Rossi: I was ready and waiting

History repeated itself for Valentino Rossi in Sunday's Czech Republic Grand Prix when, for the second year in succession, his nearest title rival crashed out while holding a narrow lead - handing the Italian victory and a 50 point championship advantage.

In 2008 it was Ducati's Casey Stoner who lowsided out of the race, but in 2009 it was Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo who appeared to succumb to the pressure.

While Stoner had fallen on lap 7 while being hunted down by Rossi, Lorenzo had fought forwards from fourth at turn one to take second behind Rossi on lap 4 of 22.

From then on it was a two-man race, the M1 riders blasting around Brno over one-second a lap faster than their nearest rivals, led by Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa.

“We tried a modification to close the gap with Jorge, who in practice was faster than us, so we began the race a little bit blind,” said Rossi. “I got a good start and tried to push like a devil. In the first two or three laps I knew the bike was working well. I was waiting for the battle with Jorge, but I still made it hard work for him to catch me.”

Lorenzo finally overtook Rossi for the first and last time with six laps to go, squeezing inside the Italian on the brakes into turn three.

The reigning six time MotoGP champion then made a half-hearted attempt to retake the lead at the same turn on the following lap. Rossi hadn't even got alongside Lorenzo when the #99 lost the front and lowsided into his second retirement in a row.

“When Jorge overtook me I thought 'now we will have another big battle' like so many times this year. I felt strong and I was ready. But unfortunately Jorge made a mistake; he lost the front and crashed,” said Rossi. “After that was relaxed, I rode around like a tourist - looking at everything!”

Lorenzo now has just six races to try and claw back the lost points, meaning an average of 8.3 points per race.

It's will be a huge task: Rossi left Brno 2008 with an identical 50 point lead over Stoner with six rounds to go - and went on to win his eighth world championship by 93 points.

gooo rossiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!!

Rossi 'happy' as '09 faster.

MotoGP » Rossi 'happy' as '09 faster.

Wednesday, 26th November 2008

Valentino Rossi second fastest on opening day of Jerez MotoGP test.

Valentino Rossi finished the first day of the second post-season test of 2008 by setting the second fastest lap time, behind Dani Pedrosa, at Jerez - but was most pleased to have set that lap on a prototype version of the 2009 YZR-M1.

Jerez marks the last opportunity to gather MotoGP track data before the first test of 2009, at Sepang in February, and Rossi is eager to make provide Yamaha with as much guidance as possible.

Clear skies and a cold wind meant track temperatures were very cool in the morning and Rossi chose to wait until 1.30pm, when the newly-resurfaced track had warmed up slightly, to begin.

The six time world champion went on to complete 20 laps on a 2008-spec bike and 20 on the new 2009 prototype M1, on which he set a fastest lap 0.610sec behind Pedrosa.

"I am happy about this first day because my performance has been good from the beginning and I have been fast all day," declared The Doctor. "Unfortunately it's been quite cold and there was only three hours when it was possible to go fast, but we were able to get quite a lot of work done in this short space of time.

"We have tried some different things on the old 2008 bike and we were able to make some improvements and then we also tested several new things on the prototype bike, and I am happy because I did my fastest lap with this bike."

As per the new single-tyre rule there are just two front and two rear specifications available for the test, with the riders supplied with two tyres of each specification, making eight in total.

"Bridgestone have brought good tyres here; so far I don't see any problems with the new rule and it seems they're doing a good job," confirmed Rossi. "They have resurfaced the track and it has made a big difference; they have got rid of all the bumps and like this it's great fun to ride around.

Source: crash.net

Valentino Rossi consecutive 7th Mugello (italy) victory.

x roadie

Sunday, 1st June 2008

Italian legend thrills home fans with seventh consecutive Mugello victory.

Valentino Rossi escaped from the pack to claim his magnificent seventh consecutive home Mugello victory in dominant style in Sunday's Italian Grand Prix.

Rossi, riding under bright sunshine and in front of almost 100,000 trackside fans, got a bad start from pole position and was only fourth through the first sequence of corners, behind Dani Pedrosa, Casey Stoner and Loris Capirossi.

But The Doctor worked his way clinically forwards, passing Capirossi's Suzuki on the opening lap and immediately closing the slight gap to his title rivals.


Stoner's powerful Ducati got the better of Pedrosa along the home straight on lap 2 of 23, with Rossi dropping the Repsol Honda rider back to third later on the same lap.

The Bridgestone-shod Fiat Yamaha star then took the race lead from Stoner with a clever inside move through a downhill turn and the face painted on the top of Rossi's special Mugello helmet never looked back.

At a track famous for its close slipstreaming battles, Rossi's lead broke two seconds by the halfway mark and the seven-times world champion went on to take his third victory in a row (from six 2008 starts) by that same margin after backing off in the closing stages. It had been 17 years since the last non-Michelin win in the premier-class at Mugello, by Wayne Rainey in 1991 using Dunlop tyres.

Rossi celebrated his 91st grand prix victory by pumping his fist across the finish line before enduring one of his toughest tests of the afternoon when he had to weave his way through the invading fans on the slow down lap.

Perhaps surprisingly, there was no special celebration - although it could be argued that none was needed in such an emotionally charged environment, with the whole of the Mugello home straight packed with fans by the time the podium ceremony took place.
last but not the least GO ROSSI !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GO

Qualifying times - Mugello.

x roadie

Saturday, 31st May 2008

Rossi takes home pole position and his first ever pole with Bridgestone to end Michelin's perfect 2008 qualifying run.

Full qualifying times from the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello, round six of the 2008 MotoGP World Championship.

500GP race winner Tady Okada has returned as a wild-card this weekend, to give the pneumatic-valve Honda engine its MotoGP debut...


1. Valentino Rossi ITA Fiat Yamaha Team (B) 1min 48.130 secs
2. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team (M) 1min 48.297 secs
3. Loris Capirossi ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP (B) 1min 48.313 secs
4. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team (B) 1min 48.375 secs
5. Colin Edwards USA Tech 3 Yamaha (M) 1min 48.383 secs
6. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team (M) 1min 48.666 secs
7. Jorge Lorenzo SPA Fiat Yamaha Team (M) 1min 48.905 secs
8. James Toseland GBR Tech 3 Yamaha (M) 1min 49.025 secs
9. Shinya Nakano JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini (B) 1min 49.095 secs
10. Alex de Angelis RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini (B) 1min 49.145 secs
11. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP (B) 1min 49.220 secs
12. Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP (M) 1min 49.246 secs
13. Andrea Dovizioso ITA JiR Team Scot MotoGP (M) 1min 49.565 secs
14. John Hopkins USA Kawasaki Racing Team (B) 1min 49.601 secs
15. Tady Okada JPN Repsol Honda Team (M) 1min 49.829 secs
16. Toni Elias SPA Alice Team (B) 1min 49.851 secs
17. Sylvain Guintoli FRA Alice Team (B) 1min 50.275 secs
18. Marco Melandri ITA Ducati Marlboro Team (B) 1min 50.465 secs
19. Anthony West AUS Kawasaki Racing Team (B) 1min 50.889 secs

x roadie

Lorenzo stuns with crutches to second.

Monday, 19th May 2008

Illustrious team-mate Valentino Rossi may have stolen the limelight with his 90th grand prix victory in Sunday's French Grand Prix, but injured rookie Jorge Lorenzo arguably produced the ride of the day.

Fractures to both ankles at the previous Shanghai round have left Lorenzo needing a wheelchair or crutches when off the bike, and the Estoril winner raised serious doubts about his ability to race at Le Mans when he fell twice in practice - in addition to several other off-track moments.

The reigning double 250cc world champion had dug deep to qualify fifth on the grid, but later admitted he was 'dreaming' of a sixth or seventh place finish in the race - especially after lapping just 11th quickest in morning warm-up and plummeting to that same position by lap two of the grand prix.

Whilst championship rivals Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa and Rossi battled with Colin Edwards at the front, Lorenzo initially looked to be struggling and was still only ninth by lap seven.

However, the 21-year-old suddenly 'found his feet', bursting past John Hopkins, Loris Capirossi and Nicky Hayden on the following lap, before chasing down last year's winner Chris Vermeulen.

Lorenzo overtook the Rizla Suzuki rider on lap 15, by which time Rossi had escaped out front, but Edwards, Stoner and Pedrosa were well within reach. The #48 made short work of the trio, helped by an engine failure for Stoner, and crossed the line five seconds from Rossi.

The amazing ride marked Lorenzo's fourth podium from his first five MotoGP races, and he is now joint second with Pedrosa in the championship standings - just three points from Rossi.

The message was clear, if Lorenzo can finish in second with two broken ankles - at a track he had never ridden an M1 at before this weekend - what will he do when he is fit? His rivals must be worried...

"Firstly I want to say congratulations to Yamaha because it's fantastic to have three on the podium and it demonstrates how strong our bike is," said Jorge, who climbed the podium with the aid of crutches, and was given a seat to help rest his feet.

x roadie

Rossi: 180 victories on one bike!

Monday, 19th May 2008

Unlike some sporting stars, Valentino Rossi is very conscious of his place in history - and paid a special tribute to Angel Nieto after equalling the superstitious '12+1' world champion's 90 grand prix victories on Sunday.

Rossi, who had carried a flag 'apologising' to the late Mike Hailwood for matching the Englishman's total of 76 wins in 2005, was able to pull off a much bigger surprise after joining Nieto as the second most successful rider in grand prix history.

Following a convincing victory in Sunday's French Grand Prix at Le Mans, Rossi stopped at the side of the track where Nieto - who won six 50cc titles and seven 125cc titles during the '60s, '70s and '80s and now works for Spanish television - was waiting.

Angel, wearing special leathers to mark the occasion, congratulated Rossi - then took control of the Italian's YZR-M1, which he rode for the remainder of the lap with Rossi sat behind him holding a large '90+90' flag.

"To arrive at 90 wins like this and equal Angel's record is a dream for me," said Rossi, after his second victory of the 2008 season. "I had quite a lot of pressure because Angel was waiting with the special leathers to join me on the bike, so I really needed to win! It was great to ride with him - I think maybe with some practice he can be as fast as us! 180 victories together on one bike is quite impressive I think!"

Rossi had dropped from fourth to sixth on the opening lap, but some close racing and exciting overtaking moves saw him take the lead from world champion Casey Stoner on lap 8 of 26.

From then on Rossi was too strong for the chasing pack, stretching his lead lap after lap until a light rain threw his victory into doubt. The sun soon came back out however - negating the need to change bikes - and the Italian crossed the line 4.997 seconds in front of injured Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo to take his first back-to-back victory since 2006 and become the first double race winner of 2008.

Valentino Rossi does it in China.

xroadies : motogp news

Rossi smashes losing streak in China.

Sunday, 4th May 2008

Valentino Rossi smashed a seven-race losing streak with his first ever Bridgestone victory in an action-packed Chinese Grand Prix, as the Italian became the fourth different MotoGP race winner in as many 2008 events.

Slicks were the tyres of choice for the damp track conditions - the lengthy Shanghai circuit drying steadily after heavy morning rain - and Rossi earned his breakthrough victory after a tense race-long battle with Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa.

Pedrosa took advantage of some frantic opening laps to make a small break up front, before being caught and passed by Fiat Yamaha rider Rossi, who took the lead for the first time on lap 6 of 22.

But Pedrosa then matched Rossi blow-for-blow and was still just a fraction from the Italian ten laps later, when Rossi made his victory push - pumping out new lap records to finally break the Jerez winner and take a 1.3secs lead with three laps to go.

Pedrosa later explained that there a strong tailwind along the giant 1.km back straight - which pushed up the top speeds substantially - had caused his Repsol Honda to over-rev and he was happy to settle for second under the circumstances.

Pedrosa had thus dropped rapidly away from Rossi by the flag, The Doctor taking his first victory since last September's Portuguese Grand Prix - with both fists waving in delight - by a margin of 3.890secs.

Having broken his longest losing steak since his debut 2000 season, a relieved Rossi parked his M1 at the side of the track, took off his helmet and soaked up the moment - before kissing his Yamaha and making his way slowly back to the pits.

MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner also looked set to play a starring role, after qualifying on the front row for the first time this year and holding the lead several times in the early stages, but was forced to watch in frustration as the top two rode away from him.

The Ducati Marlboro star, who hit a staggering 343.2km/h along the back straight, finally finished 12secs behind Pedrosa and 6.5secs ahead of fourth placed Jorge Lorenzo. Stoner later revealed that a softer tyre, in response to the cooler weather conditions, had proved his undoing.

orenzo came into the race holding a perfect podium record and the joint world championship lead, but had badly injured his ankles during a huge Friday highside - then stalled on the grid as the formation lap began.

The MotoGP rookie attempted to re-fire his Fiat Yamaha with a bump start, doing little to reduce the pain from his injured ankles, before getting assistance from officials and taking his fourth place on the grid.

The Spaniard, who celebrated his 21st birthday today, looked understandably cautious in the early stages - and had been mercilessly pushed back to eighth by the halfway mark - but retaliated with a combative performance during the last ten laps to pull a comfortable 4.4secs clear of fifth place.

Kawasaki endured a race to forget, John Hopkins managing just 14th after several mistakes whilst trying to force his way forwards from 12th on the grid, while team-mate Anthony West finished in a distant last place - where he had started.

In the world championship standings, Pedrosa has now broken seven points clear of Lorenzo, with Rossi just two points behind his team-mate in third. Stoner remains fourth, but has slipped 25 points - one race win - behind Pedrosa.

Sunday's race was rumoured to be the final Chinese Grand Prix for the foreseeable future - a new round in Hungary, feeding on the huge support for 125cc world champion Gabor Talmacsi, is tipped to replace the Shanghai event from next season.

'All about tyres' for Rossi.

'ALL ABOUT TYRES' for Rossi Tuesday, 15th April 2008 With the new Yamaha/Bridgestone partnership still in its infancy, Valentino Rossi's main focus during Monday's Estoril test was unsurprisingly on continued tyre development. Rossi, who has taken two podiums from his first three Bridgestone starts and holds third in the current world championship standings, will be looking to break a seven-race losing streak - since Estoril 2007 - next time out in Shanghai, a circuit where Rossi finished second to Casey Stoner's Bridgestone-shod Ducati last year. The Fiat Yamaha star left Estoril with the second fastest overall lap time, set with a qualifying tyre, after circulating 0.252secs behind Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa. Rossi also tested new front and rear race tyres, whilst improving set-up and 'feeling' during his 90 laps. Using race tyres, the Italian was able to beat his best lap - set on his way to third place - in Sunday's grand prix. "Today was all about tyres, set-up and our ongoing task of improving the Yamaha-Bridgestone package," confirmed team manager Davide Brivio. "We tried new front and rear race tyres and also some new qualifying tyres, and we found some good solutions to take with us to China. We were able to improve rear grip and durability especially and these are two key areas for us. "Valentino worked very hard today and completed 90 laps, and he deserves to be happy with a job well done. Of course we are always working on the general setting and we hope that we're going to be arriving in China now with an even better bike than we had this weekend. Thank you to everyone for another long weekend of hard work and now there's some time to relax before we make the trip to China." Rossi's team-mate and Estoril race winner Jorge Lorenzo - currently tied with Pedrosa at the top of the world championship standings - did not test on Monday, the 20-year-old opting to undergo surgery on his right forearm to help arm-pump problems.

"Rossi: I'm quite excited!"- x roadies

[More Pictures] Rossi: I'm quite excited! Monday, 18th February 2008 "I have a good rhythm and I am having a lot of fun riding the bike. I'm quite excited now about the start of the season!" - Valentino Rossi. There was no headline grabbing end to the official Jerez test for Valentino Rossi - who took fifth overall on a qualifying tyre and fourth with a race tyre - but the Italian says he's having fun and feeling 'excited' about the season ahead. After a late start due to a damp track, Rossi spent most of the final day refining set-up and tyre testing with Bridgestone, although the tricky track conditions hampered progress somewhat. "At the end of today it was quite cold which made things difficult, and generally the conditions have made our job harder for the whole three days," began Rossi. "Despite this I think we've done some good work; I have a good rhythm and I am having a lot of fun riding the bike. I'm quite excited now about the start of the season! "We have things to work on, especially our speed in the exit of the corner, which was worse today because we had less grip on the damp track. Overall though it's been good, and I think we've learnt a lot both about the bike and the Bridgestones, plus I have been quite fast both with the qualifier and the race tyres." Towards the end of the day the Italian, like most of his competitors, tried a qualifying tyre and it was with this that he completed his best lap of the three days, a time of 1min 39.568secs. That made him the top Bridgestone rider on Monday, although he was still 0.720secs slower than Repsol Honda's Nicky Hayden. However, Rossi wasn't troubled by that deficit. "I didn't use the qualifier I like best here, so I am confident that when we use it in Qatar we can be faster," he revealed. Just one pre-season test now remains, at Qatar in ten days time, where the field will face two days of night testing in preparation for the season opener on March 9. "Now there's just one test left, which will be in the dark and therefore something quite strange!" said The Doctor. "We will focus on our final days of preparation and be ready for the first race."

[More Pictures]

Rossi: Better bike, better rider.

Tuesday, 5th February 2008

"Last time we worked just on the tyres. Now we have clear ideas so we've started working on the bike..." - Valentino Rossi.

By Peter McLaren

Valentino Rossi

had a simple explanation for his scorching day one pace at Sepang; his bike is better than at the last test - and so is he!

With Fiat Yamaha not attending the Phillip Island outing, Rossi's only previous track appearance of 2008 was also at Sepang - at the end of January - when he had been just sixth fastest, over one-second behind

Nicky Haydenwhen both were on qualifying tyres.

But Rossi - sharing the track with just eight other riders - ramped up the pace quickly on his February return, setting an impressive 2mins 1.444secs on race tyres before punching out a stunning 2mins 0.300secs - the best lap seen at Sepang this winter and 1.5secs under Dani Pedrosa's 2007 pole time - with a late qualifying tyre attack.

Although Rossi's best race-tyre lap was also significantly faster than he'd recorded at the January test, he still needs to find a further 0.48secs to reach the best race-tyre lap of the winter, a 2mins 0.964secs set by world champion Casey Stoner.

With Stoner's

Ducati

team sitting out this week's test, and Pedrosa - the 2007 world championship runner-up - sidelined by injury, Rossi will never know what two of his closest rivals would have been capable of.

Nevertheless, Rossi revealed that Tuesday marked the first time he'd starting adjusting the M1 around his new-for-2008

Bridgestone tyres - and that he was also riding better than at the first test.

"Today was a good day of work," declared Rossi, whose best race-tyre lap was half a second clear of Hayden. "We started well this morning and made a good step this afternoon. The biggest improvement was found by working on the front tyre. We fixed a lot of vibration which had given me a problem at the first test, so we were able to go very fast on the race tyre.

Yamaha unveils 2008 YZR-M1.

Yamaha officially unveiled its 2008 YZR-M1 MotoGP machine at title sponsor Fiat's home town of Turin, in Italy, on Friday.


The presentation was hosted by Italian TV star Simona Ventura and took place at the historic Lingotto building, which was Fiat's car factory from 1923 until 1982.

After two successive title defeats for star rider Valentino Rossi, much rests on the shoulders of the new M1 - which the Italian has made clear must be a substantial improvement over the 2007 model if he is to take a sixth premier-class crown.

Speaking at the launch of the new bike, which has an almost identical livery to last year's machine, Rossi - sporting a short haircut similar to that of new team-mate Jorge Lorenzo - appeared cautiously optimistic.

"I'm very happy that we're so close to the start of racing," said Rossi. "This is a very important year for us and our only aim is to win, although it's going to be hard work. My hand [injured at the Valencia season finale] is much better, if not yet perfect, and I'm looking forward to getting back on the bike in Sepang next week. Everyone has been working very hard over the winter and I think our new bike is quite good, although of course we still have a lot of work to do. Everyone is very motivated and I know that we have the best team there is."

Rossi sunk to third in the 2007

MotoGP

World Championship, 126 points behind Ducati's Casey Stoner, but just one-point behind Honda's Dani Pedrosa. The Italian took four race wins last year, his least amount of victories since 2000.

The Doctor - who took three successive premier-class titles with

Honda

before switching to Yamaha in 2004, where he continued his championship-winning streak for two more years - remains the only M1 rider to have won a grand prix since Max Biaggi in 2002.

Rossi has switched to

Bridgestone

tyres for 2008, while rookie team-mate Lorenzo will ride on Michelins, forcing the factory Yamaha pit garage to be split in two to protect sensitive tyre data.Despite this restriction on 'file sharing', reigning double 250cc world champion Lorenzo - who will have at least one eye on winning the 2008 'rookie of the year' title - is pleased with his progress and looking forward to the season ahead.

“I'm very happy to be here, with these people, this bike and in this team," said the Spaniard. "I have a long way to go in my development but I have improved each time I've ridden the bike and the last test especially was very good. I'm very excited about this season and it's a great honour to share the garage with Valentino, who is without doubt the most complete talent in our sport.”

"The most important change to our team is the arrival of Jorge Lorenzo as Valentino Rossi's new team-mate," stated Lin Jarvis, managing director of Yamaha Motor Racing. "Our aim is to recapture the title and, as our most experienced rider, this is Valentino's clear mission. However we also expect Jorge to be fighting at the front as he gains experience. We have two multiple world championship winning riders in our team and we believe we have optimum chance to realise our ambitions."

Tech 3 team-mates Colin Edwards and

James Toseland

will also race a 2008-spec YZR-M1.

Yamaha's new motorcycle will make its

MotoGP

debut during testing at Sepang on January 22.

Rossi's existing Yamaha contract expires at the end of this season.

YZF-R1 2008 sport bikes

The 2008 Yamaha YZF-R1 is unashamedly based on MotoGP technology. The YCC-T fly-by-wire throttle system along with the World’s first electronic variable-length intake funnel system and slipper-type back torque-limiting clutch all come from MotoGP testing. A short-stroke 998cc DOHC, 16-valve, liquid-cooled inline four-cylinder engine produces more tractable power than ever; the Yamaha Chip Control Throttle controls a 32-bit ECU fuel injection system for super-responsive, smooth, instantaneous power delivery and a two-piece ergonomically designed fuel tank carries fuel in the rear section, which helps centraise the mass, while the front half contains a Ram-Air-fed airbox for increased power. God, this sounds like the spec sheet, but Yamaha have gone all out this year, perhaps with the knowledge that they will have to pull something spectacular out of the bag in 2008 to beat the Ducati V-twin 1198cc 1098 S since the introduction of an increased capacity for the twins in World Super Bikes. Yamaha have done their very best to increase aerodynamics, reduce engine friction and take advantage of the latest in computer control. Yamaha rider, Noriyuki Haga, came awfully close to taking the WSB championship last year finishing just 2 points behind James Toseland on the Honda CBR1000RR. Although it has to be said, Toseland rode the wheels off the Honda to win. It’s amazing what the chance of a MotoGp berth can do – Toseland is moving to Yamaha’s MotoGP squad in 2008.

Valentino Rossi and the YZF-R1
All in all, the Yamaha YZF-R1 is pretty much unchanged from 2007. Seeing the 2007 model came within a gnat’s whisker of winning the WSB championship, that’s understandable. Valentino Rossi, Yamaha’s MotoGp rider and several times World Champion took one for a spin and was very impressed.

Reviews and Opinions
Since it’s original launch, the Yamaha YZF-R1 has had journalists and reviewers reaching for the nearest superlative. Universally liked doesn’t even come close, in fact I don’t think I have ever had a bad word said about it. Yamaha really put a great package together with this bike. Race bred it may be, but as a road package it’s hard to beat. Impeccable manners, extremely powerful yet controllable engine, comfortable riding position. I know Rossi is paid to like the bike, but his comments actually seemed heart felt and I can’t imagine him laying down a line of bullshit just to sell a bike. At the end of the day, he’s more concerned with pleasing his legion of fans than sucking up to Yamaha.

Everyone likes this bike and there are a selection of reviews at the bottom of this hub.
I used to own the 750 version, the YZF 750RR and that was a joy to ride on a day-to-day basis. If you are looking for a usable, fast liter bike, this is a good bet.

winter moto gp news

# New Kawasaki signing John Hopkins was the fastest rider on day two of the Sepang test.Hopkins, eighth on day one, used a late lap to edge out former team-mate Chris Vermeulen by 0.144secs at the conclusion of the second day in Malaysia, with day one leader Randy de Puniet demoted to a still impressive third for HondaLCR. Kawasaki revealed that there will be no 'new' machine for 2008."What the're doing is to keep improving on what they have now and get new parts throughout the winter. So they'll always have new parts to test, but there won't be a completely different bike or anything like that."

# Nicky Hayden put 65 more laps on the new 2008 spec Honda RC212V during day two of testing at Sepang - and killed a Cobra in the process! Hayden's knee collided with an unfortunate snake at Turn 11 of the 5.548km circuit. The Repsol Hondarider emerged unscathed from the encounter but the snake was not so lucky..."I smoked my first snake, the poor thing," confirmed Nicky. "I was just heading through turn 11 when the snake sat up and I saw it but I was committed on the apex of the corner. I picked the machine up and tried to avoid him but caught him with my knee. I'm pretty sure it was a cobra and I'm sorry for it."

# MotoGP riders to undertake final 2007 tests at Jerez from 27-29 November.

Suzuki is the only factory not present in Spain, having instead chosen to develop its GSV-R at Phillip Island in Australia.

Rossi will be back on two wheels this week, during testing at Jerez, when he is due to ride with Bridgestonetyres for the first time.

winter moto gp news

# New Kawasaki signing John Hopkins was the fastest rider on day two of the Sepang test.Hopkins, eighth on day one, used a late lap to edge out former team-mate Chris Vermeulen by 0.144secs at the conclusion of the second day in Malaysia, with day one leader Randy de Puniet demoted to a still impressive third for HondaLCR. Kawasaki revealed that there will be no 'new' machine for 2008."What the're doing is to keep improving on what they have now and get new parts throughout the winter. So they'll always have new parts to test, but there won't be a completely different bike or anything like that."

# Nicky Hayden put 65 more laps on the new 2008 spec Honda RC212V during day two of testing at Sepang - and killed a Cobra in the process! Hayden's knee collided with an unfortunate snake at Turn 11 of the 5.548km circuit. The Repsol Hondarider emerged unscathed from the encounter but the snake was not so lucky..."I smoked my first snake, the poor thing," confirmed Nicky. "I was just heading through turn 11 when the snake sat up and I saw it but I was committed on the apex of the corner. I picked the machine up and tried to avoid him but caught him with my knee. I'm pretty sure it was a cobra and I'm sorry for it."

# MotoGP riders to undertake final 2007 tests at Jerez from 27-29 November.

Suzuki is the only factory not present in Spain, having instead chosen to develop its GSV-R at Phillip Island in Australia.

Rossi will be back on two wheels this week, during testing at Jerez, when he is due to ride with Bridgestonetyres for the first time.

Latest news from Moto gp....07 - 08 Winter testing

Yamaha Tech 3 has officially confirmed that it will field Colin Edwards alongside reigning double WSBK champion James Toselandduring the 2008 MotoGPWorld Championship. The pair will be riding the latest 2008 YZR-M1, and will be on Michelin rubber.


Sepang MotoGP test times :

Thursday, 15th November 2007 Preparations for the 2008 MotoGP season continued with the start of a three-day test session at Sepang in Malaysia... 1. Randy de Puniet FRA Honda LCR (M) 2min 3.033 secs2. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP (B) 2min 3.357 secs3. Colin Edwards USA Yamaha Tech 3 (M) 2min 3.406 secs4. Andrea Dovizioso ITA JiR Team Scot (M) 2min 3.607 secs5. Loris Capirossi ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP (B) 2min 3.748 secs6. Anthony West AUS Kawasaki Racing Team (B) 2min 4.068 secs7. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team (M) 2min 4.164 secs8. John Hopkins USA Kawasaki Racing Team (B) 2min 4.316 secs9. Jorge Lorenzo SPA Fiat Yamaha Team (M) 2min 4.433 secs10. James Toseland GBR Yamaha Tech 3 (M) 2min 5.438 secsReigning double World Superbike champion James Toseland suffered this small fall during his MotoGP debut for Yamaha Tech 3 at Sepang on Thursday.Fortunately, JT was able to remount his M1 and the incident caused little interruption to his programme.Toseland went on to complete 29 laps, before rain arrived at 2pm, with his best time good enough for tenth position, 2.405secs behind pace setter Randy de Puniet. de Puniet also fell.

FIAT YAMAHA 2008 LINE UP

Vale and two time 205 cc world champion Lorenzo will compete in Moto gp 2008 as team mates in the Fiat Yamaha Team.

Its also confirmed that Rossi wiil switch to Bridgestone rubber while Lorenzo will b on Michelin

Well a hard season comes to an end and we await the new. Also i am happy that Vale is on Bridgestones next year. I hope the tyres suit him. Dont know if yamaha are going to be much faster than others next year but i am hoping for the best for our man.Vale ,, 2008 World Champion :))))

These were Rossi's comment after d race @ Valencia.......

“I have no words. For sure, after today, I can say that it’s not just a matter of misfortune. I did everything I could in order to be on the grid today, because I wanted to try and confirm my second place in the championship, which I think I deserved. I was riding very fast, even though my bike was not perfect. When I got into 14th place, I told myself that my task was done, but I was feeling quite good and I wanted to try to pass some more riders. Unfortunately however I felt that I had a problem with my bike and I was forced to come in. Now we are checking the data to understand what happened, because at the moment it’s not so clear. I will need 20 days to fix my hand and then I will be back in Jerez to start my winter testing programme. I’d like to thank Claudio Costa and Marco Montanari, as well as everyone at the Clinica Mobile, because they made a great effort with my hand to enable me to race today.”

Latest news from Moto gp 07 - 08 Winter testing

# World Champion Casey Stoner fastest in opening pre-season test in Valencia.

# Konica Minolta, title sponsor of JiR for the past three seasons, will not back Gianluca Montiron's Honda team during the 2008 MotoGP World Championship.

# YAMAHA APOLOGISES TO ROSSI

Yamaha has apologised to Valentino Rossi for the engine problem that robbed him of second place in the 2007 MotoGP World Championship - but isn't sure exactly what went wrong.

"We would like to say sorry to Valentino because he made a great effort to race with his broken hand," said team director Davide Brivio. "Unfortunately a technical problem stopped him from getting the second place and we're very sad about this. Our engineers are doing everything they can now to understand what happened today, because Valentino felt that he had a problem and that the engine was not working properly. From our first analysis we are not yet sure what the problem was, so we have decided to send the engine back to Japan for further investigation."

# Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) has confirmed that the Repsol Honda Team will remain on Michelin tyres for the 2008 MotoGP season.

# MICHAEL SCHUMACHER ON A MOTO GP BIKE

Just one day after the season-ending Valencian Grand Prix, Schumacher took to the same twisty Spanish circuit on board Casey Stoner's 800cc Desmosedici.He finished the Spanish track in a best lap time just five seconds behind Pedrosa's race record of 1min 32.748secs! Schumacher's 1min 37.9secs also put the former Ferraridriver three seconds a lap from the back of the MotoGP field. Michael was 'coached' by former 500GP star Randy Mamola during his extended session, which lasted for most of the afternoon.

# 2008 Honda RC212V, the new motorcycle features pneumatic valves, as already used by Suzuki and Kawasaki - and rejected by Yamaha. The bike is described as an evolution of the 2007 machine , but features a new V4 engine with, as rumoured, pneumatic valve springs, plus an all-new chassis and exhaust system.

Motorcycling-Rossi hints at future Ducati move

"All the Japanese underestimated Ducatithis season, "Ducati was intelligent and aggressive, and worked better. We were competitive with Honda, but they had the money and people required to catch up [to Ducati] more quickly, this is where Yamaha has been lacking.

"Yamaha has never had the quickest motorcycle but this year we were 15-20 km/h slower," continued Rossi, who lost second place in the 2007 world championship when his M1 suffered a technical problem at the Valencia season finale. "And every time we've tried something new it has broken. We need to make big changes to win the title again; we need more capable people and more money.

"I still have a lot of desire to fight, but I need tyres and a machine that are competitive."

But what if the 2008 Yamaha isn't competitive; could Rossi switch to Ducati or Honda?

"We will wait and see how the Yamaha, especially the engine, improves for next year. If it is not competitive then there is nothing more we can do... I have good relations with both Ducati and [former employer] Honda, but Ducati would be my preferred option because it is Italian."

go!!!!!!!!!!!! Rossi

Valentino Rossi (born February 16, 1979 in Urbino) is an Italian professional motorcycle racer and multiple MotoGP World Champion. He is one of the most successful motorcycle racers of all time, with 7 Grand Prix World Championships to his name. In 2006, he narrowly missed an 8th title by scoring a second place in the Championship, and with three races to go in the 2007 season, he lost out again, this time to Australian Casey Stoner. According to Sports Illustrated, Rossi is the 7th highest earning sports personality in the world (2nd outside the United States), earning an estimated $30 million a year.[1]

Following his father, Graziano Rossi, Rossi started racing in Grand Prix in 1996 for Aprilia in the 125cc category and won his first World Championship the following year. From there, he moved up to the 250 cc category, again with Aprilia, and won the World Championship in 1999. He won the 500 cc World Championship with Honda in 2001, the MotoGP World Championships (also with Honda) in 2002 and 2003, and continued his streak of back-to-back championships by winning the 2004 and 2005 MotoGP World Championship after leaving Honda to join Yamaha.


Valentino Rossi= legend. Too bad his bike (2007 yamaha m1) is so waek ,but still maneges to beat stoner in the connering . Go Vale.


nice video with awesome beats
go!!!!!! rosssiiiiii