 Spanish MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa secured maiden MotoGP win in his fourth MotoGP race, after starting from pole position in Shanghai. Pedrosa edged team-mate Nicky Hayden for victory and secured third position in championship, just two points behind second placed Capirossi. Early race leader was Camel Yamaha rider, Colin Edwards, but as race progressed he was unable to mach the pace of the Honda riders, so he had to settle in 3rd position, which is result we have not seen from him long time ago.
Edwards had long battle for 3rd place with Suzuki rider John Hopkins, who eventually secured 4th place at the end of the race, which is great result for Suzuki, despite the fact that Chris Vermeulen did not finished the race. Casey Stoner was shaken by two crashes he had this weekend in China and was unable to repeat great podium performances from previous races, but he anyway finished in 5th place. Makoto Tamada surprised by great 6th place, and we hope we will se more of Tamada who we remember from great Bridgestone days. Marco Melandri finished race in 7th, in front of initial frontrunners Capirossi and Gibernau. Shinya Nakano completed top 10 finishers after starting from the front of the second row.
Bad luck continues for reigning MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi, after he had to retire from lap 16 due to tyre problems. Rossi started all the way down from 13th on the grid and made solid progress, having even chance for podium finish, but his hopes dissapeared as his tyre blown. He now lies 6th in championship, 32 points behing championship leader, Nicky Hayden.
Podium interview
Dani Pedrosa - race winner
Once in the lead I was always looking at the pit board and seeing zero point something. I was trying to maintain the gap but it was not easy because Nicky was pushing more and more and the tyres were losing a little grip. Winning is always very special but the level in MotoGP is higher, so this is very special for me.
Nicky Hayden - 2nd
I tried to go a little bit faster every lap and put some heat on Dani, but that dude just wouldn't crack! So I definitely give Dani credit because he rode a really strong race. I felt good when I kept going a little bit faster, but it just wasn't enough and when I got close to him I didn't want to do anything silly. Congratulations to the team, and not just my guys but all the guys involved in Repsol Honda, they deserve it.
Colin Edwards - 3rd
I got a really good start and just decided to go as fast as I could over the opening laps. I was close to losing control on a couple of occasions but I decided that I'd rather crash out of the lead today than miss my chance of finishing on the podium, which meant I just couldn't back off. I had some chatter and I could only push the bike so hard; if I went any faster than 2'00.7 then the chatter forced me to slow down, so I didn't have much choice but to hang in there! The freight train came past with Dani and Nicky but I couldn't hang on to the back, they were both just too fast. We've had some problems this weekend and I didn't expect to be on the podium but I can't thank my team, Yamaha and Michelin enough for the way they worked to put me in a competitive position. I think I scored my first podium in round four last season too, so hopefully this can be a sign to kick on from here.
Shanghai race results:
Race: 22 Laps
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Total Time
1 D. Pedrosa Honda ESP 44' 7.734
2 N. Hayden Honda USA +1.505
3 C. Edwards Yamaha USA +14.634
4 J. Hopkins Suzuki USA +19.265
5 C. Stoner Honda AUS +23.061
6 M. Tamada Honda JPN +23.879
7 M. Melandri Honda ITA +24.101
8 L. Capirossi Ducati ITA +24.467
9 S. Gibernau Ducati ESP +28.358
10 S. Nakano Kawasaki JPN +33.851
11 T. Elias Honda ESP +35.316
12 R. De Puniet Kawasaki FRA +52.004
13 K. Roberts Team Roberts KR USA +56.293
14 C. Checa Yamaha ESP +1' 3.575
15 A. Hofmann Ducati GER +1' 11.172
16 J. Ellison Yamaha GBR +1' 23.075
17 J. Cardoso Ducati ESP +1' 35.150
|
