MotoGP – The Grand Prix of San Marino MotoGP turn-based –

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The Grand Prix of San Marino MotoGP lap by lap

MotoGP - The Grand Prix of San Marino MotoGP turn-based -

Rossi and Stoner arrive in Italy with the firm intention of explaining themselves at the head of the race: the Italian must imperatively shine in front of his team to consolidate his lead and break the records, but the Australian appears once again ultra fast !

For the second time in the history of MotoGP, the Continental Circus sets its suitcases in Misano for the San Marino GP: Valentino Rossi is racing there at home, since Tavullia, the village where he lives, is located less than fifteen kilometers from the trace.

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Rossi’s pressure : "it’s something special to be here because I’m right next to my house and that of course adds a bit of pressure. I am asked a lot more tickets for Misano than last year, probably because my position in the championship is much better now !", underlines with humor the Doctor.

Elected mayor for a day of Tavullia, Vale must give the reply to Stoner and try to equal the record of victories in queen categories (68) of the great Giacomo Agostini! In addition, if an Italian does not win in the 125 or 250, the n ° 46 could sign the 700th Italian success in all categories! From Friday, the Yamaha rider signs extremely fast lap times, but as often since a few GPs, Stoner literally flies over the sessions and sticks between 0.2 and 0.4 seconds to his rivals…

Note the good return to form of the Michelin, with the excellent time of Colin Edwards and Randy de Puniet who are the first representatives of the brand ahead of Chris Vermeulen and Jorge Lorenzo. The convalescent Nicky Hayden seems to have trouble driving and walks with a cane: if he will participate in the qualifying session on Saturday, the American will unfortunately forfeit the day of the race. Convalescent too and disturbed by marital concerns, John Hopkins will not participate in the test day.

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The incredible passage of Pedrosa at Bridgestone ! Suspected for several races, the divorce between Michelin and the HRC was consummated on Sunday: after 24 years of collaboration and 14 world titles, the largest racing service in the category chose to leave Michelin during the season and allow Pedrosa to race. in Bridgestone from the Indianapolis GP! "I thank Michelin and Honda for their mutual understanding, which takes fully into account my personal requests. I am fully aware of having had excessive negative comments about Michelin tires when Michelin gave me an exceptional start to the season.", commented Pedrosa who will now be a separate box with Hayden.

The next day, the reigning world champion gave everything to snatch his seventh consecutive pole despite a fractured scaphoid: the battle between him and Rossi was refereed by the ghost Jorge Lorenzo, who managed to drop below the 1’34 mark! Pedrosa appears much further in the standings and despite a jump at the back of the session, the Spaniard only signs sixth time: the atmosphere is not in good shape within the HRC with Hayden’s second forfeit and the constants recrimination of Pedrosa about the tires … Tired of war, the HRC pundits finally give in to the demands of their leader driver Sunday after the race (read box).

Stoner finally started from pole position, despite the efforts of Rossi who missed a bit on his last qualifying lap. Disappointed not to take pole, the Italian precedes his teammate and the French Randy de Puniet! Toni Elias and Pedrosa complete the second row ahead of Chris Vermeulen, Shinya Nakano and James Toseland.

The race !

Departure : Casey Stoner achieves the best takeoff ahead of Dani Pedrosa, Valentino Rossi, Randy de Puniet, Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso. Rossi is very hot on the go-around coming out of a left: the Doctor seems feverish in front of his audience! Toni Elias goes up his opponents like an arrow and now follows Lorenzo who follows Randy de Puniet.

Randy loses two places in quick succession by widening in a bend: Lorenzo and Elias immediately infiltrate! While Rossi easily returns to Pedrosa, Casey Stoner forges an incredible lead of over a second! Just like during practice, the Australian wants to show everyone that he is the fastest on the track and for now, there is no doubt! In the last corner before the line, Randy de Puniet loses control of his RCV and ends up in the gravel pit … Sad outcome for the Frenchman who also seems to be suffering the martyrdom.

2nd round : Casey Stoner is already 1.7 seconds ahead of a Dani Pedrosa in the middle of a fight with the local of the event: Valentino Rossi! The audience is on their feet as the star passes by, eagerly waiting for the country’s darling to find the loophole in the HRC pilot and then go after Stoner !

And Vale gives their fans their money: coming out of a right stuck outside Pedrosa, the Yamaha n ° 46 dives to the rope to the next left just in front of the wheels of the Spaniard! Tough, this one resists exiting the curve and the following braking, but the n ° 2 must finally bow: in a few sequences, the Yamaha of its rival has already taken a considerable lead, demonstrating a definitely higher pace on the part by Rossi.

3rd round : The fastest Australian in the world is almost three seconds ahead of his Italian rival who lost a lot of time fighting against Pedrosa, who finds himself under direct threat from the other official Yamaha, again superbly led by Jorge Lorenzo! Discreetly, the author of the second place in Brno looks back on his compatriots and we feel Toni Elias very comfortable on the Ducati Alice.

Behind the five leading men, Shinya Nakano tries to demonstrate the correctness of the choice of the HRC: however, the Japanese does not seem as swift with his factory RCV as in the Czech Republic. Andrea Dovizioso and James Toseland are fighting for seventh place ahead of Sylvain Guintoli, Loris Capirossi and Anthony West. On his circuit, the san marnais Alex de Angelis goes to the mat and cannot start again … Rossi comes out very wide with a fast right and ends his trajectory on the synthetic turf: hot !

4th and 5th rounds : Stoner maintains an advantage of more than three seconds on Rossi who nevertheless gives the maximum to come back! His little mistake a few turns earlier having made him lose precious tenths, the Doctor will have to find a shock remedy to get back on his rival !

Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo are still in contention for third place on the podium, under the greedy eyes of Toni Elias. A little further, Nakano precedes Dovizioso and Toseland who do not leave each other! Between these two formidable pilots, the battle promises to be torrid! And bizarrely, while the Yamaha look in great shape this weekend, Colin Edwards brings up the rear of this Grand Prix behind Hopkins and Melandri…

Valentino Rossi had the fastest lap in the race and took three tenths from Casey Stoner. As in previous Grands Prix, the Italian does not give up to show the Australian that despite the gap between them, he is perfectly capable of turning as fast as him. Meanwhile, Jorge Lorenzo prepares an attack on his rival: shifting inside on the outskirts of a fast left, the Mallorcan brakes later than Pedrosa and drops the HRC pilot who cannot reply !

Alas for Pedrosa, Elias in turn overtakes him at the start of a series of rapid curves while Rossi continues his forcing on Stoner: the Italian took back almost half a second on the leader, who reacted immediately and rose the pace to try to get rid of his pursuer permanently by trying to make him understand that he is the fastest … Dovizioso and Toseland have made the junction with Nakano and it is clear that the Italian will quickly try to overtake the Japanese !

6th round : Casey Stoner still leads this race ahead of Rossi who fights from a distance to put pressure on his opponent, Lorenzo, Elias, Pedrosa, Nakano, Dovizioso, Toseland, Capirossi, Guintoli and Vermeulen.

As in the previous lap, Valentino Rossi slams the best lap with an incredible 1’34.9! If the Italian has hardly taken anything from his rival, he is certainly annoyed to see the stubbornness of the No. 46 and the Ducati slips slightly from the rear at the exit of a right…

7th and 8th laps : However, Stoner still has three seconds ahead of his opponent and the connection is far from being made! But the n ° 1 wants to honor his crown by defeating his rival on his land: raising the tone one last time to undermine Rossi’s morale, Stoner makes a mistake for the third time in a row! And unlike Laguna Seca – where he had miraculously been able to start again and finish second – Stoner was forced to retire exactly as in the Czech Republic two weeks earlier….

Valentino Rossi is therefore now potentially the winner of "his" Grand Prix, the only one that has escaped him in the championship meetings! Statistically, the Doctor would sign his 35th victory with Yamaha – two more than with Honda – but above all his 68th in the premier class, or as much as the immense champion Giacomo Agostini !

9th, 10th and 11th laps : Valentino Rossi now precedes his teammate Jorge Lorenzo by 2.6 seconds ahead of Toni Elias, Dani Pedrosa, Andrea Dovizioso and James Toseland who passes Shinya Nakano on braking from the pit straight! The Suzuki Boys are wheel to wheel and the experienced Capirossi contains his teammate.

In the Ducati stand, the unfortunate Casey Stoner explains to his team and the Bridgestone engineers the circumstances of his fall: if everyone listens carefully, the disappointment can be read on the faces, however, because in the event of Rossi winning, the Australian will be 75 points behind his rival five races from the end of the championship … Worse still: if the Australian does not recover quickly, Pedrosa could come and tax him in the overall standings !

12th and 13th rounds : Valentino Rossi quietly concrete in front of Jorge Lorenzo, Toni Elias and Dani Pedrosa. Dovizioso and Toseland always precede Nakano who is now under threat from Vermeulen, gradually returning to contact. Capirossi and Guintoli follow at a distance ahead of Melandri, Colin Edwards and the two Kawasaki riders. Superb interior by Chris Vermeulen on the Nakano RCV: the Australian sneaks up easily in front of the Japanese after a quick left.

Easy, Rossi sticks half a second to Lorenzo and increases his lead to 3.4 seconds by turning in a "small" 1’35.4, that is to say five tenths slower than his lap record made during his comeback on Stoner! The message is clear for Lorenzo, who must have understood the impossibility of going back on his illustrious teammate.

14th round : Dani Pedrosa attempts a final burst of pride and now spins faster than Elias. Sylvain Guintoli finds himself under threat from Marco Melandri for the benefits of tenth place. Injured and upset in his private life, John Hopkins does not put much heart into the work and appears in last position for a few laps. Luckily for him, Hayden’s forfeit and the crashes of Randy de Puniet, Alex de Angelis and Casey Stoner will allow him to pocket the points for fourteenth place no matter what. !

15th and 16th rounds : Valentino Rossi is flying towards a new success and already, the stands do not hide their joy with thirteen laps to go! Concentrated, the Doc does not relax his effort and manages – easily – his lead over Lorenzo, Elias and Pedrosa back in contact with his compatriot !

Little Asimo is also looking for the fault on Elias, but he struggles superbly and responds to all attacks! That said, the performances of Pedrosa and Lorenzo should make Michelin smile, which currently places two of its motorcycles in the top 5! However, this will obviously not be enough for the HRC driver who will jointly announce with Michelin and the HRC, after the race, his passage at Bridgestone..

17th, 18th and 19th laps : Rossi sneaks into his second hat-trick of the season ahead of Lorenzo, Elias, Pedrosa who now runs faster than Lorenzo and Elias, Dovizioso, Toseland, Vermeulen, Capirossi and Nakano.

The fight between Dovizioso and Toseland continues: the Englishman clings superbly to the exhausts of his opponent’s client RCV and thus achieves an interesting race. Marco Melandri passed Sylvain Guintoli during a change of angle. The two Ducati riders come back hard on Nakano who seems to be in distress for a few laps, while Toseland passes Dovizioso from the inside.

20th and 21st laps : Rossi continues to widen his gap with his teammate and the crowd idol is now more than three seconds ahead of his rivals! Pedrosa is still in a fight with Elias, while Toseland and Dovizioso arson before Vermeulen’s eyes. Loris Capirossi is slightly behind.

The three pilots fight like lions and Chris Vermeulen realizes the interior on Dovizioso during a change of angle at the first chicane. Nice maneuver for the rider who made his 50th start in MotoGP !

22nd and 23rd laps : Vermeulen passed in front of Toseland who seemed to be slowing down: the English found themselves under threat from Dovizioso and Capirossi. Guintoli drove past Nakano, just ahead of Edwards. Capirossi is back in contact with the three pilots who precede him and we feel that the n ° 65 is preparing for its end of the race….

24th, 25th and 26th laps : Pedrosa slowed down, while Lorenzo achieved his best time. However, the Spaniard is still more than three seconds behind Rossi. Elias does not give in under the threat of Pedrosa four laps from the end. The HRC rider must be bubbling under his helmet, since he is the last Spaniard in the leading group !

The whole crowd holds their breath as Lorenzo slowly returns to Rossi who seems to be managing: panned by his team, Vale immediately glues back to his teammate for half a second! Toni Elias is heading for his fifth podium of his career, preceding the HRC driver who seems to have let go. Vermeulen follows ahead of Toseland, Dovizioso and Capirossi.

Last round : Rossi starts the last loop ahead of Lorenzo, Elias, Pedrosa, Vermeulen and Toseland who are fighting against Dovizioso and Capirossi: the battle is bitter! Capi passes the two pilots in quick succession, but the n ° 52 returns in extremis thanks to a gap of Capirex! Valentino Rossi crosses the finish line with a wheelie, followed by Lorenzo, Elias, Pedrosa, Vermeulen, Toseland, Capirossi, Dovizioso, Melandri, Edwards, Guintoli, Nakano, West and Hopkins.

Valentino Rossi therefore equaled Agostini’s record and seized the 700th Italian GP victory under the clamors of a raging public! At the same time, the most famous pilot in the world consolidates his lead over Stoner and has the incredible lead of 75 points over the Australian !

Pedrosa does not achieve an exceptional operation with his fourth place: if the fall of Stoner allows him to return to two points of the Australian, the Spaniard is now 77 points behind Rossi and his immediate passage to Bridgestone would not be enough to make up for this abyssal delay…

Jorge Lorenzo is now only 45 points behind Dani Pedrosa and has 22 points ahead of Andrea Dovizioso. Finally, Chris Vermeulen is now sixth overall with two points ahead of Colin Edwards who continues to lose ground. Sylvain Guintoli is 15th, ahead of Randy de Puniet by seven points.

They are explained:

Valentino Rossi (1st) : "I am very happy, yet I felt very nervous because it was a very special race in front of all my friends and family! It was really difficult to keep my concentration, I was under a lot of pressure, especially since the weekend had started badly. We stumbled on the settings and we had a big engine problem from the outset … We had to start all over to achieve this result, even though I felt that our race pace was slower than expected. I lost time with Pedrosa but still managed to reach the goal of running in 1’34 "for a good part of the race. When Casey left I didn’t panic and I I saw that I was keeping his pace. In the championship, I have a 75 point lead so it’s really good. Today, it was a bit like I was at Mugello".

Jorge Lorenzo (2nd) : "After four months, I finally found the road to the podium! I really wanted to win this race, but Valentino was just too fast. I finally preferred to keep my place but above all to regain confidence. I’m happy for Yamaha and for the whole team".

Toni Elias (3rd) : "I’m happy to be back on the podium. The conditions were tough and I did pretty well. It is also the first time that I have a good result on this circuit with this second podium in a row. After Laguna Seca, things have changed dramatically. As I went along, I got a better feeling with the machine and I hope it will continue until the end of the season! I know it’s not easy to fight at every Grand Prix for a podium. I had a lot of fun on this circuit with all these turns, braking and acceleration. I tried to follow Lorenzo but I made a few mistakes, so I held my place while being careful".

Sylvain Guintoli (11th) : "We had a lot of difficulties. I attacked but nothing has changed. I will have to look at why by analyzing the data. I would really like to have a good result to thank my team who worked hard this year"…

Casey Stoner (fall) : "It’s very disappointing to finish like this, because we were really performing very well during practice … We decided to start with the set of race tires over one lap to prepare it. However, I quickly felt that the grip was not as good as I expected. After a few laps, however, things improved, but that’s how it is … It’s a shame because everything was working well: the machine, the tires, the suspensions. It gives me good hope for next year. For my injury, it’s a shame that she woke up at that time and I think she will have to be operated on at the end of the season.".

Randy de Puniet (fall) : "I am very disappointed for myself and the team. It was very positive all weekend and the fourth position on the grid was a good opportunity to show off. I got off to a good start, but lost the rear on the last corner after widening my line. My right arm hurts a bit, but it will be fine for tomorrow’s test".

Alexandre BARDIN – Photos DR

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