dani Pedrosa and the two soon opened a gap on the rest
of the field. Despite still suffering pain from his injuries,
Melandri's supreme fitness allowed him to maintain his challenge
for a place on the podium, although he fell behind Pedrosa
as the race progressed with the young Spaniard opening a healthy
lead at the front.
With just a few laps remaining, Valentino Rossi - who had
climbed his way through the field in tremendous fashion -
caught up with Melandri and, after a memorable battle, got
the better of his compatriot to sneak second place.
The next round of the World Championship will be in Germany
in two weeks.
MARCO MELANDRI (3rd - 4th in the championship, 114
points): "Today was an incredible day! Bearing
in mind my physical condition two weeks ago, I have to be
very satisfied. I want to thank the Clinica Mobile for the
work they did to allow me to race here in good shape. After
the first few laps I could feel that my strength was going,
but I made a big effort to maintain my pace. The first part
of circuit was harder for me to negotiate, but as the race
went on I improved on that part and the bike worked perfectly.
It's a shame I lost second because of a small error on the
penultimate corner, but the battle with Valentino was great
and I think the fans really enjoyed the spectacle."
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