The first race of the MotoGP season got underway last night with Valentino Rossi doing what he does best, taking the chequered flag. The Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar got underway with Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda taking the lead as the lights went out, from seventh on the grid. Casey Stoner on the Marlboro Ducati slipped back to fourth place after starting in pole position but was in the lead by the fourth lap after picking off his Ducati team-mate Nicky Hayden, Rossi and Dani Pedrosa. Rossi was soon chasing down Stoner but the Ducati rider had managed to make a gap of two-seconds by the time the Italian had made his move on Pedrosa. However, Stoner lost the front end of his Ducati going into turn 4 and was out of the race leaving Rossi at the front of the pack. Hayden stuck with Rossi after an impressive ride from ninth on the grid as the second Repsol Honda of Andrea Dovizioso replaced his team-mate Pedrosa at the front. Dovizioso got past Hayden before challenging Rossi for the lead, briefly making the pass stick on lap 16 before Rossi snatched it back. Jorge Lorenzo was then on the move as Rossi created a gap at the front, first picking off third place man Hayden before muscling his way through on Dovizioso two laps later. Hayden once again fought his way past Dovizioso but not for long as the Honda rider retook the lead on the final run down to the line for third place. Ben Spies came in to finish in fifth place on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 followed by the LCR Honda of Randy de Puniet in sixth and Pedrosa in seventh. The second Monster Yamaha Tech 3 of Colin Edwards finished in eighth place ahead of Loris Capirossi on the Rizla Suzuki, riding in his 300 grand prix finished in ninth followed by Hiroshi Aoyama in tenth for the Interwetten Honda team. The Pramac Racing riders Mika Kallio and Aleix Espargaro, both failed to finish the race after crashes along with rookie rider Alvaro Bautista, who slid off track on the final lap of the race. Here are the results;

Moto2 The first ever replacement series for the 250cc series, Moto2 took place with a surprising victory for newcomer Shoya Tomizawa. Every machine on the grid follows the new rules of using Honda-built 600cc four-stroke engines and all are fitted with Dunlop tyres, with the race coming down to riding skills and nerve. As Toni Elias took the lead in the early stages of the race, his back wheel was clipped by his team-mate Alex deAngelis , causing de Angelis and Stefan Bradl out of contention. Tomizawa had moved to the front of the pack as second place man Elias, was moved back to third when Jules Cluzel made his move with 5 laps left to run. Tomizawa took his first ever podium step for the Technomag Seuter team ahead of Alex Debon on the Aeroport de Castelló-Ajo bike in second and Jules Cluzel for the Forward Racing team in third. Elias finished the race in fourth place followed by Roberto Rolfo in fifth, Mattai Pasini in sixth, Thomas Lüthi in seventh, Simone Corsi in eighth, Gabor Talmacsi in ninth and Sergio Gadea completing the top ten riders. Here are the results;

125CC Nico Terol claimed the top step of the podium in the first 125cc race of the MotoGP season for the BancajaAspar team last night. It was Efrén Vázquez who led as the race got underway but the lead spot was soon swapped as Marc Márquez, Terol and Pol Espargaro all took a turn at the front. Terol was however the man of the day followed by Vázquez for second place and Márquez in third. Espargaro finished in fourth place ahead of Sandro Cortese, Randy Krummenacher, Esteve Rabat, Bradley Smith, Tomoyoshi Koyama and Alexis Masbou rounding up the top ten. Here are the results;

Valentino Rossi - Fiat Yamaha 2009

Valentino Rossi was back on top this weekend after winning in front of his home crowd at the Misano circuit for the Fiat Yamaha team.

125cc

It was a dramatic finish to the 125cc MotoGP race with the leading two runners crashing out on the final corner leaving Julian Simon to take the chequered flag.

Sergio Gadea, the team-mate of Bancaja Aspar rider and race winner Simon, crashed early on in the race with many riders having to take avoiding action to miss him as he lay out on the circuit, fortunately he was unhurt.

As the race resumed it was Simon and Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. rider Andrea Iannone who were running at the front with Pol Espargaro for the Derbi Racing team catching them in the final stages of the race.

With Espargaro leading the race ahead of Iannone and Simon, Iannone tried to make a pass on the front man heading into the final turn of the final lap.  He dived up the inside of Espargaro but lost the front of the Ongetta machine, taking them both into the gravel.  Espargaro’s bike ended-up wedged between the fence and the tyre wall after cart-wheeling through the gravel, but both riders were unhurt if not angry.  There appeared to be a bit of pushing and shoving before Iannone head-butted Espargaro, while they were both still wearing their helmets.

Simon crossed the line to take his fourth win of the season, moving him further ahead in the points for the championship winning spot.

Nicolas Terol on the Jack & Jones Aprilia finished in second place followed by Britain’s Bradley Smith, who had started the race on pole, finished in third place on the second Bancaja Aspar.

Marc Marquez on the Red Bull KTM took fourth slot ahead of Sandro Cortese on the Ajo Interwetten and Stefan Bradl on the Viessmann Kiefer Racing team bike in sixth.

In seventh was Simone Corsi on the Fontana Racing machine followed by Joan Olivé on the Derbi Racing Team bike, Jonas Folgar on the second Ongetta bike in ninth and Danny Webb on the Degraaf Grand Prix bike completing the top ten riders.

Here are the results;

250cc

Hector Barberá claimed the victory for the Pepe World Team yesterday, finishing the race only 0.04seconds ahead of Team Toth Aprilia rider Mattia Pasini.

Marco Simoncelli crashed out on lap 12 of the race after developing a traction control problem on the Metis Gilera, while fighting for the lead.

Alvaro Bautista took the final step of the podium for the Mapfre Aspar Team after battling with the Scot Racing Team rider Hiroshi Aoyama, he crossed the line with only a 0.006seconds margin, leaving the Spanish rider only 13 points behind Aoyama in the championship.

Here are the results;

MotoGP

Valentino Rossi celebrated his home win on the podium yesterday complete with Donkey ears, while also sporting the Donkey from Shrek on his crash helmet and the reason;

“In Italy, if you make a stupid mistake we say you are a donkey. As soon as I hit the ground at Indianapolis I thought what a donkey I was. Later I thought that would make a good helmet design for my home race.   So I may have lost 25 points but I solved the problem of the helmet design for Misano!”

It was the Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa that led into the first corner followed by San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Toni Elias and Valentino Rossi.

During the first lap of the race, the second San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Alex de Angelis, clipped the back of the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 bike of  Colin Edwards, taking them both out and collecting the Ducati Marlboro of Nicky Hayden on the way.  De Angelis accepted the blame for the crash and later apologised to both riders.

Jorge Lorenzo on the second Fiat Yamaha, passed Rossi on the second lap but was demoted back to fourth place after getting stuck behind Elias, allowing Rossi to move past him on lap 5.  Both of the Fiat Yamaha riders soon passed Elias before Rossi chased down Pedrosa, passing him on the inside of lap 8 to take the lead.

Lorenzo finally fought his way past Pedrosa on lap 14 but Rossi had now built-up a lead of 1.4 seconds, growing to 2.5 seconds with ten laps still to run.

Rossi took the chequered flag, followed by his team-mate Lorenzo in second and Pedrosa in third, 12.4 seconds behind the race leader, he then had to thumb a lift back to parc ferme after the Honda had run out of fuel.

The second Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso, finished in fourth place after beating Loris Capirossi, on the Rizla Suzuki as they crossed the line.  Toni Elias finished the race in sixth place ahead of Ducati Marlboro rider Mika Kallio in seventh.

In eighth place was the Hayate Racing team rider Marco Melandri followed by Chris Vermeulen on the second Rizla Suzuki and James Toseland in tenth on the second Monster Yamaha Tech 3.

Here are the results;

1. Valentino Rossi ITA Fiat Yamaha Team 44min 32.882 sec
2. Jorge Lorenzo SPA Fiat Yamaha Team 44min 35.298 sec
3. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team 44min 45.282 sec
4. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 44min 59.212 sec
5. Loris Capirossi ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 44min 59.421 sec
6. Toni Elias SPA San Carlo Honda Gresini 45min 1.168 sec
7. Mika Kallio FIN Ducati Marlboro Team 45min 3.066 sec
8. Marco Melandri ITA Hayate Racing Team 45min 4.639 sec
9. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 45min 4.791 sec
10. James Toseland GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 45min 11.229 sec
11. Aleix Espargaro SPA Pramac Racing 45min 19.555 sec
12. Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP 45min 24.923 sec
13. Niccolo Canepa ITA Pramac Racing 45min 36.080 sec
14. Gabor Talmacsi HUN Scot Racing Team MotoGP 45min 55.229 sec

DNF:
Alex de Angelis RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini lap 1
Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 lap 1
Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team lap 1

Jorge Lorenzo

Spanish rider Jorge Lorenzo claimed his first victory of the season on Sunday as he took the Fiat Yamaha across the line at the Japanese MotoGP ahead of his team-mate Valentino Rossi.

125cc

Andrea Iannone claimed his second win of the 2009 season for the Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. on Sunday on a rapidly drying track.

Many of the 125cc riders opted for full wet tyres to start the Twin Ring Motegi circuit giving them the advantage as the race began.

Britain’s Danny Webb led the pack from the second lap on the Degraaf Aprilia but as the track began to dry out he started to lose grip on his wet tyres.  With only 8 laps of the race left to run, Julian Simon on the Bancaja Aspar Team machine passed Webb, and the race was on for the riders on slick tyres as those riding on full wets began to drop off.

Iannone, who had qualified on pole position, was on the tail of Pol Espargaro on the Derbi Racing bike before closing in on Simon.

Simon finished in second place followed by Espargaro in third, Sandro Cortese on the Ajo Interwetten in fourth, Stefan Bradl on the Viesmann Kiefer Racing bike in fifth and Jonas Folger for the Ongetta team in sixth.

Bancaja Aspar Team rider Bradley Smith had a disappointing race finishing in tenth place after a near high-side as the race neared the end, causing him to smash the screen on his bike and suffer and injury to his face.

Scott Redding ended his race for the Blusens Aprilia with no points after retiring with an engine problem.  The rider complained of the throttle sticking causing the bike to continue revving under braking.

The Haojue Team was unable to take part in Sunday’s race after both their machines developed a technical problem, leaving Matthew Hoyle and Michael Ranseder watching from the sidelines.

Here are the results;

1 25 29 Andrea IANNONE ITA Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 42′23.716 135.892
2 20 60 Julian SIMON SPA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc APRILIA 42′25.062 135.820 1.346
3 16 44 Pol ESPARGARO SPA Derbi Racing Team DERBI 42′28.755 135.623 5.039
4 13 17 Stefan BRADL GER Viessmann Kiefer Racing APRILIA 42′30.620 135.524 6.904
5 11 93 Marc MARQUEZ SPA Red Bull KTM Motosport KTM 42′36.777 135.198 13.061
6 10 11 Sandro CORTESE GER Ajo Interwetten DERBI 42′38.557 135.104 14.841
7 9 6 Joan OLIVE SPA Derbi Racing Team DERBI 42′40.136 135.020 16.420
8 8 94 Jonas FOLGER GER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 42′40.199 135.017 16.483
9 7 77 Dominique AEGERTER SWI Ajo Interwetten DERBI 42′51.216 134.439 27.500
10 6 38 Bradley SMITH GBR Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc APRILIA 42′54.075 134.289 30.359
11 5 99 Danny WEBB GBR Degraaf Grand Prix APRILIA 43′01.263 133.915 37.547
12 4 71 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA JPN Loncin Racing LONCIN 43′07.572 133.589 43.856
13 3 12 Esteve RABAT SPA Blusens Aprilia APRILIA 43′23.605 132.766 59.889
14 2 8 Lorenzo ZANETTI ITA Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 43′23.857 132.753 1′00.141
15 1 24 Simone CORSI ITA Jack & Jones Team APRILIA 43′26.317 132.628 1′02.601
16 16 Cameron BEAUBIER USA Red Bull KTM Motosport KTM 43′26.325 132.628 1′02.609
17 18 Nicolas TEROL SPA Jack & Jones Team APRILIA 43′33.583 132.259 1′09.867
18 35 Randy KRUMMENACHE SWI Degraaf Grand Prix APRILIA 43′33.599 132.259 1′09.883
19 33 Sergio GADEA SPA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc APRILIA 43′38.765 131.998 1′15.049
20 73 Takaaki NAKAGAMI JPN Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 43′43.574 131.756 1′19.858
21 5 Alexis MASBOU FRA Loncin Racing LONCIN 44′07.129 130.583 1′43.413
22 7 Efren VAZQUEZ SPA Derbi Racing Team DERBI 44′16.626 130.116 1′52.910
23 69 Lukas SEMBERA CZE Matteoni Racing APRILIA 44′30.840 129.424 2′07.124
24 58 Yuuichi YANAGISAWA JPN 18 Grage Racing HONDA 44′31.118 129.410 2′07.402
25 87 Luca MARCONI ITA CBC Corse APRILIA 42′36.873 128.433 1 lap
26 10 Luca VITALI ITA CBC Corse APRILIA 42′36.927 128.430 1 lap
27 55 Hiroomi IWATA JPN Dydo Miu Racing HONDA 42′51.571 127.699 1 lap
28 59 Satoru KAMADA JPN Endurance & Osl HONDA 44′14.382 123.715 1 lap
29 57 Yuki OOGANE JPN Endurance & Okegawajuku HONDA 43′23.194 119.508 2 laps
Not Classified
56 Yuma YAHAGI JPN Okegawajuku & Endurance HONDA 25′49.120 122.727 9 laps
14 Johann ZARCO FRA WTR San Marino Team APRILIA 22′27.306 128.282 10 laps
45 Scott REDDING GBR Blusens Aprilia APRILIA 13′40.407 126.402 14 laps
32 Lorenzo SAVADORI ITA Fontana Racing APRILIA 4′37.688 124.482 18 laps

250cc

Alvaro Bautista on the Mapfre Aspar machine took the win in the 250cc class followed by Japanese rider Hiroshi Aoyama on the Scot Racing machine.

Bautista had started from the front row of the grid and battled with his team-mate Mike di Meglio and then Gabor Talmacsi on the Balaton Racing 250cc machine to stay at the front before Di Meglio crashed out.

The Scot Racing rider Aoyama was his next target and Bautista tailed him for ten tough laps before finally passing the Japanese rider with six laps remaining.

Bautista took the win followed by Aoyama and Mattai Pasini of the Team Toth Aprilia, who had a huge crash in Friday’s practice, to complete the podium.

Talmacsi finished in fourth place ahead of Alex Debon on the Aeropuerto-Costello Blusen machine and wild-card rider Shuhei Aoyama, the younger brother of Hiroshi, on the Harc-Pro Honda.

Marco Simoncelli on the Metis Gilera had qualified in pole position finished down in seventh place after suffering a front puncture during the race and had to return to the pits for a new tyre.

Here are the results,

1 25 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team APRILIA 44′06.488 150.207
2 20 4 Hiroshi AOYAMA JPN Scot Racing Team 250cc HONDA 44′12.377 149.874 5.889
3 16 75 Mattia PASINI ITA Team Toth Aprilia APRILIA 44′28.320 148.978 21.832
4 13 28 Gabor TALMACSI HUN Balatonring Team APRILIA 44′32.394 148.751 25.906
5 11 6 Alex DEBON SPA Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens APRILIA 44′37.273 148.480 30.785
6 10 73 Shuhei AOYAMA JPN Harc-Pro HONDA 44′40.276 148.314 33.788
7 9 52 Lukas PESEK CZE Auto Kelly – CP APRILIA 44′43.460 148.138 36.972
8 8 12 Thomas LUTHI SWI Emmi – Caffe Latte APRILIA 44′47.506 147.915 41.018
9 7 17 Karel ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing APRILIA 44′48.137 147.880 41.649
10 6 48 Shoya TOMIZAWA JPN CIP Moto – GP250 HONDA 44′59.351 147.266 52.863
11 5 40 Hector BARBERA SPA Pepe World Team APRILIA 45′07.376 146.829 1′00.888
12 4 35 Raffaele DE ROSA ITA Scot Racing Team 250cc HONDA 45′12.835 146.534 1′06.347
13 3 10 Imre TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia APRILIA 45′59.637 144.048 1′53.149
14 2 59 Kazuki WATANABE JPN Bardral Racing with SJ-R YAMAHA 44′08.992 143.541 1 lap
15 1 56 Vladimir LEONOV RUS Viessmann Kiefer Racing APRILIA 44′36.925 142.043 1 lap
16 8 Bastien CHESAUX SWI Racing Team Germany HONDA 44′41.786 141.785 1 lap
17 58 Marco SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera GILERA 44′59.056 140.878 1 lap
18 77 Aitor RODRIGUEZ SPA Milar – Juegos Lucky APRILIA 45′22.675 139.656 1 lap
Not Classified
14 Ratthapark WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG HONDA 35′00.695 148.096 5 laps
25 Alex BALDOLINI ITA WTR San Marino Team APRILIA 33′15.734 147.224 6 laps
55 Hector FAUBEL SPA Valencia CF – Honda SAG HONDA 11′47.466 146.581 17 laps
63 Mike DI MEGLIO FRA Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc APRILIA 9′46.700 147.295 18 laps
7 Axel PONS SPA Pepe World Team APRILIA 6′12.705 139.120 20 laps
16 Jules CLUZEL FRA Matteoni Racing APRILIA 4′05.545 140.777 21 laps
15 Roberto LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera GILERA 4′05.665 140.708 21 laps

MotoGP

The qualifying session for the MotoGP on the Saturday had to be cancelled as heavy rain in the early afternoon led to a waterlogged circuit.  The grid positions for all three of the races were then decided on the Free practice positions.

Valentino Rossi was given pole position alongside Casey Stoner on the Ducati Marlboro and Jorge Lorenzo on the second Fiat Yamaha.

Rossi was in the lead by the first corner followed by the Rizla Suzuki of Chris Vermeulen as Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda went around the outside of Stoner to take third.

Lorenzo and Pedrosa were now battling for second place as Rossi struggled to put a gap between himself and his team-mate.  Both riders caught up with Rossi with 17 laps of the race still to run with Andrea Dovizioso on the second Repsol Honda close behind the trio.

Lorenzo tried to sneak past Rossi on the next lap before finally making it stick later on the same lap.  Stoner had meanwhile battled his way back to fifth place as Rossi and Pedrosa continued their own battle for second place.

Pedrosa and Rossi swapped places and paint at times in an impressive ride from both riders but Rossi finally took the second postion and held on to it.

James Toseland on the second Monster Tech3 Yamaha finished the race in ninth position and was pleased with the progress he had made.  Toseland battled with Vermeulen on the final lap of the race but managed to hold him back and keep the ninth place he’d fought for.

Nicky Hayden on the second Ducati Marlboro was taken out of the race on the fist lap by Yuki Takahasi on the Scot Racing team bike.  Hayden got a good start off the line and managed to gain a couple of places before the incident at turn 4, fortunately he suffered no serious injuries.

A disappointing weekend for the San Carlo Gresini Honda team as Alex de Angelis finished in thirteenth place and team-mate Toni Elias completed the race in fifteenth after dropping his bike after only a few laps as he went onto the dirty part of the track losing grip.

Here are the results;

1 25 99 Jorge LORENZO SPA Fiat Yamaha Team YAMAHA 43′47.238 157.886
2 20 46 Valentino ROSSI ITA Fiat Yamaha Team YAMAHA 43′48.542 157.808 1.304
3 16 3 Dani PEDROSA SPA Repsol Honda Team HONDA 43′51.001 157.661 3.763
4 13 27 Casey STONER AUS Ducati Marlboro Team DUCATI 43′52.929 157.545 5.691
5 11 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA Repsol Honda Team HONDA 43′56.445 157.335 9.207
6 10 33 Marco MELANDRI ITA Hayate Racing Team KAWASAKI 44′17.793 156.071 30.555
7 9 65 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP SUZUKI 44′19.994 155.942 32.756
8 8 36 Mika KALLIO FIN Pramac Racing DUCATI 44′26.654 155.553 39.416
9 7 52 James TOSELAND GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YAMAHA 44′30.344 155.338 43.106
10 6 7 Chris VERMEULEN AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP SUZUKI 44′30.483 155.330 43.245
11 5 14 Randy DE PUNIET FRA LCR Honda MotoGP HONDA 44′32.072 155.237 44.834
12 4 5 Colin EDWARDS USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YAMAHA 44′33.778 155.138 46.540
13 3 15 Alex DE ANGELIS RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini HONDA 44′40.763 154.734 53.525
14 2 88 Niccolo CANEPA ITA Pramac Racing DUCATI 45′09.042 153.119 1′21.804
15 1 24 Toni ELIAS SPA San Carlo Honda Gresini HONDA 44′25.681 149.126 1 lap
Not Classified
59 Sete GIBERNAU SPA Grupo Francisco Hernando DUCATI 41′40.115 117.523 7 laps

Dani Pedrosa 2008

This weekend the MotoGP Championship gets underway at the Losail International circuit in Qatar with it’s second night race.

The Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa has confirmed he will be on the grid for the first race of the season after suffering injuries in a crash while testing in Qatar at the beginning of March.  Pedrosa missed some important test sessions and this will be his first time back on his machine since the accident.  Team-mate Andrea Dovizioso has proved to be outstanding in the wet as well as making progress with the factory RC212V.

Casey Stoner was a second faster than any other machine on the track at the floodlit test session and has won the last two races on this track.  However, he has not spent long spells on his Ducati Marlboro since the operation on his wrist during the winter and has admitted to not having the movement there that he had before.  Team-mate Nicky Hayden has so far been disappointed with his pace and has struggled to get to grip with his bike.  It was hoped that the Desmosedici would prove to be more suited to the aggressive riding style of Hayden but he still has a way to go yet to prove it to himself and his team.

Valentino Rossi is still aiming for his victory at the Qatar circuit after finishing down in fifth position last year’s season opener.  The Italian is happy with the improvements on his M1 machine and said that the Fiat Yamaha team have done a great job giving him the confidence to challenge any other rider out there.  Meanwhile, his team-mate Jorge Lorenzo will be on Bridgestone tyres for the first time on the circuit where he made his debut in MotoGP.

The Rizla Suzuki team with riders Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi are confident that they can make it onto the podium at the opening round.  The team have struggled on this circuit in the past but have consistently been in the top five in testing.

James Toseland is expected to be fit to ride the Monster Tech 3 Yamaha this weekend after suffering a second massive accident during the winter practice in Jerez on March 29th.  He had a huge high-side while competing in the BMW M Award qualifying simulation, leaving him with concussion and a broken bone in his foot.  His team-mate Colin Edwards has shown impressive pace during the winter test sessions and his more than happy with improvements made to his machine.

The Pramac Ducati team are hoping to be one of the front runners this season after an impressive test session in Jerez with the former 250cc rider Mika Kallio. The Finnish rider finished in sixth place overall and at times had got up to fourth while team-mate Niccolo Canepe, continued to struggle with pace on the Ducati.

Yuki Takahashi will be riding for the Scot Racing Team making his MotoGP debut and knows that he has a lot of work ahead of him.  The rookie rider finished at the BMW M Awards event in fourteenth place in his first competitive MotoGP race.

Sete Gibernau will be on the grid for the Grupo Francisco Hernando Satellite bike Team after qualifying in an impressive eighth place at the BMW M Awards event on the Ducati.  Despite concerns for Gibernau’s fitness the team know that they must work hard but are more focused after the Jerez test session.

The San Carlo Honda team have again Alex de Angelis on their team alongside their new signing Toni Elias.  Elias rode for the Satellite Ducati team last season and so also has a lot of experience under his belt, despite only finishing in twelfth position overall.

Marco Melandri for the Hayate Racing team was almost 1.5 seconds faster in his Jerez test session than he was in any of his races in the 2008 season.  The team have put the success down to improving set-up and new parts after a disappointing Qatar test on the Ninja ZX-RR.

LCR Honda rider Randy De Puniet, was much lower down the time-sheets than he wanted to be in the last test session and is still not comfortable with the work left to do.  The Frenchman is aiming to be in the top ten at the opening round after the team admitted to still having a lot of work to do.

This is the only night race of the 2009 and the first of seventeen races on the calendar beginning on the 12th April.  The first practice takes place on Friday night with a 45-minute session for the MotoGP riders beginning at 10.30pm local time.  On Saturday the qualifying practice takes place at 23.05 local time with the Commercialbank Grand Prix Of Qatar taking place on Sunday at 23.00 local time.

Casey Stoner - Valencia 2008

Casey Stoner on the Marlboro Ducati took the victory at the last round of the MotoGP season for 2008 after starting in pole position.

He temporarily lost the lead at the start of the race as Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda took to the front on the first corner but Stoner immediately retook the number one spot and stayed there.

Pedrosa finished in second place followed by the 2008 World Champion Valentino Rossi, who had qualified in tenth position in a damp qualifying session but was up to fifth by lap three.

Andrea Dovizioso on the JiR Scot Honda took fourth place after an ongoing battle with the second Repsol Honda rider, Nicky Hayden who finished in fifth place.

The Tech 3 Yamaha rider Colin Edwards, finished in sixth position followed by Shinya Nakano on the San Carlo Honda and the second Fiat Yamaha of Jorge Lorenzo.

Loris Capirossi on the Rizla Suzuki came in ninth ahead of Alex de Angelis on the second San Carlo Honda to round up the top ten riders.

Here are the results;

1.Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro 46′46.114
2.Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda+ 3.390
3.Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team+ 12.194

4.Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JiR Team Scot MotoGP+ 24.159
5.Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda+ 26.232
6.Colin Edwards (USA) Tech 3 Yamaha+ 32.209
7.Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini+ 34.571
8.Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team+ 35.661
9.Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP+ 38.228
10.Alex De Angelis (RSM) San Carlo Honda Gresini+ 47.583
11.James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha+ 52.107
12.Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice Team+ 52.350
13.Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki+ 52.833
14.John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing+ 53.227
15.Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP+ 53.411
16.Marco Melandri (ITA) Ducati Marlboro+ 1′08.387
17.Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing+ 1′11.181
18.Toni Elias (SPA) Alice Team+ 1′37.055

2008 Championship Standings

1.Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 373
2.Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro 280
3.Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 249
4.Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 190
5.Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JiR Team Scot MotoGP 174
6.Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda 155
7.Colin Edwards (USA) Tech 3 Yamaha 144
8.Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki 128
9.Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini 126
10.Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 118
11.James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha 105
12.Toni Elias (SPA) Alice Team 92
13.Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice Team 67
14.Alex De Angelis (RSM) San Carlo Honda Gresini 63
15.Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 61
16.John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing 57
17.Marco Melandri (ITA) Ducati Marlboro 51
18.Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing 50
19.Ben Spies (USA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 20
20.Jamie Hacking (USA) Kawasaki Racing Team 5
21.Tadyuki Okada (JPN) Repsol Honda Team 2

Casey Stoner 2008

Casey Stoner on the Marlboro Ducati took pole position to today in qualifying for the seasons finale tomorrow in Valencia.

As Stoner took his ninth pole of the season he was followed by the two Repsol Honda riders, Spain’s Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden.

Hayden, who will be racing his Honda for the final time, had dominated the free practice session and set the pace for most of the qualifying until Stoner made a minor adjustment on his machine and took the number one spot.

The two Tech 3 Yamaha riders will start the second row with Colin Edwards in fourth and James Toseland in fifth.

Randy de Puniet on the LCR Honda, crashed his machine shortly after the session started and had to run back to the pits for the second bike, he went on to claim sixth place.

Jorge Lorenzo on the Fiat Yamaha took seventh place while his team-mate Valentino Rossi, the World Champion, finished down in tenth position.

Loris Capirossi for the Rizla Suzuki team finished in eighth place followed by the JiR Scot Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso and Rossi.

Here are the results;

Pos  Rider             Bike           Time
 1.  Casey Stoner      Ducati    (B)  1:31.502
 2.  Dani Pedrosa      Honda     (B)  1:31.555  + 0.053
 3.  Nicky Hayden      Honda     (M)  1:31.703  + 0.201
 4.  Colin Edwards     Yamaha    (M)  1:32.212  + 0.710
 5.  James Toseland    Yamaha    (M)  1:32.518  + 1.016
 6.  Randy de Puniet   Honda     (M)  1:32.572  + 1.070
 7.  Jorge Lorenzo     Yamaha    (M)  1:32.594  + 1.092
 8.  Loris Capirossi   Suzuki    (B)  1:32.614  + 1.112
 9.  Andrea Dovizioso  Honda     (M)  1:32.734  + 1.232
10.  Valentino Rossi   Yamaha    (B)  1:32.962  + 1.460
11.  Toni Elias        Ducati    (B)  1:32.983  + 1.481
12.  Chris Vermeulen   Suzuki    (B)  1:33.017  + 1.515
13.  Sylvain Guintoli  Ducati    (B)  1:33.352  + 1.850
14.  John Hopkins      Kawasaki  (B)  1:33.681  + 2.179
15.  Shinya Nakano     Honda     (B)  1:33.767  + 2.265
16.  Alex de Angelis   Honda     (B)  1:33.848  + 2.346
17.  Anthony West      Kawasaki  (B)  1:33.879  + 2.377
18.  Marco Melandri    Ducati    (B)  1:34.174  + 2.672

Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi on the Fiat Yamaha took his ninth win of the season yesterday in the 40 degree Malaysian heat at the Sepang circuit.

Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda took the lead at the start of the race but by lap two Rossi was on his tail and claimed his place at the front on lap eleven.

There was an exciting battle going on for third position between Andrea Dovizioso for the JiR Scot Team, Nicky Hayden on the second Repsol Honda, Casey Stoner on the Marlboro Ducati and Shinya Nikano on the San Carlo Honda.

Stoner was struggling to stay with the pace and on lap sixteen he was passed by Nikano and by lap eighteen, Hayden had passed Dovizioso, who immediately took it back.  The pair did the routine one more time until Dovizioso made it stick to claim his first MotoGP podium in third place.

Hayden finished in fourth place ahead of Nikano and Stoner.  Loris Capirossi on the Rizla Suzuki finished in seventh place followed by Colin Edwards on the Yamaha Tech 3 in eighth place.

James Toseland the Yamaha Tech 3 rider had a coming together with Anthony West on the Kawasaki at the hairpin on lap one, moving him down into sixteenth position, he fought to regain some places but he crashed out on lap three and his race was over.

Jorge Lorenzo on the second Fiat Yamaha retired from the race after coming off his machine on lap twelve at the first corner.  He was uninjured but after returning to the track he went into the pits and his race was over.

Here are the results;

Pos  Rider             Bike          Time
 1.  Valentino Rossi   Yamaha   (B)  43:06.007
 2.  Dani Pedrosa      Honda    (B)  +   4.008
 3.  Andrea Dovizioso  Honda    (M)  +   8.536
 4.  Nicky Hayden      Honda    (M)  +   8.858
 5.  Shinya Nakano     Honda    (B)  +  10.583
 6.  Casey Stoner      Ducati   (B)  +  13.640
 7.  Loris Capirossi   Suzuki   (B)  +  15.936
 8.  Colin Edwards     Yamaha   (M)  +  18.802
 9.  Chris Vermeulen   Suzuki   (B)  +  23.174
10.  Randy de Puniet   Honda    (M)  +  25.516
11.  John Hopkins      Kawasaki (B)  +  27.609
12.  Anthony West      Kawasaki (B)  +  41.399
13.  Sylvain Guintoli  Ducati   (B)  +  45.617
14.  Alex de Angelis   Honda    (B)  +  49.003
15.  Toni Elias        Ducati   (B)  +  59.139
16.  Marco Melandri    Ducati   (B)  +1:03.328
17.  Nobuatsu Aoki     Suzuki   (B)  +1:48.363

Not classified:

     Rider             Bike          Laps
     Jorge Lorenzo     Yamaha   (M)  12
     James Toseland    Yamaha   (M)   2

Dani Pedrosa

Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda claimed pole position for tomorrows Malaysian Grand Prix on a drying track holding off the World Champion, Valentino Rossi on the Fiat Yamaha.

He took his place at the front after a flying lap started with only ten seconds of the session left to run and beating Rossi’s time by four-tenths of a second.

Jorge Lorenzo on the second Fiat Yamaha qualified in third place followed by Nicky Hayden on the second Repsol Honda and Colin Edwards on the Yamaha Tech 3.

Andrea Dovizioso for the JiR Scot team will start from sixth place ahead of Casey Stoner on the Marlboro Ducati and Loris Capirossi on the Rizla Suzuki.

Randy de Puniet on the LCR Honda finished in ninth place followed by John Hopkins on the Kawasaki to complete the top ten riders.

Here are the results;

Pos  Rider             Bike           Time
 1.  Dani Pedrosa      Honda     (B)  2:01.548
 2.  Valentino Rossi   Yamaha    (B)  2:01.957  + 0.409
 3.  Jorge Lorenzo     Yamaha    (M)  2:02.171  + 0.623
 4.  Nicky Hayden      Honda     (M)  2:02.192  + 0.644
 5.  Colin Edwards     Yamaha    (M)  2:02.245  + 0.697
 6.  Andrea Dovizioso  Honda     (M)  2:02.836  + 1.288
 7.  Casey Stoner      Ducati    (B)  2:02.953  + 1.405
 8.  Loris Capirossi   Suzuki    (B)  2:03.078  + 1.530
 9.  Randy de Puniet   Honda     (M)  2:03.110  + 1.562
10.  John Hopkins      Kawasaki  (B)  2:03.184  + 1.636
11.  Chris Vermeulen   Suzuki    (B)  2:03.271  + 1.723
12.  James Toseland    Yamaha    (M)  2:03.282  + 1.734
13.  Anthony West      Kawasaki  (B)  2:02.392  + 1.844
14.  Marco Melandri    Ducati    (B)  2:03.835  + 2.287
15.  Shinya Nakano     Honda     (B)  2:04.001  + 2.453
16.  Sylvain Guintoli  Ducati    (B)  2:04.378  + 2.830
17.  Alex de Angelis   Honda     (B)  2:04.679  + 3.131
18.  Nobuatsu Aoki     Suzuki    (B)  2:04.835  + 3.287
19.  Toni Elias        Ducati    (B)  2:05.120  + 3.572

Casey Stoner

Casey Stoner on the Ducati Marlboro took the victory at Philip Island on Sunday in front of his home crowd after dominating the race from the start.

Stoner hadn’t won a race since the Sachsenring and has since been plagued with injury problems.  He is suffering from an old injury that occurred five years ago and has said that if he doesn’t have further surgery it could be the end of his career despite the risk of the surgery itself.

Nicky Hayden on the Repsol Honda pressured Stoner for the first ten laps of the race until a gap began to emerge.

Hayden’s team-mate, Dani Pedrosa, crashed out at turn two on the first lap of the Australian Grand Prix and couldn’t return to the track.  Pedrosa had qualified in sixth position but after taking third off the line at the start of the race he ran wide as his tyres started to slide.

Hayden looked sure to be on the podium in second place until Valentino Rossi on the Fiat Yamaha who had started in twelfth position after his crash in qualifying started to claw his way to the front.

By lap four Rossi had moved up into fifth place and was in fourth by lap six before he started an ongoing battle with James Toseland on the Yamaha Tech 3.

The pair stuck together swapping the lead while behind another battle was going on with Jorge Lorenzo, Andrea Dovizioso and Shinya Nikano for fourth place.  On lap thirteen Rossi kept the lead and started to track down Hayden.

Here are the results;

Pos  Rider             Bike           Time
 1.  Casey Stoner      Ducati    (B)  40:56.643
 2.  Valentino Rossi   Yamaha    (B)  +   6.504
 3.  Nicky Hayden      Honda     (M)  +   7.205
 4.  Jorge Lorenzo     Yamaha    (M)  +  11.500
 5.  Shinya Nakano     Honda     (B)  +  11.914
 6.  James Toseland    Yamaha    (M)  +  12.243
 7.  Andrea Dovizioso  Honda     (M)  +  12.780
 8.  Colin Edwards     Yamaha    (M)  +  25.920
 9.  Randy de Puniet   Honda     (M)  +  26.037
10.  Loris Capirossi   Suzuki    (B)  +  26.799
11.  Toni Elias        Ducati    (B)  +  27.027
12.  Anthony West      Kawasaki  (B)  +  47.808
13.  John Hopkins      Kawasaki  (B)  +  48.333
14.  Sylvain Guintoli  Ducati    (B)  +  48.899
15.  Chris Vermeulen   Suzuki    (B)  +  48.935
16.  Marco Melandri    Ducati    (B)  +1:11.767

Retirements:

     Rider             Bike           Laps
     Dani Pedrosa      Honda     (B)    0
     Alex de Angelis   Honda     (B)    0

Casey Stoner

The Marlboro Ducati rider Casey Stoner is on pole position for tomorrows Australian MotoGP at Philip Island while this years Champion Valentino Rossi is in twelfth place after crashing out during the session.

The Australian set a time of 1:28.665 creating a new track record followed by Jorge Lorenzo on the Fiat Yamaha in second place only a tenth-of-a-second behind Stoner.

Nicky Hayden on the Honda finished in third position ahead of Randy de Puniet and Tech 3 Yamaha rider James Toseland.

Spanish rider Dani Pedrosa will start in sixth on the Repsol Honda followed by Yamaha rider Colin Edwards and Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso.

Shinya Nikano on the Honda is in ninth ahead of the Honda of Alex de Angelis who rounds off the top ten qualifying riders.

Rossi crashed out at while exiting the Southern Loop with only fifteen minutes of the session remaining, he was unhurt and returned to the pits before rejoining the track.

Here are the results;

Pos  Rider             Bike           Time
 1.  Casey Stoner      Ducati    (B)  1:28.665
 2.  Jorge Lorenzo     Yamaha    (M)  1:28.734  + 0.069
 3.  Nicky Hayden      Honda     (M)  1:28.756  + 0.091
 4.  Randy de Puniet   Honda     (M)  1:28.808  + 0.143
 5.  James Toseland    Yamaha    (M)  1:29.031  + 0.366
 6.  Dani Pedrosa      Honda     (B)  1:29.277  + 0.612
 7.  Colin Edwards     Yamaha    (M)  1:29.513  + 0.848
 8.  Andrea Dovizioso  Honda     (M)  1:29.558  + 0.893
 9.  Shinya Nakano     Honda     (B)  1:29.710  + 1.045
10.  Alex de Angelis   Honda     (B)  1:29.925  + 1.260
11.  Loris Capirossi   Suzuki    (B)  1:29.942  + 1.277
12.  Valentino Rossi   Yamaha    (B)  1:30.014  + 1.349
13.  Toni Elias        Ducati    (B)  1:30.202  + 1.537
14.  Sylvain Guintoli  Ducati    (B)  1:30.297  + 1.632
15.  Chris Vermeulen   Suzuki    (B)  1:30.545  + 1.880
16.  John Hopkins      Kawasaki  (B)  1:31.157  + 2.492
17.  Marco Melandri    Ducati    (B)  1:31.939  + 3.274
18.  Anthony West      Kawasaki  (B)  1:31.995  + 3.330