Ducati impressed with Hayden

Ducati's technical director Filippo Preziosi believes the team has made 'the right choice' by signing Nicky Hayden after the American completed a successful first test for the team at Valencia this week.

Hayden, who was fastest of all on the wet second day of the shortened test at the Spanish track, impressed the team with his bravery and his swift integration with the engineers.

"He certainly is very brave," Preziosi told Italian newspaper Gazetta dello Sport. "With the telemetry you can see that in certain situations the bike wobbles in a scary way, even more than with [Casey] Stoner, but he doesn't get off the gas.

"I think we've made a good choice."

Speaking of Hayden's relationship with Stoner, Preziosi added: "It looks like from the first moment there's been great accord between the two of them, also helped by the fact that they speak the same language.

"I don't know whether it'll be the best rider pairing we've ever had, but for sure it will be very harmonious."

Preziosi also indicated that Ducati were happy with the first run of an evolution engine used in the carbon-fibre GP9.

"We were a bit afraid," he said. "Here we had an evolution - never gone on track, not even with test rider [Vittoriano] Guareschi - of what Casey tried in Barcelona.

"Even on the installation lap he did to prepare the bike for the riders, Vittoriano told us it was a good step forward. Most of all in smoothness and progression.

"Casey liked it very much too. The power is still the same, because that's practically imposed by the limitation on the amount of fuel. We've worked on the usual things: fluid dynamics and reduction of frictions. We'll see if it's enough."

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Rapids’ impressive grit opens doors

Hayden confirmed at Ducati for 2009

Hayden doesn’t regret soft tyre choice

Simoncelli wins in style at Valencia

Marco Simoncelli celebrated the 250cc title won seven days ago in style by taking a commanding victory - his sixth of the year - in the Valencia Grand Prix.

The Metis Gilera rider didn't have the best of starts from pole position and dropped to fifth, but made his way back up to first by lap nine when he overtook Red Bull KTM's Mika Kallio and never relinquished the lead again in the 27-lap race.

The Finn did his best to stay close to Simoncelli and snatch victory for his and the Austrian manufacturer's final race in the series - Kallio will move up to MotoGP with Alice Ducati while KTM announced their retirement from the 250cc class - but he crashed the bike on the last lap after having a couple of moments on previous laps.

Yuki Takahashi, who will also move up to the premier class with his current JiR Honda team, finished the race in a fine second place, five seconds behind Simoncelli, after managing to keep up with the two riders at the front for most of the race.

Aspar Aprilia's Alvaro Bautista took the last place on the podium, 3.5 seconds behind Takahashi, ahead of the other Metis Gilera of Roberto Locatelli, who ran as high as third in the first few laps after a good start from eighth.

Red Bull KTM's Hiroshi Aoyama finished the race in fifth, followed by the Aprilias of Hector Faubel (Aspar) and Aleix Espargaro (Lotus), and the Thai Honda of Ratthapark Wilairot.

This pack of riders was led by the Lotus Aprilia of Alex Debon until lap 22, when the Spaniard lost the front of his bike and crashed out from sixth place.

Julian Simon, who led the race in the early stages, saw his Repsol KTM breaking down on lap 20, just after being overtaken by Bautista for fourth place.

CLASSIFIED: Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 43:29.003 2. Yuki Takahashi Honda + 5.164 3. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia + 8.648 4. R.Locatelli Gilera + 15.605 5. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM + 20.991 6. Hector Faubel Aprilia + 22.212 7. Aleix Espargaro Aprilia + 23.199 8. R.Wilairot Honda + 23.321 9. Mattia Pasini Aprilia + 37.424 10. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 38.887 11. Mika Kallio KTM + 44.065 12. Alex Baldolini Aprilia +1:10.999 13. Imre Toth Aprilia +1:31.950 14. Daniel Arcas Aprilia +1:39.110 15. S.G.Giorgi Gilera +1:41.209 16. Manuel Hernandez Aprilia + 1 Lap 17. Karel Abraham Aprilia + 1 Lap 18. Federico Sandi Aprilia + 1 Lap 19. D.T.Pradita Yamaha + 1 Lap NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS: Rider Bike Laps Alen Gyorfi Aprilia 24 Alex Debon Aprilia 21 Julian Simon KTM 19 Fabrizio Lai Gilera 12 Lukas Pesek Aprilia 11 Toni Wirsing Honda 11 FASTEST LAP: Kallio, 1:35.890 on lap 24

Simoncelli holds on to take win

Crew showcasing road quality

Simoncelli wins battle for victory

Melandri: Kawasaki move a tough challenge

Marco Melandri has acknowledged that joining Kawasaki for 2009 is a gamble, but says his priority is just to get a bike that suits his style after a miserable season with Ducati.

The Italian spent most of 2008 at the back of the grid after failing to acclimatise to Ducati's GP8. He finished a poor 17th in the championship, having taken a solitary top five finish compared to teammate Casey Stoner's six victories.

Although he had an offer to rejoin the Gresini Honda team, where he had taken five wins during his previous sojourn, the 26-year-old decided to move to the struggling Kawasaki team, whose riders John Hopkins and Anthony West fared little better than Melandri this year.

"(Going to Kawasaki) is a very difficult challenge," Melandri told Italia1 television.

"No one else would have gone for my choice, but that's what I felt like doing, I want to try it."

He believes Kawasaki have the potential to do much better than their recent results suggest.

"Kawasaki have the budget and the will to do things, so this is a good start," said Melandri.

"Certainly it isn't easy, we need to work hard. With the single tyre supplier we know it's a tyre Kawasaki struggle to use, Hopkins told me, so we'll have to work a lot on the chassis to make it work.

"We'll see. At the moment they lack grip during the race, and I saw that John's tyre today was ruined. They lack many things, so I don't know until I try it.

"It's a challenge, but I can manage to work based on my needs. I hope to be able to build a bike for my riding style, which is something I've been missing, then we'll see how it goes. But now I just need to get back on a bike and enjoy myself."

He stands by his decision to choose Kawasaki over the Gresini Honda option.

"I could have gone back to Fausto (Gresini), but I made this choice for my own reasons," Melandri said.

"However, I can say it wasn't for the money. I liked the Kawasaki last year already when I had a Honda, so I liked it, I liked the enthusiasm with which they looked for me even now that I wasn't going well.

"Fausto also looked for me with enthusiasm so I thank him a lot for everything he taught me, however I wanted to make a change. I wanted to do something different: I know it's the more difficult option, but I've suffered so much in life that nothing scares me."

Melandri added that he had already put his Ducati experience behind him.

"I think that to go back over the mistakes to see who made them and why is useless for me, it wouldn't give me a better future," he said.

"So I just want to think about the present, get ready for tomorrow, and leave behind the past. It's been a difficult year, I suffered and it was useful experience."

He believes his riding style was simply unsuitable for the Ducati, which will be ridden by Honda convert Nicky Hayden next season.

"I haven't had a problem with Stoner, I just had a problem in finding a feeling with the bike and wasn't able to be quick," said Melandri.

"He rides a bike that is very difficult for my riding style. We'll see if Nicky will adapt and integrate well in this family. I hope he won't have the tough life I had."

Melandri: Kawasaki will suit my style

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Crew trying to overcome turf woes

Elias glad to be back 'home' with Gresini

Toni Elias said he felt like he was returning home after his first day of work with the Gresini team in testing at Valencia on Monday.

Elias is back to the Italian squad following a year with the Alice team, with whom he endured a difficult 2008 season onboard the Ducati, finishing in 12th place in the standings.

The Spanish rider was back on a Honda for the test, for the first time since 2007, when he raced with Gresini.

Elias admitted going back to the Japanese bike was not an easy transition, but he was nonetheless delighted to be riding for the Italian team again.

"I am very happy to have returned to Honda and to Fausto Gresini's team," said Elias, 13th fastest on Monday.

"For me, it is like coming home because in the two years we worked together before we developed a mutually trusting relationship and we understand very well the feeling and method of working together that was always very successful.

"Coming back to ride aboard a Honda was not easy because it is a completely different machine to what I was riding throughout the 2008 season, however after just one hour of testing today the feeling improved a lot.

"We approached our work today with calmness because we know that I will have to gradually adapt myself to the new bike that will be equipped with tyres in accordance with the new regulations."

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Gresini re-signs de Angelis for ‘09

Elias aims to finish season on a high

Elias set for Gresini return

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Dovizioso 'excited' about new team

Andrea Dovizioso was excited after his first day as an official HRC rider, as he tested the Repsol Honda bike for the first time at Valencia.

The Italian has moved to the works team after a strong rookie season with the satelite JiR Scot squad.

Dovizioso rode this year's RC212V bike, similar to the one he raced with during the season, but fitted with Bridgestone tyres instead of Michelins.

He admitted there is still a lot to learn, but was pleased with his first day of work.

"It's been a really exciting day," said the Italian, who finished a second off teammate Dani Pedrosa's pace. "The bike feels good, it feels like an evolution of my 2008 bike, like a step forward, which is what I expected, so I'm happy.

"Compared to my 08 bike, the factory bike has many positive points, in particular the engine is both smoother and more powerful. Right from the start the stability at the front was very good.

"With the electronics, I need more time to learn and understand them, especially traction control as there are so many settings.

"I also tried Bridgestone tyres for the first time today, they seem fine, but I need to slightly adapt my riding style to get the best from them.

"All in all it was a positive first day but I still have a lot to learn. With my new team we start working step by step and I like this system."

Homecoming extra sweet for Burling

Dovizioso says bike lacking stability

Stoner dominates the Valencia GP

Casey Stoner has won the MotoGP season finale at Valencia in dominant fashion ahead of this year's title rivals Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi.

It was a rather uneventful 30-lap race where positions were pretty much settled after the first six laps and gaps started to widen thereafter.

Stoner made a good getaway from pole position but Pedrosa did better from the second slot to take the lead at the first corner. But the Ducati Marlboro rider fought back at the next curve, got back ahead, and never relinquished the lead again.

Pedrosa managed to keep his Repsol Honda close to Stoner for the first few laps, but by lap eight the gap had opened up to one second and would keep on increasing until the end, when it became four seconds.

This year's champion Rossi, after a difficult qualifying session that saw him starting tenth with his Fiat Yamaha, was seventh by the end of the first lap, fifth by lap five, and third on lap six, when he went by Tech 3's Colin Edwards and the factory Honda of Nicky Hayden.

On the same lap JiR Honda's Andrea Dovizioso stayed with Rossi and was himself able to overtake the two Americans to slot into fourth.

Rossi went on to finish almost nine seconds behind Stoner, with Dovizioso classified fourth a further three seconds back.

Two seconds down the road, Hayden took fifth, with Edwards trailing in sixth six seconds behind his countryman.

Honda Gresini's Shinya Nakano finished in seventh ahead of Fiat Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo, who made a good recovery to finish eighth after a difficult weekend and a charge from outside the top ten in the race.

Loris Capirossi took his Rizla Suzuki to ninth place, with Alex de Angelis's Honda Gresini inheriting tenth after Marco Melandri made a mistake on the penultimate lap and dropped down to 16th after what had been a good race that saw him overtake several riders with his works Ducati.

Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 46:46.114 2. Dani Pedrosa Honda (B) + 3.390 3. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) + 12.194 4. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) + 24.159 5. Nicky Hayden Honda (M) + 26.232 6. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) + 32.209 7. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) + 34.571 8. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) + 35.661 9. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) + 38.228 10. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) + 47.583 11. James Toseland Yamaha (M) + 52.107 12. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) + 52.350 13. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) + 52.833 14. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) + 53.227 15. Randy de Puniet Honda (M) + 53.411 16. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) +1:08.387 17. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) +1:11.181 18. Toni Elias Ducati (B) +1:37.055

Stoner dominates Valencia warm-up

Dovizioso pleased to leave JiR in style

Andrea Dovizioso bid an emotional farewell to his JiR Team Scot outfit with a strong fourth place in the Valencia Grand Prix.

The MotoGP rookie, who after seven seasons with the Italian squad in all three classes will move to the factory Repsol Honda team, had a highly successful season that saw him finishing fifth in the standings and best of the customer riders.

"This was my last race with my team, with whom I've been with for seven consecutive years," said the 22-year-old . "I still remember when running in the Italian Championship, being contacted by them to join the team.

"From tomorrow I will be an official Honda rider and this is the achievement of a dream, but there is also sorrow to leave a team that has always believed in me, that gave me the opportunity to contest the MotoGP championship.

"We have had a good season, often in front of 'official' factory machines and we achieved all the goals we set ourselves."

Dovizioso made a good start at the Ricardo Tormo track today from ninth on the grid to immediately slot behind the man he will replace next year, Nicky Hayden, and Colin Edwards's Tech 3 Yamaha.

He managed to pass them both on lap six while following Valentino Rossi's Fiat Yamaha, but wasn't able to keep up with this year's world champion.

"Today in the race, I started well but after that I knew things would become difficult," he explained. "I lost time overtaking both Nicky Hayden and James Toseland (he means teammate Edwards), but I was not able to stay with (Ducati Marlboro's race winner) Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi."

Dovizioso says he has already handed his customer Honda to now-former 250cc rider Yuki Takahashi, who has been promoted by the team to MotoGP, and is now thinking of his future with HRC, which will start tomorrow in the first post-season test.

"For next year I will have a motorcycle which I can develop and also I will have a new team with different working methods," he said.

"I know I must still improve, I will have to understand how to steer the development of the motorcycle, and in the race I must be more consistent. There will be equality of tyres also, which will be good for me."

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Dovizioso thrilled to be top Honda

Hyndman praises resurgent Hoops

Rossi satisfied with recovery

Valentino Rossi was pleased to end his season with a podium finish at Valencia after a poor qualifying performance had left him back on the fourth row.

The Yamaha rider, who wrapped up his sixth world title in Japan a month ago, cut through the field in the opening stages, passing Nicky Hayden for third place on lap four and holding the position to the end of the race.

"Unfortunately yesterday we got everything wrong and I had to start from the fourth row," Rossi said. "We always struggle too much on this track.

"However, to finish with a podium and a good recovery is positive, most of all for all the guys who work with me, and for all my fans.

"We modified the settings and I had a great start. In the first laps I was able to overtake all the guys in front quite quickly. Dani was not so far ahead and I tried to push but we were not at 100 per cent today."

Rossi's third place marked his 16th podium finish of the season - a new record in a season that had already seen him break Giacomo Agostini's all-time wins record in the premier class.

"It's always positive to beat records, especially when the records are yours already," he told Italia 1 television.

Sikora to return in time for playoff push

Ever-positive attitude key for Zayner

Stoner vows to attack more in 2009

Casey Stoner has vowed to produce a stronger challenge for the 2009 championship after admitting he was highly dissatisfied with his unsuccessful title defence this year.

Last season's world champion began 2008 with an opening round victory in Qatar, but then endured a string of difficult races in the spring. He rebounded with a hat-trick of dominant mid-season wins, only for consecutive crashes at Brno and Misano, then the recurrence of a wrist injury, to spoil the second half of his championship.

"I don't know if you can call it defending a title when you're behind for the whole championship," said Stoner.

"I think next year I'd like to try and attack again, but as for a defence, I don't think I did a very good job because apart from the first race we weren't leading the championship at any stage during it. We were the ones attacking the whole time.

"Going into next year we want to try to really get everything 100 per cent. I'm really looking forward to testing the new bike and getting underway."

Stoner will test Ducati's 2009 bike at Valencia today and tomorrow before undergoing surgery on his damaged scaphoid. He had postponed the operation to ensure he was able to participate in the test, and intends to be fit in time for the pre-season sessions next February.

"Luckily we're not going to miss out on too much testing and testing will start as normal next season," said Stoner.

"Hopefully we're going to time it right and hopefully my arm will be back up to strength by the time testing comes next year. I'm quite sure it will be.

"These next two days are the important ones for us to get an understanding of the new tyres and how the rules are going to work, and also our new bike. We've got a couple of big days ahead of us. We've got a lot of different things to try, and then straight after that we've got to go straight in for surgery.

"It's going to be a little bit difficult to train over the winter but we're going to do everything we can without this hand, and then by the time next year comes we should have started moving it and we should be ready to come out."

Hoops hoping to reignite attack

Stoner could limit practice mileage

Stoner vows to end season on a high

Simoncelli snatches pole from Debon

Metis Gilera's Marco Simoncelli snatched his seventh pole position of the year from Alex Debon ahead of the 250cc Valencia Grand Prix.

The newly-crowned champion from Italy trailed the Lotus Aprilia Spaniard for most of the 45-minute session, but just as the time expired, Simoncelli set a lap of 1:35.408 to beat Debon by one tenth of a second.

Julian Simon qualified his Repsol KTM in third, ahead of the Red Bull KTM of Mika Kallio.

Kallio's teammate Hiroshi Aoyama will lead the second row of the grid, with Alvaro Bautista's Aspar Aprilia in sixth, Ratthapark Wilairot's Thai Honda in seventh, and Roberto Locatelli's Metis Gilera in eighth.

Aspar Aprilia's Hector Faubel will start the race from the ninth slot and JiR Honda's Yuki Takahashi from the tenth.

Toni Wirsing crashed his German Honda with five minutes of the session remaining, quickly followed two minutes later by Karel Abraham crashing his Cardion Aprilia.

Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1:35.408 2. Alex Debon Aprilia 1:35.418 + 0.010 3. Julian Simon KTM 1:35.964 + 0.556 4. Mika Kallio KTM 1:36.194 + 0.786 5. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM 1:36.267 + 0.859 6. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 1:36.419 + 1.011 7. Ratthapark Wilairot Honda 1:36.568 + 1.160 8. Roberto Locatelli Gilera 1:36.573 + 1.165 9. Hector Faubel Aprilia 1:36.635 + 1.227 10. Yuki Takahashi Honda 1:36.654 + 1.246 11. Thomas Luthi Aprilia 1:36.832 + 1.424 12. Aleix Espargaró Aprilia 1:36.841 + 1.433 13. Lukas Pesek Aprilia 1:36.892 + 1.484 14. Mattia Pasini Aprilia 1:37.047 + 1.639 15. Fabrizio Lai Gilera 1:37.400 + 1.992 16. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1:37.455 + 2.047 17. Simone Grotzki Giorgi Gilera 1:37.803 + 2.395 18. Imre Toth Aprilia 1:38.245 + 2.837 19. Federico Sandi Aprilia 1:38.592 + 3.184 20. Karel Abraham Aprilia 1:38.641 + 3.233 21. Manuel Hernandez Aprilia 1:38.874 + 3.466 22. Daniel Arcas Aprilia 1:39.182 + 3.774 23. Doni Tata Pradita Yamaha 1:40.593 + 5.185 24. Alen Gyorfi Aprilia 1:41.075 + 5.667 25. Toni Wirsing Honda 1:41.974 + 6.566

Barbera beats Simoncelli to pole

Hayden frustrated to miss pole

Nicky Hayden admitted that he was frustrated not to be on pole at Valencia having been fastest in all three practice sessions.

The American is determined to end his long Honda career in style this weekend, as he will leave the works Repsol squad for the factory Ducati team after this race.

But ultimately he had to settle for the outside front row spot in qualifying, behind his future teammate Casey Stoner and current teammate Dani Pedrosa.

"We're on the front row, so I guess I shouldn't be too bummed, but things had gone really good this weekend and it would've been really nice to be on pole," said Hayden.

"I thought we had a chance at it. I did a 1:32.0 and I knew to get down into the mid-1:31s I was going to have to really hang it out and push hard, and I did. I pushed a little bit too hard in a few places, I was a little bit loose."

Hayden held provisional pole for much of the session, having made some early qualifying tyre runs when rain briefly threatened mid-way through the session.

He then returned to working on his race set-up when the drizzle cleared, and felt this might have hampered his later flying laps.

"That hour went quickly this afternoon. We went out on race tyres and tried to get up to speed and get some settings," said Hayden.

"When it started to rain, the team did a great job - they had the other bike set up with qualifiers in, so I came in and used two and got in a pretty decent time then went back and tried some stuff on race tyres.

"But it's hard to go from qualifier back to race tyre, and it was a little bit sketchy."

The American was the best Michelin runner in the French company's final MotoGP qualifying session. While disappointed not to give the firm a farewell pole, he is optimistic that he can fight for victory in tomorrow's race.

"It would've been nice to be on pole today for Michelin's last race," said Hayden. "They did a lot for me.

"But all in all, we're on the front row, the team's done a great job this weekend and is working really hard for me, so we just need to try and get a result tomorrow when it really counts."

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Dovizioso content with top ten start

Andrea Dovizioso declared himself satisfied with his ninth place on the grid for the Valencia Grand Prix.

The JIR Team Scot Honda rider had been lying as high as fifth late in the session, but was pushed back by the likes of James Toseland and Loris Capirossi in the final 90 seconds, leaving him with mixed feelings.

"I'm fairly happy with this third row," he told Italia 1 telvision. "I was hoping for the second, but third isn't bad, because it's very difficult to overtake here in the first two corners, so it's important to start well.

"However, the problem isn't the start, it's that we've tested really little in the dry, so we don't know the tyres and the set-up much for tomorrow. Let's hope the warm-up will be in good conditions."

Dovizioso said he was delighted with the way his rookie Moto GP season has gone, ahead of his final race for the JIR Team Scot Honda squad and is looking to consolidate his fifth place in the riders' championship in Sunday's race.

"Fifth place immediately behind the works riders, the strongest ones... we've also fought against them in some races," the Italian, who will switch to the factory Honda squad next year, added.

"We know full well the difference between satellite teams and the factory ones, even more this year, so we should be happy. And on top of that we got our first podium, in the last race we had in Malaysia. That was the icing on the cake. Let's keep that.

"Leaving JIR Team Scot in these conditions is the best possible way. They're intelligent, they understand - in fact are proud - that also thanks to them I got to where I am going now."

Dovizioso happy to be top Michelin man

Dovizioso thrilled to be top Honda

Gearbox problems thwart Melandri

Marco Melandri's Valencia Grand Prix was blighted by a gearbox problem that robbed him of a top ten finish.

After opting to switch to his spare Ducati GP8 following his sighting lap, Melandri, racing for the Italian team for the last time, put in his best performance for almost half a season, gradually working his way up to tenth place and challenging Jorge Lorenzo for ninth.

But a gearbox glitch a few laps from the end of the race ruined his progress, sending him into the gravel and down to a disappointing 16th spot by the end of the race.

"The feeling today was a bit better," Melandri told Italia 1 TV. "I started calmly because I usually struggle a lot at the start, while today everything was better.

"Unfortunately at the end while changing down from second to first the gearbox remained in neutral and I didn't manage to stop. I almost fell, but by the time I was in first gear I was already in the gravel."

Melandri said that the race summed up a season that many predicted would result in him challenging Casey Stoner for the number one position in the team, but has fallen a long way short of expectations.

The Italian rider could only manage 17th place in the final championship positions, although he is not keen to put the blame on the team.

"Unfortunately this has been a bit the story of my season: when things looked like starting to go better, I would always drop down in the tunnel again," he added.

"It's been a very difficult year for me and for all boys in the garage working with me. They've always worked very hard, but unfortunately something didn't work and we couldn't do anything good."

"I think it's a mixture of things. I think that to go back over the mistakes to see who made them and why is useless for me, it wouldn't give me a better future.

"So I just want to think about the present, get ready for tomorrow, and leave behind the past. It's been a difficult year, I suffered and it was useful experience."

Melandri, who will race for Kawasaki next year, will have his first ride on the Ninja machine on Monday at Valencia.

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Nakano leaves Gresini with seventh

Shinya Nakano was pleased to leave Gresini Honda - and possibly MotoGP - on a high by charging to seventh place at the Valencia Grand Prix.

Nakano only started 15th on the grid, but battled his way through the field to finish ahead of Jorge Lorenzo, a race-winner from earlier this year.

The Japanese rider attributed much of his late-race pace to the team's decision to choose hard Bridgestone tyres for the race.

"I'm happy with seventh place today because it was important for me to get to the finish line, which is why I pushed hard but without taking too many risks," Nakano said.

"Considering that I started the race from fifteenth I had to be very focused to make up positions at the start, taking another couple of riders over the opening laps before catching [Colin] Edwards, although it was difficult to get past him.

"We had gone for a hard tyre with an eye on the later stages of the race and I think we made a good choice. I'm satisfied with this season because over the final few races in particular we've had some good races and despite a couple of ups and downs I'm happy with how it's all gone."

Nakano, who looks likely join Aprilia in World Superbikes in 2009, leaves Gresini after a year with the Italian squad in which he took ninth place in the riders' standings - his best championship finish since his rookie season in 2001.

"I want to thank Team Gresini and my fans for their support and I will go away with great memories of the people I have had the pleasure to work with this season."

Team boss Fausto Gresini praised the work done by Nakano for the squad as they prepare for a 2009 campaign with Alex de Angelis and Toni Elias on board.

Gresini said: "This is the end of what hasn't been an easy season for us but I'm happy with the results today. I want to say a huge 'thank you' to Shinya, who has worked with true dedication with us, and we wish him all the best for his future career."

MotoGP: Gresini criticises de Angelis for crash

Stoner dominates Valencia warm-up

Casey Stoner dominated the warm-up ahead of this afternoon's Valencia MotoGP, as the four quickest riders of the morning fully reflect yesterday's qualifying.

The Ducati Marlboro rider was never challenged for the top spot throughout the sunny 25-minute session. The Australian set his best time of 1:32.844 with ten minutes remaining, with the closest rival - Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa - ending up over half a second behind.

Pedrosa's teammate Nicky Hayden, who crashed his bike with nine minutes of the session to go and had to walk back to the pits, was third quickest a further two tenths behind the Spaniard.

Just six thousandths of a second behind Hayden was fellow American Colin Edwards with his Tech 3 Yamaha, while Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi had a better session today by ending up fifth, eight tenths behind Stoner, after having qualified down in tenth place yesterday.

Randy de Puniet was the quickest customer Honda rider today with his LCR entry in sixth, ahead of the satellite Hondas of Alex de Angelis (Gresini), Andrea Dovizioso (JiR) and Shinya Nakano (Gresini).

Chris Vermeulen completes the top ten with his Rizla Suzuki, followed by Marco Melandri's works Ducati and Jorge Lorenzo's factory Yamaha.

Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 1:32.844 2. Daniel Pedrosa Honda (B) 1:33.382 + 0.538 3. Nicky Hayden Honda (M) 1:33.599 + 0.755 4. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) 1:33.605 + 0.761 5. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 1:33.676 + 0.832 6. Randy de Puniet Honda (M) 1:33.749 + 0.905 7. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) 1:33.973 + 1.129 8. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) 1:33.982 + 1.138 9. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 1:34.010 + 1.166 10. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 1:34.252 + 1.408 11. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 1:34.280 + 1.436 12. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 1:34.328 + 1.484 13. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) 1:34.338 + 1.494 14. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 1:34.515 + 1.671 15. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) 1:34.587 + 1.743 16. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 1:34.700 + 1.856 17. Toni Elias Ducati (B) 1:34.957 + 2.113 18. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 1:34.992 + 2.148

MotoGP: Edwards tops Le Mans warm-up

Hayden dominates wet first session

Lorenzo impressed with Michelin wets

Jorge Lorenzo believes the Michelin runners will be in good shape if today's rain continues for the rest of the Valencia MotoGP weekend.

The Spaniard was third fastest in both Friday practice sessions in his home country, while fellow Michelin user Nicky Hayden led the way all day for Honda.

"It's a pity to be coming to Spain in the rain but anyway we made a good start today and I am quite happy," said Lorenzo.

"This morning was very wet and it was quite difficult to ride, but this afternoon the conditions were a bit better and I was able to be quite a lot faster and also do some good work on the set-up of my bike.

"My Michelin tyres are working well in the rain and I think we can make some more progress tomorrow if it's like this again, although of course I hope for sunshine."

Lorenzo's Yamaha team manager Daniele Romagnoli agreed that while they were in good shape for a wet race, they were also eager to get some dry running.

"This has been a positive and useful day for us," he said. "We found a good base to work from in the wet and the bike and our Michelin tyres are working well so far.

"We need to improve some areas for tomorrow, especially in the front end, and so we will work on refining this setting if this weather continues. Of course we hope for a dry session before the race so we can be prepared for all conditions."

Lorenzo is running a special one-off livery on his Yamaha for his home event.

"It has the flags of all the countries where I have won and was designed by a member of the public in an Italian competition," he explained. "It's all of 'Lorenzo's Lands'!"

Dovizioso happy to be top Michelin man

Hoops aim to protect turf vs. United

Toseland hopes set-up changes succeed

James Toseland is optimistic that he knows how to fix the set-up issues that left him languishing in 16th place in Friday practice at Valencia, but admitted he needs a drastic improvement in performance if the wet conditions continue tomorrow.

The Tech 3 Yamaha rider had high hopes for the Valencia event having twice won at the track in World Superbikes, but struggled throughout today's sessions.

"It was a tough day and we've got to find something to improve because the forecasts are for more rain tomorrow, and I need to find a bit more from the bike," said Toseland.

"I just didn't have a very good feeling and I'm not happy, but I've got some ideas. In those greasy conditions I just haven't got enough feel from the rear and we need to find a lot more contact with the rear tyre. It feels a bit like riding around on eggshells at the moment.

"I'm not too far away but I've definitely got to make a step with the direction I think will work. I just need more weight on the rear to give me more confidence.

"This wasn't the start I wanted with tenth place in the championship to battle for on Sunday, but I'm confident we can make some big improvements."

But his teammate Colin Edwards was more encouraged after taking sixth in the morning and 11th later on.

"We started with the rain setting I used to back at Donington Park and it felt fine, but it uses quite a lot of weight on the front," said the American.

"So we tweaked it to get some more weight on the rear tyre and I felt pretty good. I'm really happy with the soft rain tyre that Michelin has got. This track is pretty tough to judge in the rain but with the softer tyre I'm reasonably happy with my pace.

"I tried a couple of harder tyres and didn't have the same confidence, but the soft tyre we are not sure if it will have the endurance for 30 laps if it rains on Sunday. I'm going to try and make some more changes with the team overnight to get a bit more weight on the rear to see if we can just to get a bit more confidence."

Chivas hope to use win as springboard

Tweaked lineup probable for Wizards

Toseland devastated by crashes

Stoner beats Hondas to Valencia pole

Casey Stoner took his ninth pole position of the season ahead of tomorrow's MotoGP season finale at Valencia.

With a time of 1:31.502 set with eight minutes remaining in the one-hour session, the Ducati Marlboro beat the Repsol Honda pair of Dani Pedrosa, second only half a tenth behind the Australian, and Nicky Hayden, two tenths behind in third.

The American, who is racing for the final time with the Japanese manufacturer before moving to Ducati, set the pace for most of the session after having dominated proceedings in free practice, until Stoner took top spot with 14 minutes to go.

Yamaha had an odd qualifying session, with the customer-entered Tech 3 bikes of Colin Edwards and James Toseland leading the second row of the grid and beating the Fiat-sponsored factory entries.

Jorge Lorenzo qualified only in seventh, while newly-crowned champion Valentino Rossi was down in a lowly tenth place, almost 1.5 seconds behind Stoner.

Randy de Puniet, who after the first quarter of the session was gone crashed his LCR Honda and had to run back to the pits, will start the race from the sixth slot.

The Frenchman's crash happened ten minutes after Marco Melandri escaped unscathed after throwing his works Ducati against the barriers, and five minutes before the flag signalling rain on track was shown.

This prompted several riders to make early qualifying tyre runs, but ultimately the shower was extremely brief and light, and the session was not disrupted.

Rizla Suzuki's Loris Capirossi qualified eighth and JiR Honda's Andrea Dovizioso ninth.

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

MotoGP: Rossi blistering in opening practice

West critical of Kawasaki

Anthony West has warned his Kawasaki replacement Marco Melandri that he will need to inspire change within the team if he is to be competitive in 2009.

The Australian, who is moving to the World Supersports championship with Team Stiggy, told Motosprint that the team must work harder to make the ZX-RR Ninja work with Bridgestone's tyres.

"I hope Melandri doesn't come to Kawasaki too fired up, because he'll quickly realize that if Kawasaki don't change radically, he will again be at the bottom of the points table," West told the Italian magazine. "Kawasaki's situation is embarrassing, as has been my situation throughout the year.

"I thank Kawasaki for having given me the chance to race in MotoGP, but they must do something otherwise they'll never come out of it.

"With our bike we've never been able to use the tyres used by [Valentino] Rossi and [Casey] Stoner," he added. "I tried to at Brno, and I would have liked to use them at Misano, but we weren't able anymore.

"We use a front that no one else uses. Perhaps only Suzuki are in as bad a shape as us..."

West added that things are so bad that he has been quicker since he reverted to a version of last year's bike.

"During testing at Brno I decided to get back to the 2007 bike and my performance has improved, and in fact I've been ahead of [John] Hopkins for the last few races," he said. He wanted to carry on with the new bike and he has only problems.

"In this final part of the season I set for myself [a target] to stay ahead of Hopkins and Melandri. In Australia I beat both of them, and also in Japan I was often quicker than them.

"I like being able to say that I'm losing the ride to give room to two riders who are going slower than me..."

Lenhart’s MLS career delays charity work

Melandri: Kawasaki will suit my style

Hayden eager to stay in front

Nicky Hayden is determined to maintain his momentum for the rest of the Valencia weekend after dominating Friday practice in wet conditions.

The American is keen to get a good result in his final race for Honda before joining Ducati, and made a perfect start to his farewell weekend as he topped the morning session by 0.7 seconds.

But he said that result will count for little unless he can carry that form through to the race.

"The bike, the team, everything was on point today, now we've just got to keep it rolling, because nobody's going to remember who was quickest Friday come Sunday night," said Hayden.

"The bike and tyres and everything worked pretty good straight away today. We've been using basically the same rain settings I've been using since Sachsenring, they've worked at different tracks and they're working good here, though this track doesn't have a lot of grip, so to go any faster we need to sweeten it up a bit."

Despite his speed in the wet, Hayden said he was keen for the weather to improve tomorrow, as Honda's forecast suggests it will.

"I like being fastest and if it means staying wet all weekend then that would be fine for me, but honestly I hope it dries up," he said.

"It's going to be a hard weekend, just trying to stay on top, everybody's pushing hard, but we're off to a good start and I'm having fun.

"If it dries up tomorrow we don't think finding a set-up should be too difficult, because the last couple of races we've been using relatively the same settings. The main thing is going to be tyre choice, that's going to be real tough, because there's not going to be much dry time, but it's the same for everybody."

His teammate Dani Pedrosa completed a Repsol Honda one-two in the afternoon, having been fourth in the wetter conditions of first practice.

"It rained pretty much the whole day and the asphalt was quite slippery," said the Spaniard. "In these conditions we couldn't work so much on the set-up,
but anyway we were able to find a good compromise that allowed us to be quite fast.

"During the afternoon session the track dried out a little bit up, so we were able to improve our lap times and ride with a good rhythm.

"My Bridgestone wet tyres worked well today, but I hope that we can have two dry sessions tomorrow so that we can work on the set-up in preparation for the race."

Hayden: Tyre issues a learning experience

Hayden laments set-up problems

Hayden content enough with fourth

Hayden dominates wet first session

A fired-up Nicky Hayden set the pace in the first free practice session for the MotoGP finale at Valencia this weekend.

Amidst a backdrop of heavy rain and miserably cold conditions - fitting given the wet weather theme of this year's world championship - the American rider began his final weekend for Honda in dominant style.

Casey Stoner was second fastest for Ducati but was lucky to emerge unscathed from a nasty high-side at the top of the hill into the last corner.

Jorge Lorenzo was third fastest, sporting a new FIAT colour scheme on his Yamaha, while Malaysia poleman Dani Pedrosa was fourth fastest on the second Repsol bike.

Wet weather specialist Sylvain Guitoli was fifth fastest as he begun his last weekend with Alice Ducati well, ahead of Colin Edwards on the Tech 3 Yamaha.

The Texan was one of only a few riders to go on track late in the session, most having given up on the water-logged circuit long before the hour was up.

Newly-crowned world champion Valentino Rossi (13th), for example, spent most of the time in his garage talking to the Yamaha mechanics.

Anthony West was seventh for Kawasaki, with Chris Vermuelen, Shinya Nakano and Andrea Dovizioso completing the top ten.

Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Nicky Hayden Honda (M) 1:47.694 2. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 1:48.469 + 0.775 3. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 1:49.037 + 1.343 4. Daniel Pedrosa Honda (B) 1:49.580 + 1.886 5. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) 1:49.887 + 2.193 6. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) 1:50.077 + 2.383 7. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 1:50.397 + 2.703 8. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 1:50.760 + 3.066 9. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 1:50.879 + 3.185 10. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) 1:51.098 + 3.404 11. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 1:51.210 + 3.516 12. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 1:51.251 + 3.557 13. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 1:51.721 + 4.027 14. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) 1:52.798 + 5.104 15. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) 1:52.960 + 5.266 16. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 1:53.083 + 5.389 17. Toni Elías Ducati (B) 1:53.119 + 5.425 18. Randy de Puniet Honda (B) 1:54.199 + 6.505

U.S. dominant in World Cup qualifier

MotoGP: Edwards tops Le Mans warm-up

West surprises in final free practice

Stoner could limit practice mileage

Casey Stoner says he is prepared to limit his mileage during the Valencia Grand Prix weekend to ensure he is fit enough to test the 2009 Ducati next week.

The Australian has been struggling with a recurrent wrist injury in recent months, but decided to postpone the necessary operation until the winter because he was determined to participate in the first fully-fledged test of the GP9 bike at Valencia next Monday and Tuesday.

"I want to be okay for Monday and Tuesday," Stoner told reporters in Spain.

"It's a very important test for us, and this is why we've continued with the season, to try and not just finish the season strongly, but to test the GP9 before I have to take the operation.

"I suppose I don't want to destroy myself over the weekend, so we'll see how everything is performing. Maybe the cooler weather is a little bit better for us, it might help on a circuit like this.

"We'll see how we go, as we go along - see how many laps we need to do, and if it's becoming tired quickly or not, and just do the correct amount of practice that we need.

"If things aren't going right then we need of course to do more laps, but if things start to become too much, then maybe we'll skip something."

Stoner said he stood by his decision to continue racing while waiting for the operation, as he had been informed by doctors that the injury would progress in the same way regardless of whether he was riding or not.

"I wouldn't have been riding if it was going to get worse," he insisted.

"I don't want to just sit out a race if there is a small possibility for me to compete. There was no point doing the operation any earlier because we wanted to do this last test.

"So there was no point not racing - you may as well be out there learning, getting more experience, more knowledge of the bike. You learn something new almost every weekend, and this is important going into next year."

The former champion added that he cannot wait to test the new Ducati, having first sampled the carbon fibre chassis during a brief run in Barcelona testing earlier this year.

"When I first rode those laps, all I wanted to do was ride that bike for the rest of the season," said Stoner.

"To have a great feeling with it from lap two - I was quicker than I had been all weekend - that's pretty good.

"The engine wasn't configured correctly at Barcelona. There wasn't the power that we have now, and there were a lot of weak points in it. We only had half an hour on the bike, so I think it's necessary to get more of an understanding of it. All we needed to know at the Barcelona test was that we were going in the right direction. Now we're starting to do testing.

"Everything I've relayed to Filippo (Preziosi) and the team about what I want the bike to do, it seems to be doing. We know it performed in Barcelona, it's going to be great if it works here too."

Stoner will finally undergo the wrist operation next week, two days after the test is completed. Having been carrying the injury since late summer, he is now extremely keen to fix the problem.

"It's been a bit heavy, this last part," he said. "We just seem to be hanging in there, but never really on top of things.

"It's nice to know that very soon now, we're going to be getting things sorted, fixed up, and ready for next year - when there are going to be no problems, no excuses, and we can get on with racing again. I'm really looking forward to that."

Barcelona tops Guadalajara in friendly

Stoner blames tyre issue for crash

Talmacsi scores comfortable win

2007 world champion Gabor Talmacsi took a comfortable victory in the 125cc race at the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang.

The Hungarian moved into the lead at the start, and despite some early pressure from Andrea Iannone, never looked like being beaten as he opened a gap over the rest of the field, winning by three seconds.

Iannone's early pace proved to be costly for him in the end, slipping to tenth by the end of the race. Instead, it was Bradley Smith who was the only rider who looked like being any threat to Talmacsi in the closing laps, moving into third early in the race before taking second just before half-distance, but unable to catch the winner.

The battle for third was hot throughout the race, Smith involved in the early laps, Iannone later in the race, along with Stefan Bradl, Simone Corsi, Pol Espargaro and Sandro Cortese. Bradl's hopes ended when he was forced to retire at two-thirds distance.

In the closing laps the group was whittled down to a battle between di Meglio, Corsi and Cortese, the trio entering the final lap in that order.

And so it stayed until the final corner, when Corsi and Cortese both passed di Meglio, Corsi taking the final podium place ahead of Cortese as the 2008 world champion fell from third to fifth.

CLASSIFIED: Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia 43:00.716 2. Bradley Smith Aprilia + 3.416 3. Simone Corsi Aprilia + 6.896 4. Sandro Cortese Aprilia + 6.925 5. Mike di Meglio Derbi + 7.115 6. Pol Espargaro Derbi + 15.122 7. Joan Olive Derbi + 21.805 8. Dominique Aegerter Derbi + 21.869 9. Nicolas Terol Aprilia + 21.958 10. Andrea Iannone Aprilia + 23.615 11. Tomoyoshi Koyama KTM + 23.651 12. Sergio Gadea Aprilia + 35.224 13. Lorenzo Zanetti KTM + 40.502 14. Pablo Nieto KTM + 51.404 15. Adrian Martin Aprilia + 55.726 16. Jules Cluzel Loncin + 56.537 17. Jonas Folger KTM +1:07.140 18. Marco Ravaioli Aprilia +1:07.573 19. Randy Krummenacher KTM +1:07.741 20. Robin Lasser Aprilia +1:08.849 21. Bastien Chesaux Aprilia +1:46.609 22. Robert Muresan Aprilia + 1 lap NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS: Rider Bike Laps Esteve Rabat KTM 17 Stevie Bonsey Aprilia 12 Stefan Bradl Aprilia 11 Scott Redding Aprilia 11 Hugo van den Berg Aprilia 11 Raffaele de Rosa KTM 8 Danny Webb Aprilia 8 Enrique Jerez KTM 8 Alexis Masbou Loncin 6

Iannone claims maiden win

Gomez trying to find role with Rapids

Rossi: I have a score to settle at Valencia

Valentino Rossi says he has a score to settle with the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia at the coming weekend's MotoGP finale after his last two races at the track.

He fell early in the 2006 race, confirming Nicky Hayden as the champion, and crashed again last year, losing second in the standings to Dani Pedrosa.

The Italian is eager to return to form in the race this weekend at the circuit where he won in 2003 and 2004.

"I've had two bad years at Valencia and I have some memories I would like to forget with a good result there this year," said Rossi. "I have an account to settle!"

"In 2006 I crashed and lost the championship, then last year I broke my hand and lost second place. It's not the best track for us, but I won there with Yamaha in my first year with them and I would like to do the same again this weekend.

"It's been a fantastic season and the win on Sunday in Malaysia was great, but I am not finished yet and I want to reward my team, Yamaha and Bridgestone for a fantastic season with the possible result on Sunday. Then we can all celebrate with a big party."

Rossi always expected Sepang win

Suzuki predict strong finish at Valencia

Hoops, Rapids settle on tie

Pedrosa: Honda are closing on Yamaha

Suzuki predict strong finish at Valencia

The Rizla Suzuki team are expecting a strong end to the season in this weekend's MotoGP finale at Valencia.

The team expect the twisty nature of the Ricardo Tormo circuit to suit the agile but down on power GSV-R and both riders are confident of finishing the year on a high.

Loris Capirossi has finished on the podium three times at Valencia and hopes to keep both factory Suzukis in the top ten of the championship with another points finish this weekend.

"I think Valencia will be good for us because it is not really a quick track and our bike is good for handling and braking, so we hope to go really well," said Capirossi.

"The weather can sometimes be very difficult there because it can be quite cold, but I believe we can go really fast in Valencia. It is the last race and is a good opportunity to start working on how we want to continue next year."

Chris Vermeulen could still pinch seventh in the standings from Colin Edwards with a strong finish at Valencia and he too expects the circuit to suit his bike.

"Valencia is a great circuit and it suits us with it not having very long straights. The Suzuki works well on the tight and twisty type of circuit and last year we were very quick there.

"I'm really looking forward to going back. Hopefully, we can stand on the podium one more time this year. That's the plan and I really think it is possible."

Capirossi looking ahead to 2009

Pedrosa: Honda are closing on Yamaha

Dani Pedrosa believes Honda are closing the gap on Yamaha after taking second behind Valentino Rossi at Sepang.

The Spaniard, who has gradually gained pace since switching to Bridgestone tyres following Misano, led the first half of the Malaysian Grand Prix but ultimately had to settle for second behind Rossi.

But Pedrosa was encouraged by his speed relative to the champion's Yamaha.

"At the end Rossi was faster than me," he admitted. "Usually at the end he puts on pressure and it's difficult to follow him, but we were closer this time.

"So I'm happy that we can reverse it with the new bike. We are getting faster every race, which was important, so if we can get closer at the next race this means we are going in a good way."

He was particularly pleased with second place given that he had been off the pace at the start of the weekend.

"In first practice I was 17th I think, so I started from the back and then came back to the top with pole position yesterday," said Pedrosa.

"So finally the result this weekend was good for me and my team. We made a step after the crash in Phillip Island, where I hurt my knee."

The season concludes with Pedrosa's home race at Valencia next weekend. He dominated the event last year and is keen to repeat that result.

"It's a special place. All my people are there so I'm happy to go to Valencia," said Pedrosa. "I hope the track is full of people and we can have a good race there."

Hartman closing on MLS save mark

Lorenzo disappointed after early exit

Fiat Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo was very disappointed after crashing out of today's MotoGP race in Malaysia.

The Spaniard wasn't happy afterwards and was down on his own performance in today's race as well as in recent events, having crashed out after starting from the front row alongside race winner Valentino Rossi and second-place finisher Dani Pedrosa.

"I didn't feel good today and I was riding much worse than yesterday," said a disappointed Lorenzo. "I was having some problems in braking and acceleration and this is really a pity because I thought I had the chance to be on the podium today.

Lorenzo was not that surprised by his exit, having struggled with tyres at the start of the race as well as experiencing a few moments before falling at turn one on lap twelve.

"I had many problems with my tyres in the first few laps and in fact I had a lot of warnings about the crash, but in the end I just couldn't avoid it. I got a bad start and it seems this part of the race is getting more difficult every time.

"If I had a better start I could have tried to go with Valentino and Pedrosa but today was terrible. We have to change something here because at the moment it's quite difficult.

"Apart from these problems I know I didn't have the same feeling in myself as I had yesterday, so it really wasn't a good day!"

Revs seek early goal boost at K.C.

Disastrous stretch dooms Crew

Noonan’s journey reaches MLS goal

Gibernau set to confirm 2009 comeback

Sete Gibernau's return to MotoGP is set to be confirmed when the Onde 2000 team launch their satellite Ducati project at Valencia on Thursday.

The 35-year-old Spaniard, who has not raced since losing his Ducati ride at the end of 2006, has been at the centre of paddock speculation all year.

He was strongly linked to a shock mid-season return to the factory Ducati squad having tested for the team in early summer, but the struggling Marco Melandri ultimately held on to his seat for the remainder of the championship.

Gibernau's comeback will instead be with the new Onde 2000 operation, which will be run by Angel Nieto Jr and Pablo Nieto, sons of the legendary Angel Nieto.

A nine-team MotoGP race winner, Gibernau's finest moments came in 2003 and 2004, when he finished second in the championship behind Valentino Rossi while riding for Gresini Honda, but his career seemed to be over when he chose to retire after being dropped by Ducati following an injury-blighted 2006 season.

With Pramac Racing having confirmed today that they will continue to run two satellite Ducatis next season after signing MotoGP rookies Mika Kallio and Niccolo Canepa, Ducati will have five bikes on the 2009 grid.

Gibernau still in frame at Ducati

Gibernau to test for Ducati

Ducati confirm 2009 Melandri split

Rossi wins again in Malaysia

Fiat Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi took his ninth win of the season with a comfortable victory in the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang.

The Italian moved into second place on lap two following an unsuccessful attempt on lap one, and quickly moved onto the tail of leader Dani Pedrosa. Rossi then sat on Pedrosa's tail before taking the lead on lap 11 with a late-braking move around the back of the circuit, easing away to victory ahead of the Spaniard.

The battle behind them for third position was close throughout the race, Andrea Dovizioso in third ahead of Nicky Hayden, Casey Stoner and Shinya Nakano on lap two.

As the laps wound down Stoner struggled to keep up, Nakano eventually taking fifth from him on lap 16, quickly catching the duo ahead.

At the start of lap 18, Hayden took third from Dovizioso at turn one, only for Dovizioso to take it straight back on the exit, Hayden then taking the place back again at turn two.

But Dovizioso took the place back again just a couple of corners later, and although Hayden stayed right on his tail, the American couldn't make a pass, the young Italian taking his first MotoGP podium finish.

Hayden finished just behind Dovizioso in fourth, Nakano in fifth and Stoner in sixth. Loris Capirossi and Colin Edwards put in good performances to be within a few seconds of Stoner at the finish in seventh and eight positions.

Jorge Lorenzo, who caught the group battling for third and was in with a chance of a podium finish, fell at turn one on lap twelve. He remounted but pulled into the pits to retire at the end of the lap.

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

Stoner tops wet warm-up

MotoGP: Edwards tops Le Mans warm-up

Crew showcasing road quality

First-place Crew focused on finishing

Rossi wins first ever Indy MotoGP race

Capirossi felt podium was possible

Suzuki's Loris Capirossi was happy but felt a podium finish was possible in a tough race at Sepang today.

The Italian was hopeful of a top-three result but a couple of errors late in the race ended any hopes he had of getting on the podium, eventually finishing in seventh place.

"It has been a bit of a tough weekend, but I am quite happy today because I tried 100% all race and when you see a podium place that close it makes you try even harder," explained Capirossi.

"I struggled a bit to get past Colin as our bike still needs more speed to be able to overtake other riders - so that is still something we need to work on. Once I got past Colin I immediately caught up with Casey because he was quite a bit slower over the whole lap than me.

"I tried to overtake on turn two and then ran wide and he came back past, then on the next lap I went into a corner much faster to get past, but I touched the back of his bike and ran off the track! If I had got by Casey earlier I really believe I could have challenged for the podium, but it was not to be."

Teammate Chris Vermeulen was also set for a stronger finish than he achieved, running behind teammate Capirossi before struggling for front-end grip and losing ground, finishing in the points in ninth position.

"It was very hot today and that made it really difficult out there - the track was nearly 20 degrees hotter than it had been all weekend! I got a good start and felt very comfortable on the first lap.

"After a few laps I was right up with Loris and everything seemed to be working well, but I then had a few issues with front-end grip and that continued as the race went on.

"I thought we had enough pace to do better today, but that was the best we could manage and we have certainly taken some steps forward."

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Suzuki hopeful of good race performance

Rossi always expected Sepang win

Valentino Rossi said he had always suspected he would win the Malaysian Grand Prix after flying at Sepang during pre-season testing.

The champion took an ultimately dominant victory in today's race after passing early leader Dani Pedrosa at half-distance.

"It was a long, long race and was difficult, but I was prepared because I'd done a lot of simulations at this track in the winter," said Rossi.

"I wanted to win here in Sepang because we worked very hard on the M1 in the winter, and after the second simulation when we were very, very fast, I said to my tyre man 'we will win the grand prix'.

"I knew this track is very good for the Yamaha, and the type of corner is very suitable for my riding style."

Rossi put Pedrosa under pressure early on, before out-braking the Honda rider and pulling away.

"I wanted to try to attack Dani before, but he was very fast on the exit from the slow corners, so it was quite difficult," said the Italian.

"I had to wait a bit, because after five or six laps I looked at the laps remaining, and saw there was 16 left and just tried to concentrate. I was able to get closer and tried to attack. I knew I would have a good pace in front, I pushed hard and was able to take advantage.

"I have much more experience than Dani with these tyres, so it's quite normal that I am a bit faster, and also this weekend we worked very well."

He now hopes to take his tenth victory of the year in next week's season finale at Valencia, but admits that it could be tough to beat Pedrosa on his home ground - where he dominated in 2007.

"I know Valencia is very difficult for me, and also for the M1 it's not the best track," said Rossi, who lost the 2006 title to Nicky Hayden when he crashed at the Spanish circuit, and injured his hand there last year.

"But we've worked very well this year, and I'm due some luck at this track because last year I broke my hand and lost second place in the championship.

"So I want to have a good race in Valencia. I know Dani will be very strong there like he was last year, but we'll try anyway."

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Rossi happy after ‘tough’ race

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Suzuki expect to move forward in race

The Suzuki riders believe they are in better shape for the Malaysian Grand Prix than their qualifying positions suggest.

Loris Capirossi and Chris Vermeulen will start eight and 11th respectively, but had been higher up the order before the track dried and others improved.

However they believe they made some set-up breakthroughs during the session that will help them in all weathers.

"All weekend it has been hard to be competitive with the top riders, but it has been better than we expected and in the different conditions this afternoon we were certainly up with everybody else," said Capirossi.

"The whole team made a really good effort this afternoon because we tried many things and by the end of the session we had a really good setting.

"I made a mistake on my last tyre and that cost me some time, so I could have been a bit higher up the grid."

Vermeulen blamed his midfield position on traffic.

"On my last lap when the track was at its driest I got held up by (Marco) Melandri as he pulled in front of me, and I couldn't go off the dry line to get past him as it was still quite wet in places out there," he said.

But he was also very pleased with Suzuki's progress.

"I am disappointed with my grid position, but very happy with the way we worked during the whole session," said the Australian. "We were quick on wets, on in-between tyres and quick on the slicks. I am confident for any conditions tomorrow."

The team are running a third bike for test rider Nobuatsu Aoki this weekend as they evaluate 2009 components. He will start 18th.

"Nobu has stepped his game up today, and the quicker he goes the more interesting the data is from some of the new parts he is testing," said team boss Paul Denning.

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Rossi happy after 'tough' race

Valentino Rossi was happy with his ninth victory of the season after battling Dani Pedrosa in the early laps and hot weather conditions throughout the race.

The Italian found the conditions so tough to ride in that when he saw his pit board early in the race to see how many laps remained, he felt it was better to not care rather than wonder how he would be able to last the rest of the distance in the extreme heat.

"Unbelievable," explained Rossi. "It was very tough because the temperature is incredible. So it was a long, long race already after five or six laps. I start to see at the (pit) board how many laps remain, and I see one strange number, so maybe it's better I don't care!

He was happy to take the victory after spending the first half of the race in a battle with polesitter Dani Pedrosa, going on to take his ninth victory of his championship-winning season.

"Good start at the beginning, I have a hard battle with Dani, but after half-race I go in front, I know I have good pace and I make ten laps in front alone.

"This track is enjoyable but very very difficult, so I'm happy it's my ninth victory of the season."

Rossi felt that off-season testing at Sepang at the start of the year was crucial to his victory, with the bike suiting the Malaysian circuit and Rossi having confidence in the bike's and his own performance at the track.

"I'm very happy about this victory because we worked strongly on our M1 during the winter here in Sepang, and we know we have great potential because I like the track and the bike is suitable for these type of corners.

"When I arrive Friday morning I was scared, 'is OK or not OK?' but it was fast from the beginning."

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Nakano confident he can regain ground

Gresini Honda's Shinya Nakano is confident he can still salvage a good result from the Malaysian Grand Prix despite only taking 15th on the grid.

The Japanese rider had been rapid in practice - finishing every session in the top eight and leading the way in second practice until being edged back to fourth in the closing minutes.

But in the changeable conditions of qualifying, he tumbled back down to the midfield.

"It is a shame we haven't managed a higher grid position because I've been consistently fast here all weekend," said Nakano.

"Unfortunately I missed my final chance on a qualifying tyre because I was too late out onto the track to make the most of it."

However Nakano believes that his performances earlier in the weekend prove he is quick enough to come through the field in the race.

"In any case I am confident for the race because my pace is so good," he said.

"All I have to do is repeat that level of performance and I'll be able to have a good race."

Alex de Angelis fared even worse on the second Gresini bike, qualifying only 17th having also run out of time for a final quick lap on the drying circuit.

"Unfortunately we only got one lap in on a qualifying tyre - we went out late on the second one and the flag was waved before I got the flying lap in," said the Italian.

"We were unlucky because the track was visibly much drier so I'm sure I could have finished in the top ten."

Hoops struggling to regain form

Americans confident going forward

Stoner surprised to be on pole

West surprises in final free practice

Kawasaki rider Anthony West sprung a surprise by setting the fastest time in final free practice for this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix at the Sepang circuit near Kuala Lumpur.

For virtually the whole session, another Australian topped the times in the form of 2007 world champion Casey Stoner, the Ducati rider ultimately setting his best effort of 2:02.120 with 20 minutes of the one-hour session remaining.

But in the dying seconds of the session he was eclipsed by West with a time of 2:02.116, four-thousandths of a second faster than the Ducati.

The top of the order finished closely bunched, with Fiat Yamaha teammates Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Ross, and Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa all less than two-tenths behind West, with Andrea Dovizioso and Shinya Nakano, continuing a strong weekend, just another tenth further back.

Even the gap from seventh to thirteenth was covered by just a quarter of a second, Suzuki's Loris Capirossi leading the way from Nicky Hayden, yesterday's fastest rider Colin Edwards, Randy de Puniet, West's teammate John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen on the second Suzuki, just over three-quarters of a second slower than the fastest time in a tightly-packed session.

Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 2:02.116 2. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 2:02.120 + 0.004 3. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 2:02.231 + 0.115 4. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 2:02.268 + 0.152 5. Dani Pedrosa Honda (B) 2:02.309 + 0.193 6. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) 2:02.418 + 0.302 7. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 2:02.441 + 0.325 8. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 2:02.638 + 0.522 9. Nicky Hayden Honda (M) 2:02.673 + 0.557 10. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) 2:02.741 + 0.625 11. Randy de Puniet Honda (M) 2:02.776 + 0.660 12. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) 2:02.813 + 0.697 13. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 2:02.889 + 0.773 14. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 2:03.221 + 1.105 15. Toni Elias Ducati (B) 2:03.263 + 1.147 16. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) 2:03.332 + 1.216 17. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 2:03.571 + 1.455 18. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) 2:03.724 + 1.608 19. Nobuatsu Aoki Suzuki (B) 2:05.026 + 2.910

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Pedrosa takes last-second Sepang pole

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Pedrosa takes last-second Sepang pole

Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa stole a last-second pole position on a drying track in qualifying for tomorrow's Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang.

Starting his final lap just ten seconds before the session finished with Valentino Rossi fastest at the time on 2:02.553, Pedrosa was one of several riders to improve their time after the session concluded.

First rider to improve was Rossi himself, going just over half a second faster to dip into the 2:01s. Then Colin Edwards moved into second, before he was demoted by Jorge Lorenzo, with Nicky Hayden pushing Edwards down again as Hayden moved into third.

Pedrosa was still on track, and having left his final run as late as possible, crossed the line and set a time of 2:01.548, four-tenths faster than Rossi's effort.

Andrea Dovizioso, who had set a time with two minutes remaining that put him in provisional pole, ended the session sixth, while Casey Stoner ended up seventh after going fastest with five minutes remaining but running out of time to start a final tilt at pole as the session ended.

Loris Capirossi, Randy de Puniet and John Hopkins completed the top ten, while Anthony West, who was fastest in morning practice and third-fastest with three minutes of qualifying remaining, ended up falling all the way down to thirteenth.

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

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Stoner tops wet warm-up

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MotoGP: Rossi blistering in opening practice

MotoGP: Rossi blistering in opening practice

Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi put a dent in everyone else's hopes with a blistering final lap in the opening practice for this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang.

Rossi spent most of the session at or near the top of the times. With 30 seconds of the session remaining, Rossi's teammate Jorge Lorenzo went to the top with a 2:03.179.

But Rossi was not done with, and after the chequered flag fell set a time of 2:02.693 to go almost half a second clear of his nearest rival.

Lorenzo remained second, 0.016 of a second ahead of Ducati's Casey Stoner, who spent most of the session swapping fastest times with Rossi.

Next fastest was Colin Edwards, three-quarters of a second behind Rossi but consistently near the top of the times through the session.

Behind Edwards were a pair of Hondas, Randy de Puniet a tenth faster than Repsol's Nicky Hayden, with Suzuki's Loris Capirossi just over a second behind Rossi in eighth.

An improved showing for Marco Melandri saw him thirteenth, just under a second slower than teammate Stoner and faster than both the Alice Ducatis, while Dani Pedrosa ended the session seventeenth, eight tenths of a second slower than teammate Hayden.

Nobuatsu Aoki's wildcard ride on the Suzuki has got off to a slow start, a clear last, nearly five seconds off the pace.

Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 2:02.693 2. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 2:03.179 + 0.486 3. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 2:03.195 + 0.502 4. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) 2:03.439 + 0.746 5. Randy de Puniet Honda (M) 2:03.535 + 0.842 6. Nicky Hayden Honda (M) 2:03.649 + 0.956 7. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 2:03.735 + 1.042 8. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 2:03.785 + 1.092 9. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) 2:03.839 + 1.146 10. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 2:03.964 + 1.271 11. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 2:04.137 + 1.444 12. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 2:04.169 + 1.476 13. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) 2:04.256 + 1.563 14. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) 2:04.267 + 1.574 15. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 2:04.383 + 1.690 16. Toni Elias Ducati (B) 2:04.399 + 1.706 17. Dani Pedrosa Honda (B) 2:04.460 + 1.767 18. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) 2:04.833 + 2.140 19. Nobuatsu Aoki Suzuki (B) 2:07.530 + 4.837

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