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MotoGP : Rossi extends championship lead with Catalunya victory
Round: 6 - Catalunya MotoGP
Circuit: Catalunya
Date: 12 June 2005
Crowd: 105600
Temp: 32ºC
Weather: Sunny
Gauloises Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi re-ignited his love affair with the Spanish public today as he stormed to a fifth win from the opening six rounds of the 2005 MotoGP World Championship in front of a record crowd of 105,698 at the Catalunya Grand Prix. After losing places in a combative opening to the race, the reigning world champion stormed through the field to go head to head with local favourite and pole setter Sete Gibernau (Honda) in another nail-biting finish. Just as he had done with Max Biaggi (Honda) at Mugello last weekend and Gibernau himself two weeks previously at Le Mans, Rossi timed his victory charge to perfection, passing the Spaniard with three laps remaining and setting a stunning time of 1'43.195, almost 1.5 seconds inside the previous circuit record, to open up a decisive advantage over the final two laps.
Whilst Marco Melandri (Honda) won a dramatic battle to the line for the final podium finish ahead of Alex Barros (Honda) and Nicky Hayden (Honda), Rossi's Gauloises Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards could only manage seventh place behind Biaggi. Despite showing podium pace through the weekend practice sessions, the American took a gamble with his tyre choice that backfired in the race as he struggled for rear grip at the demanding Spanish circuit. Despite today's result Edwards remains sixth in the MotoGP World Championship, which is now led by Rossi with an advantage of 58 points over Melandri.
For the Spanish Fortuna Yamaha Team pair of Ruben Xaus and David Checa it was positive day in front of a home crowd. Xaus scored his third top ten result and Checa, who replaced the injured Toni Elias, scored in the points in only his second MotoGP ride.
Valentino Rossi (Gauloises Yamaha Team) 1st "The first lap was a hard fight with a lot of riders coming crazy, everybody wanted to be at the front and it was so much fun. Gibernau set a fast pace and I tried 100% to follow him. I had some problems on the right side of the tyre early in the race but Sete started to slide too. At the end it was difficult but the bike was so good into the corners and great fun to ride. To do the fastest lap three laps from the end at a track like this is amazing - my last lap was around two seconds faster than the last lap last year and it shows the fantastic job Michelin have done with tyre endurance. I was a little worried before this weekend about the reaction from the crowd but I was so happy with the reception I got. It shows that motorcycle fans are the best kind and especially here in Spain, where it is always a pleasure to ride. The advantage in the championship is allowing the team to work in a relaxed way and we are having a lot of fun, which is an extra motivation in itself."
Colin Edwards (Gauloises Yamaha Team) 7th "We made a mistake by testing the race tyre yesterday morning when the temperatures were much cooler than they were this afternoon. We thought we were being sly by choosing a tyre only one other rider had but it didn't work out. I had no rear grip at full lean in the second half of the race, so I had to stand the bike up through the corners and ran wide all the time. It's a shame because we had a great front tyre but I couldn't push it. Not the best finish but we've learnt a lot of things that we will now take to Assen."
Davide Brivio, Gauloises Yamaha Team Director "The whole race was run at a full second inside lap record pace, which is incredible. It shows the great job done by our engineers and the wonderful partnership we have with Michelin. I am so pleased to hear Valentino say he is enjoying riding the bike - that is a great compliment to everybody in the team. It is a pity Colin could not confirm his excellent progress in the race but we know he is on the right tracks and I'm looking forward to seeing him at Assen, a circuit he likes and knows well."
Ruben Xaus (Fortuna Yamaha Team) 10th "I'm really happy with today's result because I scored some good points and I'm showing consistency. It's also good for the team, because the start of the season was more difficult than we initially expected it would be, so this is great for motivation for them and for me. I believe that now we are starting to understand each other - the bike and I - and I'm looking forward to the next race, especially as I quite like Assen. I want to say thank you to Yamaha, Fortuna and the team for all the support, and I hope I can now continue to produce top ten performances."
David Checa (Fortuna Yamaha Team) 13th "I couldn't have asked for more, especially when you consider that I only had one day on the bike at this track. I scored in the points and for that I would like to say than you to the team for giving me this opportunity."
Race classification MotoGP
Round: 6 - Catalunya MotoGP
Circuit: Catalunya
Circuit Length: 4727
Lap Record: 1' 43.195 (Valentino Rossi, 2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1' 43.195 (Valentino Rossi, 2005)
