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MotoGP : Rossi edges towards title with brilliant Brno victory
Round: 11 - Czech MotoGP
Circuit: Brno
Date: 28 August 2005
Crowd: 78818
Temp: 20ºC
Weather: Dry
Gauloises Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi became the first rider in the history of the MotoGP World Championship to score nine wins for five consecutive seasons, as he clinched victory in the eleventh round of the 2005 campaign at Brno today. Rossi's record-breaking ride featured an intense battle with Sete Gibernau (Honda) that again came down to a dramatic finale, with Rossi making his definitive pass at the end of the penultimate lap. Gibernau tried to fight back but as Rossi edged clear through the final series of sweeping corners, the Spaniard's slim hope of a victorious response disappeared completely as he suffered a technical problem and was forced to retire.
Whilst Loris Capirossi (Ducati) and Max Biaggi (Honda) made the most of Gibernau's misfortune to complete the podium, Rossi's Gauloises Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards was promoted one place to seventh after a tough race that again saw the American struggle to find sufficient rear grip for his Yamaha YZR-M1 machine. Despite his disappointment, Edwards remains in the thick of the battle for second place in the championship, trailing Biaggi by six points with six rounds still remaining. Rossi, meanwhile, can seal the championship title in the next round at Motegi by finishing in the top two.
Valentino Rossi (Gauloises Yamaha Team), 1st "That was one of the hardest races of the season. After the warm-up I saw Sete's time and I wasn't sure that I could beat him in the race. I had confidence in the bike but I knew I was a bit slower than him. I spoke with Jeremy Burgess to ask for some modifications to be made to the bike in order to make a better compromise for the whole race and, like always, he and the rest of the team worked at 100% to improve the situation. There were a lot of fast riders out there but Gibernau was my hardest opponent so I tried to push him and put the pressure on from the start. It was a great fight with a lot of overtaking. In the middle of the race I decided to try to go and make a gap, but Sete came back. At the end I did three or four good laps, made the pass on Sete and then did a perfect final lap. Unfortunately Sete had a problem, which was bad luck for him because he deserved to be on the podium. Anyway this is a good win for me and now I just need one more for the title, but it! is not over yet."
Colin Edwards (Gauloises Yamaha Team), 7th "I started alright but after five laps we were in trouble. We changed the setting of the bike a little after the warm-up but the track was much warmer than we expected for the race and we loaded up the front a bit too much. It was a repeat of the race at Mugello - the bike was spinning and I couldn't get any edge grip on the rear. I pushed on the pegs, stood up, leaned back. everything I could think of to make it stick! The positive side is that we still got some points and we've got a two-day test coming up where we can work on some of these problems and hopefully find the solution we need. We haven't tested since Le Mans so it will be nice to have a chance to rack up plenty of hours on the track without the pressure of a Grand Prix, as we get ready for a tough finish to the season."
Davide Brivio - Gauloises Yamaha team director "I have to congratulate and thank the whole team, particularly Valentino's engineers because they followed his requests to modify the bike precisely and gave him the package he needed to take victory today. He made the bike work and put on a great show for the fans with Sete Gibernau, who deserved to be on the podium. Valentino has a good advantage in the championship now and we will go to Motegi looking for the same result. Unfortunately Colin couldn't do any better than seventh place today but the fight for second place is still very close and he is still in contention having collected nine points today. We will look for some solutions with him during the test and look forward to going to Japan in three weeks' time."
Toni Elias (Fortuna Yamaha Team), 14th "When you get away well, and when you are winning, that is when you really enjoy a race, not when you are fighting to get in the points. But it seems we are slowly solving the problems we have, although starting from so far down the grid does not leave you with any real options. The most positive thing was the consistent rhythm I found especially when the tyres were going off and I still managed to match the times of some of the quickerriders for example. I had a couple of moments that made the race exciting. I am not happy with the result, but the important thing is to fight and to progress race by race and to try to match the leading riders. The next two days of testing at Brno will hopefully bring us forward to where we should be."
Ruben Xaus (Fortuna Yamaha Team), 18th "I didn't come to Brno in the best ossible shape and I just wanted to get through this race as quickly as possible. Now I have done so, I will keep on working hard and I hope the Ruben Xaus that everyone knows will now be back soon."
Race classification MotoGP
Round: 11 - Czech MotoGP
Circuit: Brno
Circuit Length: 5403
Lap Record: 1' 58.787 (Valentino Rossi, 2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1' 57.504 (Sete Gibernau, 2005)
