Sepang MotoGP: Sunday (updated regularly)

NEWEST AT TOP

Fiat Yamaha

The indomitable and irrepressible Valentino Rossi took his ninth World Championship crown in Malaysia today, riding to third place in a dramatic rain-hit race at Sepang. It was the Italian’s seventh title in the premier class, his fourth for Yamaha - more than he has won with any other manufacturer - and his 163rd career podium. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was forced to start from the back of the grid after a sighting lap problem but he recovered brilliantly and rode a superb race to chase Rossi home in fourth place.

After three dry practice sessions the heavens opened thirty minutes before the race started and a torrential downpour ensued. The race was delayed forty-five minutes, by which time the rain had abated to a steady drizzle, but with no wet track time during practice the race had become something of a lottery. Rossi seemed to get away well but at turn one he ran wide and exited in eighth position. He then surrendered two more places, including one to his charging team-mate, and finished the first lap in tenth. For the next few laps he tailed Lorenzo as the Spaniard charged his way through the field, the pair putting on a scintillating display of overtaking in the wet until they arrived in fourth and fifth on the seventh lap. Rossi now set his sights on a podium and passed Lorenzo, surviving a huge slide in the process, before quickly pulling a gap of a second on his team-mate. He slowly began to close the gap to Andrea Dovizioso in third and looked like he would soon be within striking distance when his fellow Italian slid out, leaving Rossi in the final podium spot. He didn’t give up there however and started to reel in Dani Pedrosa, who was second, but with the track by then almost dry and the championship in the bag he decided in the final few laps to take the safe option and came home behind the Spaniard, with Casey Stoner the clear winner out in front.

Lorenzo’s troubles began when a problem with his race bike meant he had to switch to his spare at the last minute, meaning he left the pit lane a little late. He planned to do two sighting laps, as Rossi had, to get a better feel for the wet track but by the time he came through for the second one the pit lane had closed, meaning he then had to start from the back of the grid. The 22-year-old surged through the field at the start however and rode one of the races of his life to pass twelve riders and come home fourth behind Rossi. Lorenzo will clinch second place in the championship by taking just one point at the final round in Valencia, in two week’s time.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 3rd Time: +19.385
“It’s great to be World Champion again, I am very proud to have done this nine times in my career. I want to thank everyone in my team, Furusawa-san, Davide Brivio, Lin Jarvis, Jeremy…everybody! This season has been very hard and Lorenzo especially has pushed me to new limits, but I think it’s been a great duel for everyone to watch. Today was unbelievable, when the rain came it was scary for everyone because all the work we’d done was then useless and we were riding ‘blind’ with the setting. I made a mistake at the first corner and then I was a long way back, so I think I did a great race to finish third! I was going to try to pass Dovizioso when he fell and then for a few laps I thought I would try to get Pedrosa but with wet tyres on a drying track it was a bit risky by then and so I decided to be safe. It’s a fantastic feeling to take this title with Yamaha again and I also must thank Bridgestone, who have done a great job with the tyres all year. My celebration was because in Italy we say an old chicken makes good soup but can no longer lay eggs! I am like the old chicken - 30 years now - but I have made another egg! That’s nine!”
Lorenzo and Rossi
Lorenzo and Rossi

Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 4th Time: +25.850
“I want to start by giving my congratulations to Valentino and all his team. He is the champion. As for the race, today was a difficult day. We improved in the warm-up and I was hoping to have a good race, but when it started to rain we had problems to turn on the bike. We had planned to ride two laps, but I didn’t have enough time and the pit-lane was closed. Then had to begin from last position, but I did one of my best ever starts! The first corner was incredible, but as time went on I began to have some grip problems, like during the whole weekend. However it was a great race for me in difficult circumstances and we finished fourth, not so bad. It’s been a great season and I could never have expected to be fighting with Valentino like this so early in my career. Now I just need one point in Valencia and I will have my goal of being the vice-champion.”
Fiat Yamaha Team
Fiat Yamaha Team

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“Every year is special but this year was very interesting because we realised from the start of the season that our strongest rival was in our garage! It hasn’t been easy but it’s been a fascinating season for everyone and we are very proud at Yamaha. We have to give huge congratulations to Valentino because this year we’ve seen him work harder than ever, and when the level goes up he puts even more effort in and this means that we, too, have all had to work even harder to keep up with him! Working with Valentino is always great fun and we are very lucky in our team. Today he showed his talent once again after a bad start to come home on the podium and we are so happy that all our work has paid off. Congratulations to Valentino and thank you to everyone in the team, at Yamaha and at Bridgestone for a fantastic job.”

Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager
“Congratulations to Valentino for his ninth title! We’ve given everything we have this year to make his life difficult on track but now he has won and he deserves this victory. This year has been great for Jorge and today he did a brilliant race from last on the grid. Unfortunately we had trouble with the race bike and had to change to the back-up one, and then Jorge wasn’t in time to exit the pit lane after his second sighting lap. It was a pity but he put on an exciting show and did so well to finish fourth. Now we will focus on confirming the second place in Valencia and then look forward to next year, when I am sure Jorge will be even stronger.”

Edwards and Toseland collect points in Sepang
Colin Edwards remains firmly in the hunt for a top five world championship finish in 2009 after a tough Malaysian MotoGP race this afternoon.

Optimistic of a top six challenge in the dry, two days of hard work and preparation in hot and humid conditions counted for nothing after a torrential downpour saturated the 5.548km circuit just 30 minutes before the scheduled start of the 21-lap race.

The deluge forced Race Direction to delay the start for 40 minutes but once underway, Edwards was mounting a determined challenge for a top ten in front of 59,206 fans when he encountered small front-end issues with the wet setting on his Monster Yamaha YZR-M1.

He climbed as high as 12th place on lap 13 but was unable to maintain his pace in much cooler conditions than normal for the Malaysian GP, the intervention of the rain dropping temperatures to 27 degrees.

Edwards ended the penultimate race of the campaign in 13th position, the American closing the gap on Andrea Dovizioso in fifth in the overall standings to just four points heading to the season’s final race in Valencia on November 8.

British rider James Toseland ended a difficult weekend with 15th position to extend his impressive points-scoring run to seven successive races. The 28-year-old also ran into front-end grip problems but fought hard in tricky conditions to claim a single point, Toseland confident he can finish the season in style at Valencia next month.

Colin Edwards - Position: 13th Time: +1′10.778
“The weekend wasn’t great to be honest. The bike wasn’t fast in the dry for some reason and I just couldn’t get going all weekend. We tried a different setting this morning and it felt better, but it certainly wasn’t a miracle spark. But with the rain coming like it did it just made it a guessing game. I did two warm-up laps behind Valentino (Rossi) p to check the conditions and from that moment the front feeling wasn’t great. Even then I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get any weight on the front and that’s exactly what happened. I could carry the lean angle I wanted but the front wouldn’t load at all, so I couldn’t get the bike turned. When it was properly wet I felt like I was upping my pace and closing in on the group for tenth, but then the tyres started heating up and I was sideways all of the time. In the final laps I was losing a lot of time. I’m going to Valencia still fighting for fifth in the championship wi th (Andrea) Dovizioso) crashing, but I don’t like taking profit from the mistakes of other people. I just want to say congratulations to Yamaha and Valentino. He’s done another amazing job and nine world titles is just a phenomenal achievement.”

James Toseland - Position: 15th Time: +1′50.672
“I wasn’t too sorry when I saw the rain to be honest because it had been a tough weekend in the dry. We went with the base wet setting but I had the same problem in the rain that I did in the dry. I just didn’t have any grip on the rear and in the wet the problem was on corner entry to the apex. So my corner speed was just way too slow to make a decent lap time. I am not out there just riding around at the back. I was doing my absolute best and trying my hardest but it was impossible for me to go any faster with the feeling I had. It has been a tough weekend but I’ll look to bounce back and finish strongly in Valencia for my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3.”

Herve Poncharal - Team Manager
“It has been a very disappointing weekend and easily the worst for us this season. We were struggling in the dry so I can’t say I was unhappy to see the rain because I thought this would give us a chance of improving our results. Unfortunately our performance was even worse in the rain and we can’t be happy. Now we have to understand why we struggled so much this weekend. The only good thing is that we go to Valencia with Colin still fighting for fifth in the championship and the whole team is motivated to finish the season on a positive note. Finally I’d like to pass on my congratulations to Valentino and Yamaha. They have done another incredible job this season. Valentino has proven once again what a formidable rider he is, and Yamaha has undoubtedly the most dominant bike in MotoGP.”

Circuit Length: 5548
Temp: 27
Weather: Rain
Lap Record: 2′02.993 (Nicky Hayden, 01/01/2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 2′00.518 (Valentino Rossi, 25/10/2009)
Last Years Winner: Valentino Rossi

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Repsol

Today, Dani Pedrosa has achieved his first podium finish in the wet in MotoGP at the Sepang Circuit, after a heavy downpour completely flooded the track at the end of the 250cc race. The Repsol rider finished second, chased for a large part of the race by his teammate, Andrea Dovizioso, who spun out seven laps from the end when he was wheel to wheel with the Spanish rider. This Grand Prix also crowned Valentino Rossi, once again –the ninth in the World Championship- MotoGP World Champion.

The race was delayed 35 minutes due to the weather conditions, as a strong topical storm dropped a violent downpour on the Sepang track, which left it almost unusable for several minutes. For safety reasons, the race organisers delayed the start until the downpour let up and the water drained from the track. With their second bikes ready in the pit lane in case the track did not dry, the riders took up their places on the starting grid and Dani Pedrosa climbed from third place to first as soon as the red light went out.

The Repsol rider overtook Rossi at the end of the straight, who when trying to pass him on the outside ran extremely wide, dropping several positions. Pedrosa led the race for half a lap, but then, Casey Stoner overtook him and setting a faster pace than his rivals, rode solo towards his second consecutive win. Pedrosa also opened a gap with group, from which his teammate Andrea Dovizioso also escaped later on.

Both Repsol Honda Team riders distanced themselves from the group, until after a few laps, Valentino Rossi came up behind them, with a five-second gap. The Italian rider started to close the gap on his countryman Andrea Dovizioso, and seven laps from the end, the rear tyre of Divizioso’s Honda lost grip in a turn, making it impossible for him not to fall. A sad end to the excellent performance the Italian Repsol Honda Team rider was demonstrating.

Pedrosa was alone in second place once again, but Rossi continued bearing down on him, closing the gap to just one and a half seconds, but Pedrosa kept focused and did not make any mistakes, finishing just over two and a half seconds clear at the end of the race, and achieving his first podium finish in the wet since he started competing in MotoGP. With this result, Pedrosa maintains fourth place in the championship standings, eleven points behind Casey Stoner, and with just the final race to go, at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit in Cheste, Valencia, in two weeks time.

Dani PEDROSA >>
“Riding in the rain has always been one of my weakest points and so for a long time I have tried to improve this by working hard and going over my limit in the wet. This hasn’t been an easy process, but now, finally, I achieved a podium in the wet so I’m really happy and I want to thank all the people who have helped in this process. In the middle of the race Andrea was just behind and he was closing and was putting some pressure on me, but I was riding well and I was able to keep my focus and concentration.

Finally when Andrea went off, another rider was coming and this time it was Valentino. He was going quite a lot faster than me, but in the last laps I kept my rhythm and was able to finish in second place. I’m very happy today. I also want to congratulate Valentino on the world championship - nine titles is amazing. Now we go to Valencia and we’ll be trying hard again there. It’s a track that I love and there will be a lot of fans there too, so I’m looking forward to it.”

Andrea DOVIZIOSO >>
“I was having a really good race and a podium would have been a really positive result for me and the team in our current situation, so of course I’m very disappointed about how it finished. Actually I didn’t get off the line too well but in the braking zone into turn one and through the first two corners I was able to overtake many riders and climb up to fifth place. My first lap was very good and I was moving forward quickly.

Once into third position, I was riding close to the limit and was closing on Dani - and I definitely had my sights set on the podium finish. The Bridgestone wet tyres were working well, though you always have to be very careful because they are very soft. Then, during the 15th lap, the front turned more quickly than usual and it tucked. It’s a shame today because I was feeling good on the machine and I really wanted this result for myself and the team. However, we’ll come back fighting for the final race of the year at Valencia.”

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Pramac Racing

Due to a heavy rainstorm just before the Grand Prix of Malaysia, race director decided to postpone the race of thirty-five minutes. The race has so started with wet asphalt and light rain until the last four laps when the sun was shining again. Pramac Racing riders, Mika Kallio and Aleix Espargarò, notwithstanding they have concluded the race with only one second of distance, have completed two completely different races. Mika has started quiet well fighting constantly for the top ten, while Aleix, who has started with some difficulties, has made a good comeback overtaking Edwards and reaching the group with his teammate, Capirossi and De Angelis. The Finnish rider, thanks to the six points achieve today, has conquered the rookie of the year title as the second in this special standing, Niccolò Canepa, is now twenty-six points behind with only one race before the end of the season. Aleix, thanks overtaking De Angelis in the penultimate turn, has equalized his best performance in MotoGP when he finished eleventh in Misano. Appointment for the last round of the 2009 MotoGP World Championship, as it happens from many years, will be on the Valencia circuit in two weeks time.

Fabiano Sterlacchini - Pramac Racing Technical director

“It has been a difficult situation today. All of a sudden the rain started to fall and we have tried to give the best bike possible to Mika even if we have never ridden on wet surface in these three days of work. Mika didn’t have a good feeling with the rear of the bike and this didn’t allow him to stay with the fastest riders at the beginning of the race. Later, in the final part of the race, he has been really determined to conquer the top ten but sincerely I know we could have achieved a better result if it would have been a dry race. We will try to understand what happened to allow him to be more competitive in the next occasion. To my point of view Aleix has accomplish a really positive race. He is a really intelligent rider and he has showed it in the first laps when he was studying the reaction of the bike on the wet. Then, when he understood the situation, he has started to push more catching riders much more experienced than him. Really my sincere compliments to him for today’s performance.”

Mika Kallio - Pramac Racing rider - 10th in the race - 15th in the Championship

“I am disappointed on how the race went today. On the dry we could have conquered a much better result but with these conditions I didn’t have much confidence with the rear of the bike to accelerate as I wanted. Instead in the breaking the bike was really competitive. In Valencia and I want and I have to accomplish a much better race.”

Aleix Espargarò - Pramac Racing rider - 11th in the race - 18th in the Championship

“In the firsts five laps I couldn’t believe how slow I was going but I preferred to don’t take any risks to understand the reaction of the bike with these asphalt conditions. From the sixth lap I aimed at the group where there were Edwards, De Angelis, Kallio and Capirossi, and lap by lap I reached them making it to overtake the first two. A pity I didn’t start well otherwise I could have fought for better positions. I want to thanks the Pramac Racing Team for this weekend of work which allowed me to grow in preparation to the next season.”

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Ducati Marlboro

Ducati Marlboro Team rider Casey Stoner took his second victory in succession today with a display of absolute dominance in torrential conditions at Sepang, where his team-mate Nicky Hayden picked up a fantastic fifth place. A heavy tropical downpour just moments before the riders were due to take to the track for the penultimate round of the season saw the race delayed by 36 minutes, but once the lights went out Stoner proved once again that he is a master of any condition. After taking the lead on the first lap the Australian opened up an advantage of almost four seconds by the end of the second circulation – increasing it lap by lap to over 17 seconds at one point as he stormed to his fourth victory of the season, becoming the first rider ever to win at Sepang from the second row of the grid.

Nicky Hayden also produced an excellent demonstration of wet weather riding as he guided his Desmosedici GP9 to fifth place from seventh on the grid. The American was involved in a series of breathtaking battles throughout the 22-lap affair, passing Loris Capirossi and Toni Elias with his trademark style and determination and fighting to hold off title contenders Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo. Third place for the Italian eventually sealed the championship with one round remaining at Valencia in two weeks’ time, when Stoner and Hayden will look to be amongst the frontrunners once again.

CASEY STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team) (1st)
“I didn’t get a brilliant start but I was happy to be in fourth as we came out of turn two and by the end of the first lap I was clear by a second. I have to be honest, I didn’t expect to be so far ahead so early in the race but when I looked up and saw 3 seconds on my pit board I decided to step the pace up even more and try an escape. I kept pulling out a second a lap and then eventually decided to back it off and not take any risks. This is another fantastic day for us and I want to thank everybody in the team for their effort. We’ve struggled with the bike in the wet this season but everybody has worked so well and the difference today was clear to see. We’re really strong now and I can only see us getting stronger from here, which is great news for next season. I want to congratulate Valentino because to win nine World Championships is an incredible achievement. I’m sure that if we continue to work like this ourselves we can put up a much stronger challenge next time.”

NICKY HAYDEN – (Ducati Marlboro Team) (5th)
“We’ll take a top five, that’ll work for us. I was quite excited when it started to rain because I’ve been on the pace with this bike in the wet this year and I felt I could do something special. Unfortunately I struggled a lot on the brakes in the beginning and a lot of guys came past. From there I had a lot of fun passing and fighting with people, trying to close down the gap to the lead group, but I was just missing a little bit to really go with Rossi and Lorenzo and try to fight for the podium. When Vermeulen came I knew he was a rain specialist so I pushed hard to make sure he didn’t see a crack in the door and think he could push it open. I’ve been fourth here five times so I’m only one spot off my mark! After Phillip Island it seems every time we try to get something going we have huge bad luck but I’m thankful I have a team who keep working and never give up – we’re trying to build something here together and we’re making progress. Even this weekend we were consistently up near the top. I have to say congratulations to Casey and Valentino. It wasn’t a terrible day for us either but now we go to Valencia and try to build on it again.”

Livio Suppo – MotoGP Project Director
“That was a really wonderful and unique day, for the way the conditions changed so quickly and the way our team reacted to it, and for the positive result for both of our riders. Casey produced something extraordinary, dominating from the first to the final lap, whilst Nicky battled hard from the start and brought home an important fifth place that shows how well we have worked both at the track and back at the factory throughout the year. It is a season that saw Casey make a great start before going through some difficulties and then coming back in style, whilst Nicky had a tough start himself but he has made constant progress and he is finishing it in a positive way that we hope carries through to next year.”

2009 Malaysian GP Podium
1st Casey Stoner (Ducati), 2nd Dani Pedrosa (Honda), 3rd Valentino Rossi (Yamaha)

Circuit Record: Casey Stoner (Ducati - 2007), 2’02.108 – 163.566 Km/h
Best Pole: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha - 2009), 2’00.518 – 165.605 Km/h

Rider World Championship Classification
1st Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 286 points (2009 World Champion); 2nd Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 245; 3rd Casey Stoner (Ducati) 220; 4th Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 209; 5th Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) 152; … 13th Nicky Hayden (Ducati) 93.

Constructor World Championship Classification
1st Yamaha (366 points) (2009 World Champion); 2nd Honda 272); 3rd Ducati (261); 4th Suzuki (131); 5th Kawasaki (108)
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MotoGP

Casey Stoner won his second successive race by an impressive 14.666s margin at the rain-soaked Shell Advance Malaysian Grand Prix on Sunday, but it was Valentino Rossi’s third place that secured him a ninth world title – a seventh in the premier class – as the Italian successfully defended his 2008 crown, with Dani Pedrosa finishing second.

Rossi rode a controlled race to take his place on the podium for the 163rd time across all three classes in his 226th successive Grand Prix start, in a remarkable career which has seen him win at least one race in 14 consecutive seasons.

The race started on a wet track after a 35-minute delay due to rain, and a problem with Jorge Lorenzo’s bike during the sighting lap meant that failure to join the starting grid in time resulted in relegation from the front row to the back.

It made little difference to the Spaniard however as he flew up to overtake Rossi, who dropped to tenth after a sluggish start from pole position. Lorenzo eventually finished in fourth position.

Randy de Puniet had a nasty high-side crash early on, which fortunately resulted in no injury for the Frenchman, and Nicky Hayden was dogged in his attempt to hold off Lorenzo in fifth place. The Fiat Yamaha rider managed to overtake the Ducati Marlboro man before Rossi passed both to move into fourth spot after eight laps.

Shortly after, Stoner’s lead at the front had grown to a huge 15 seconds, but there was no such deficit between Pedrosa in third and his Repsol Honda team-mate Andrea Dovizioso, who diced for second spot. Disaster struck for the Italian however, as on lap 14 he succumbed to the wet conditions and slid off, allowing Rossi to move up to third.

Aleix Espargaró impressed with an eleventh-placed finish in his third MotoGP race of the campaign for Pramac, whilst Monster Yamaha Tech 3 pair Colin Edwards and James Toseland both struggled, finishing in 13th and 15th respectively.

After Lorenzo took fourth spot he duly handed hearty congratulations to Rossi, with Hayden equalling his second-best result of the season in fifth. Chris Vermeulen (Rizla Suzuki), Toni Elías (San Carlo Honda Gresini), Marco Melandri (Hayate Racing), Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) and Mika Kallio (Pramac Racing) completed the top ten.

250cc

Hiroshi Aoyama was the eventual victor in the 250cc race after a magnificent head to head duel with Marco Simoncelli, who placed third after a photo finish was required following Héctor Barberá’s surge.

Simoncelli blasted through the field from his grid position of eighth to ignite his contest with Aoyama, with Jules Cluzel leading the early stages of the race whilst the title rivals sparred. The Matteoni Racing man’s crash on lap ten took him out of the equation, allowing the main championship contenders to go head to head.

Aoyama started to push hard and a new track record of 2’07.597 on lap 15 saw him pull away, as Barberá started to contest second position with Simoncelli.

Crossing the finish line with a 6.397s advantage, Aoyama extended his lead at the top of the championship standings to 21 points over Simoncelli, and he now needs only a tenth-placed finish or better in Valencia to secure the 2009 title ahead of the Metis Gilera rider.

Barberá rose to third in the standings after Álvaro Bautista (Mapfre Aspar Team) crashed out on lap nine, as Thomas Luthi (Emmi - Caffe Latte) and Héctor Faubel (Valencia CF - Honda SAG) completed the top five.

125cc

A close battle between Julián Simón and Bradley Smith was won by the freshly-crowned 125cc World Champion, as he beat his Bancaja Aspar team-mate in a final-lap fight.

The duo, who battled closely at Phillip Island last weekend, again crossed swords as Simón held Smith’s challenge off on the last corner of the Sepang circuit. The Brit’s placing secured second position in this year’s World Championship as well, despite a broken metatarsal bone in his right foot from a qualifying crash on Saturday.

Pol Espargaró (Derbi Racing Team) completed the podium, coming in just over five seconds behind Smith, with Sergio Gadea (Bancaja Aspar) and Nico Terol (Jack & Jones Team) also inside the top five, after a mechanical problem curtailed pole position holder Marc Márquez’s race.

The final event on the 2009 MotoGP calendar is the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, which takes place from November 6th-8th.
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San Carlo Honda Gresini

San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Toni Elias produced a display of control and concentration today as he took a valuable seventh place in the Malaysian Grand Prix, whilst a disappointing twelfth for his team-mate Alex de Angelis means the pair are now level on points in the championship with one round remaining.

Whilst De Angelis hopes’ were raised by the apparition of a monsoon rainstorm just moments before the riders were due to take to the track for their sighting lap, causing the start to be delayed by 36 minutes, the reverse was true for Elias, who is not usually comfortable riding in the wet. However, their fortunes in the race were also juxtaposed as the San Marino rider – normally a wet weather specialist - struggled to keep the pace with the front group as the Spaniard took up the chase, lapping fourth over the opening six laps before losing ground to a handful of riders, including today’s championship winner Valentino Rossi.

The pair are now ninth and tenth respectively in the rider standings with Chris Vermeulen eleventh, all three locked on 105 points, whilst Marco Melandri and Loris Capirossi are just three points ahead of them in seventh and eighth – setting up what promises to be an exciting season finale at Valencia on 8th November.

Toni Elias (7th): “I saw the rain just before we were due to go out for the sighting lap and I thought ‘madre mía, this isn’t good for us!’ As it turned out it was completely the opposite and with seventh place and some bad results for my rivals we have actually made up more ground in the championship than we might have hoped to if it was dry. I’m really pleased with the result but also with the performance because riding in the wet is not usually our strong point. I don’t know if it was because the track temperature was higher here but I didn’t struggle as much as I expected for grip. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite enough to run with the top guys again but in general we have to be satisfied with this Grand Prix.”

Alex De Angelis (12th): “I was so confident that I could have a strong race in the rain today but for whatever reason I never felt comfortable with the wet setting here and I couldn’t get going. The rear was spinning up everywhere and it was all I could to hang on and bring it home in the points. It’s a real shame because this could have been a good opportunity for us to make up more ground in the championship. It’s a missed chance but at the same time my rivals didn’t capitalise on it and we are still within three points of seventh place, which is my objective when we head for the final race at Valencia.”

Fausto Gresini - Team Manager: “Toni made a great start and was able to run with the front guys over the opening laps. In the end seventh place is pretty satisfying, especially considering the conditions that the race took place in. we were hoping for a bit more from Alex, who unfortunately struggled to cope with the conditions and couldn’t finish any higher than twelfth. Anyway, both of them are still very much in the hunt for seventh in the championship, which we will fight for at Valencia.”

1 Casey STONER AUS DUCATI 47′24.834

2 Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 47′39.500

3 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 47′44.219

4 Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 47′50.684

5 Nicky HAYDEN USA DUCATI 48′03.539

6 Chris VERMEULEN AUS SUZUKI 48′05.895

7 Toni ELIAS SPA San Carlo Honda Gresini HONDA 48′13.389

8 Marco MELANDRI ITA KAWASAKI 48′20.391

9 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA SUZUKI 48′25.137

10 Mika KALLIO FIN DUCATI 48′25.274

11 Aleix ESPARGARO SPA DUCATI 48′26.489

12 Alex DE ANGELIS RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini HONDA 48′26.681

13 Colin EDWARDS USA YAMAHA 48′35.612

14 Gabor TALMACSI HUN HONDA 48′40.685

15 James TOSELAND GBR YAMAHA 49′15.506

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LCR Honda

Sepang, 25 October: the penultimate round of the 2009 season at Sepang race track has been affected by a typically tropical rain storm and the premier class riders 21-lap race has been delayed by 30 minutes. After two days of sunny practices with an average temperature of 31 degrees, the 800cc riders lined up on the Malaysian GP starting grid on rain tyres with Rossi winning the world title.

The LCR Honda MotoGP Team racer Randy de Puniet had high expectations of another good result after setting an impressive pace in qualifying yesterday (8th overall). The 28-year-old started well from the third row of the grid, completing the first lap in 5th place but suddenly lost the rear of his machine in the second lap crashing out heavily into the gravel. Luckily the Frenchman escaped unhurt from the incident. LCR Team will be back on track for the last round of the season in Valencia on the 8th of November.

De Puniet – crashed

De Puniet: “I am very disappointed for me and the team. We had found a good race set up yesterday and I qualified 8th in this morning warm up session. Then the rain storm changed the conditions completely but I was pretty confident as I usually lap with a good rhythm in the wet. I took a good start finishing the first lap in 5th position. Then in the second lap I lost the rear on turn 3 suffering a big highside. I really do not remember what happened but after having watched the accident on the TV, I feel lucky because I am ok!”

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Repsol Honda

Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa rode a flawless race to finish in second place in the rain-affected Malaysian Grand Prix today and record his first ever wet-weather Grand Prix podium. His team-mate Andrea Dovizioso looked on course to join Pedrosa in the top the three - and even perhaps steal second from him - but the Italian was unlucky to fall out of the race with six laps to go.

Heavy rain during the run-up to the race caused the start to be delayed by 35 minutes, and when the lights finally went out, Pedrosa took an early lead on the soaking Sepang circuit. Meanwhile, Dovizioso made stunning progress from 11th on the grid, steering his RC212V to the inside of the start-finish straight and moving up to fifth after the first corner. The Italian continued his forward march and, amazingly, was up to third place behind Pedrosa by the end of lap one.

Though Pedrosa was passed for the lead by Casey Stoner on lap one, the Spaniard was able to set an impressive pace in the wet and the Repsol Honda pair circulated in second and third places for 14 consecutive laps. After Dovizioso’s unfortunate fall, Pedrosa successfully held off Valentino Rossi and came home in second - his third podium finish in successive races. The result means Pedrosa has not finished outside the top three at Sepang since his MotoGP debut here in 2006.

Casey Stoner won today’s race and Valentino Rossi came home behind Pedrosa in third to secure his seventh premier-class World Championship with one race of the 2009 season remaining: the Grand Prix of Valencia, which takes place in two weeks’ time.

DANI PEDROSA – 2nd – World Championship position: 4th 209 points

“Riding in the rain has always been one of my weakest points and so for a long time I have tried to improve this by working hard and going over my limit in the wet. This hasn’t been an easy process, but now, finally, I achieved a podium in the wet so I’m really happy and I want to thank all the people who have helped in this process. In the middle of the race Andrea was just behind and he was closing and was putting some pressure on me, but I was riding well and I was able to keep my focus and concentration. Finally when Andrea went off, another rider was coming and this time it was Valentino. He was going quite a lot faster than me, but in the last laps I kept my rhythm and was able to finish in second place. I’m very happy today. I also want to congratulate Valentino on the world championship - nine titles is amazing. Now we go to Valencia and we’ll be trying hard again there. It’s a track that I love and there will be a lot of fans too, so I’m looking forward to it.”

ANDREA DOVIZIOSO – DNF – World Championship position: 5th - 152 points

“I was having a really good race and a podium would have been a really positive result for me and the team in our current situation, so of course I’m very disappointed about how it finished. Actually I didn’t get off the line too well but in the braking zone into turn one and through the first two corners I was able to overtake many riders and climb up to fifth place. My first lap was very good and I was moving forward quickly. Once into third position, I was riding close to the limit and was closing on Dani - and I definitely had my sights set on the podium finish. The Bridgestone wet tyres were working well, though you always have to be very careful because they are very soft. Then, during the 15th lap, the front turned more quickly than usual and it tucked. It’s a shame today because I was feeling good on the machine and I really wanted this result for myself and the team. However, we’ll come back fighting for the final race of the year at Valencia.”

KAZUHIKO YAMANO - REPSOL HONDA TEAM MANAGER

“Dani’s podium in these wet conditions was a significant milestone for him and also a good result for the team. Dani is having a strong finish to the season and now he will have a lot of confidence going into the final race at Valencia because that’s another track at which he usually performs very well. For Andrea the race was looking very promising, especially considering his stating position of 11th, so it’s shame for him to miss the probable podium finish. He’s very disappointed naturally, but he and the team can take the positives from his race performance and come back strongly for the final race of 2009.”

Race Result - Round 16

1 Casey Stoner 47m 24.834 AUS DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team

2 Dani Pedrosa +14.666 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team

3 Valentino Rossi +19.385 ITA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team

4 Jorge Lorenzo +25.850 SPA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team

5 Nicky Hayden +38.705 USA DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team

6 Chris Vermeulen +41.061 AUS SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

7 Toni Elias +48.555 SPA HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini

8 Marco Melandri +55.557 ITA KAWASAKI Hayate Racing Team

9 Loris Capirossi +1m 00.303 ITA SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

10 Mika Kallio +1m 00.440 FIN DUCATI Pramac Racing

11 Aleix Espargaro +1m 01.655 SPA DUCATI Pramac Racing

12 Alex De Angelis +1m 01.847 SMR HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini

13 Colin Edwards +1m 10.778 USA YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha

14 Gabor Talmacsi +1m 15.851 HUN HONDA Scot Racing Team MotoGP

15 James Toseland +1m 50.672 GBR YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha

Championship standings

1 Valentino Rossi 286 pts ITA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team

2 Jorge Lorenzo 245 pts SPA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team

3 Casey Stoner 220 pts AUS DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team

4 Dani Pedrosa 209 pts SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team

5 Andrea Dovizioso 152 pts ITA HONDA Repsol Honda Team

6 Colin Edwards 148 pts USA YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha

7 Marco Melandri 108 pts ITA KAWASAKI Hayate Racing Team

8 Loris Capirossi 108 pts ITA SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

9 Toni Elias 105 pts SPA HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini

10 Alex De Angelis 105 pts SMR HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini

11 Chris Vermeulen 105 pts AUS SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

12 Randy De Puniet 101 pts FRA HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP

13 Nicky Hayden 93 pts USA DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team

14 James Toseland 88 pts GBR YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha

15 Mika Kallio 64 pts FIN DUCATI Pramac Racing

16 Niccolo Canepa 38 pts ITA DUCATI Pramac Racing

17 Gabor Talmacsi 19 pts HUN HONDA Scot Racing Team MotoGP

18 Aleix Espargaro 13 pts SPA DUCATI Pramac Racing

19 Sete Gibernau 12 pts SPA DUCATI Grupo Francisco Hernando

20 Yuki Takahashi 9 pts JAP HONDA Scot Racing Team MotoGP

Circuit information

First race 1999

GPs held 10

Laps 21

Race distance 116.508km / 72.387miles

Track length 5.548km / 3.447miles

Track width 25m

Longest straight 0.920km / 0.572miles

Corners 15 (10 right, 5 left)

Pole position Left

Sepang International Circuit Sdn. Bhd.

Jalan Pekeliling

64000 KLIA

Selangor Darul Ehsan

Malaysia

T: +60 3 8778 2200

F: +60 3 8783 1000

Email: sic@malaysiangp.com.my

Website: www.malaysiangp.com.my/

Ticketing

T: +60.3.8778.2222

ticket@malaysiangp.com.my

Circuit records

Pole position 2m00.518s (165.724km/h) Valentino Rossi (Yamaha, 2009)

Race lap 2m02.108s (163.566 km/h) Casey Stoner (Ducati, 2007)

Race time 43m04.405s (162.292km/h) Casey Stoner (Ducati, 2007)

MotoGP Wins 5 (Valentino Rossi 2001, 2003-04, 2006, 2008)

2008 Winner Valentino Rossi (Yamaha)

Event timetable - times shown are local times (GMT +8 hours)

*******************

Repsol

The Malaysian Grand Prix has finished with the result least expected by Marc Márquez, who started from pole position and while fighting for third place, withdrew due to mechanical problems. The best of the Repsol riders was, once again, Esteve Rabat, who finished seventh, ten places in front of Cameron Beaubier, who was just a step away from scoring. Scott Redding, who also had mechanical problems, headed back to the pit lane eight laps from the end.

The race had started very well for Marc Márquez, who defended his privileged position on the grid very well when the red light went off. The Repsol rider was up front on the first turn, defending himself from the rest of the group, in which Rabat made great progress, climbing into fifth. However, in the first lap, problems were noticed on Márquez’s KTM, who was passed by Efrén Vázquez.

Soon, a group of six riders was out up front, which Julián Simón headed in the second lap, driving ahead to open a gap with his rivals. He was chased by Bradley Smith and the rest of the group, which was joined by another three rivals, starting a hard-fought battle for third place. The riders in the group overtook each other constantly, and the first one to pull out was Jonas Folger, after touching Márquez in a turn ten laps from the end.

However, three laps later, and after crossing the line fourth, Márquez had to use the clutch at the end of the straight when he noticed that the engine of his KTM was having problems. With this withdrawal, Esteve Rabat climbed a position to eighth, after falling behind in the group. An eighth place, which became seventh when Efrén Vázquez fell two laps from the end. A good result for Esteve Rabat in the Malaysian Grand Prix.

His teammate, Scott Redding, saw once again how luck turned its back on him and after a bad start from seventeenth place, from which he dropped four places; he headed back to the pit lane eight laps from the end. One of the riders who did finish, but out of the points, was Cameron Beaubier. The Repsol rider started twenty-fourth and had a spectacular start, climbing seven positions in the first lap. In the following laps, he dropped a few places, but lap-by lap, he managed to reach the end, on the threshold of the points, in seventeenth position.

Marc MÁRQUEZ >> withdrawn

“I started the race raring to go because in the practices I set a good pace, but from the start I noticed that something was wrong, because at times the bike didn’t go so fast. Above all, in the fast turns, when I touched the gas, the engine was very aggressive.

I noticed that something strange was happening, although I managed to adapt to the bike and ride well, the engine failed. In Estoril, I made the mistake, this time it was a mechanical problems and it’s a shame. Let’s see if we can repeat this weekend in Valencia and finish it off on Sunday.”

Esteve RABAT >> 7th at 15.114 sec.

“I had a good race, and we’ve been putting in good performances since Misano, in which, in spite of having a few problems, we were always in the front group. Today, I rode with the group throughout the race, until I made a mistake at the end and went wide, without being able to catch up with them.

There was nobody behind me and I decided not to risk it. The bike went quite well, thanks to a very good chassis set up. The engine wasn’t going too badly either. I made a mistake, but we finished, and that’s positive.”

Scott REDDING >> withdrawn

“We continued to have the same problems as we’ve had all weekend and in the last few races: the engine didn’t work well, it didn’t go fast and in the race I was fighting for twentieth place.

I know that I should be fighting for a place among the first ten and not so far back and so far out of the points, therefore, in the end I decided to withdraw and go back to the pit lane, as I could hardly keep up with the pace. We hope to finish the season in Valencia in two weeks time with a good final.”

Cameron BEAUBIER >> 17th at 1´07.131

“I am happy that I finished the race, but I’m very disappointed with the pace that I set and my lap-by-lap. I had a decent start and was following several riders, but then I started dropping positions and couldn’t keep up with their pace.

I had problems in the middle of the turns and they opened the gap and I couldn’t do anything to prevent it. In the end, I was going around the track alone lap after lap, riding slowly and not feeling confident, leaving the line in the middle of the turns. I hope it goes better in Valencia.”

*********************

Rizla Suzuki

Rizla Suzuki racer Chris Vermeulen again showed his skills in wet conditions as he powered his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R through the field to take sixth place at a rain-soaked Sepang today.

Starting from 14th on the grid, Vermeulen got a clean start as he began the task of picking his way past the riders in front of him. He produced personal best laps consistently throughout the early part of the race, as he moved into the top 10 on lap eight. On lap 15 of 21, Vermeulen had made his way up to sixth and although he tried to chase down Nicky Hayden for fifth place, the now drying track worked against him and he just couldn’t close the gap.

Loris Capirossi was left very disappointed with today’s result after such a promising qualification yesterday. He started from the second row of the grid and after the first two corners was up into second place, but Capirossi just couldn’t find the level of grip to maintain that advantage and was relegated down the field. He managed to find a rhythm and consistency in the second-half of the race and moved back into contention for a top-10 finish. Capirossi finally crossed the line in ninth position and was left to rue at what might have been if the weather had not intervened.

Today’s start was delayed by 40 minutes after torrential rain fell over the 5,548m Malaysian circuit. When the race finally got underway Ducati’s Casey Stoner took control and led from start to finish to win his second successive Grand Prix. Valentino Rossi finished third and secured enough points to take his second successive - and ninth in total - World Championship.

Rizla Suzuki now heads back to Europe for the final round of the MotoGP season, the last race will be held at Valencia in Spain on Sunday 8th November where Capirossi and Vermeulen will be battling it out with four other riders to secure a respectable seventh place overall in this season’s championship.

Chris Vermeulen:

“I got a good start, but in turn one there was a lot going on and I got pushed around a little bit, but I came out of it ok and was able to get my head down straight away. For the first four or five lap laps I really struggled to get a feeling in the tyres, especially on the left-hand-side, but once I got that working and in to a rhythm I felt quite good. The bike worked well up until the last few laps - when the track started to dry out - and then it was very difficult through the corners, but I’m sure it wasn’t easy for anyone out there. I think we had the speed for a top five today and my guys did a great job with the motorbike to be able to give me something competitive today when we hadn’t done any wet testing here at all.”

Loris Capirossi:

“I don’t really have a lot of things to say about today - I am just so disappointed! The team did such a good job this weekend and we thought we would have a good race this afternoon, especially after this morning’s warm-up was good as well, but then for the race it rained really hard. The set-up of the bike for the wet was pretty good but I struggled a lot for the first 10-laps because I couldn’t get any feeling from the left of the tyres. I dropped down to 13th and I then managed to overtake three or four riders and finish ninth. The result was not really good for this track and we weren’t lucky with the conditions, but sometimes things happen like that!”

Paul Denning - Team Manager:

“The drastic change in conditions for this afternoon was a disappointment, especially for Loris considering the outright speed he had shown this weekend. Even so, Chris rode a really strong race and had the speed to challenge for fifth if we’d have qualified a bit better or had a better feeling earlier in the race. Loris is devastated by the result today, but he kept fighting right to the end. The season has not been what we’d hoped, but there is a very tight fight for seventh in the championship that both of our guys are in with a chance of and we’ll be doing our best to get one of them there in two weeks’ time in Valencia.”

Shell Advance Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix Race Classification:

1. Casey Stoner (Ducati) 47′24.834: 2. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) +14.666: 3. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) +19.385: 4. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) +25.850: 5. Nicky Hayden (Ducati) +38.705: 6. CHRIS VERMEULEN (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +41.061: 9. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) 1′00.303:

World Championship Classification:

1. Rossi 286: 2. Lorenzo 245: 3. Stoner 220: 4. Pedrosa 209: 5. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) 152: 8. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) 108: 11. CHRIS VERMEULEN (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) 105:

*********************

KTM

After a great start into today’s Malaysian Grand Prix, Red Bull KTM 125 rider Marc Marquéz was battling within the top group of riders for most of the distance, but missed out on a possible podium finish when his bike stopped seven laps from the end.

The 16-year-old Spaniard had taken the lead on the opening lap and held second position behind newly crowned world champion Julian Simon until lap four before Simon and Bradley Smith broke away from the pack. Marc Marquéz’ fight continued in the next group of riders, where he battled it out with Pol Espargaro and Sandro Cortese for the third place on the podium, until he ran through the gravel bed at the end of the long start and finish straight with a dead engine.

“Up until then, my bike was working really well. I only had a little problem with throttle control in the first moment of opening the gas in the corner, but during the race I changed my line to adjust the problem and everything went well - until the bike stopped,” said Marquéz. “But we won’t give up and try again at the last race in Valencia. Valencia is close to my home, and I think we will be able to finish the season on a high note.”

Team-mate Cameron Beaubier made it to the chequered flag in 17th place.

“Everyone got wild and crazy like always in the first corner. I tried to take things more easy this time, as I didn’t want to crash again”, he said. “By mid-race I lost a few positions. I tried to fight my way back step by step, but I struggled so much with my bike in the fast, long corners. Nothing was working for me, I didn’t feel comfortable, I was missing traction and was driving all alone. But one positive thing is that I managed to finish the race!”

After the race, team director Harald Bartol detected a minor defect on Marc Marquez’ bike. “It’s almost as if the weekend had started too well for us, with Marc taking top positions in every practice session. Then bad luck caught up with us in the race: The fuel connection came off, therefore the fuel supply was interrupted, and the engine seized!”

Results 125cc MotoGP Sepang

1. Julian Simon, Spain, Aprilia, 42′50.916

2. Bradley Smith, England, Aprilia, 42′52.030

3. Pol Espargaro, Spain, Derbi, 42′57.209

4. Sergio Gadea, Spain, Aprilia, 42′58.919

5. Nicolas Terol, Spain, Aprilia, 42′59.401

17. Cameron Beaubier, USA, KTM, 43′58.047

Marc Marquez, Spain KTM, DNF

Championship Standings

1. Julian Simon, Spain, 264 points

2. Bradley Smith, England, 203,5 points

3. Nicolas Terol, Spain, 173,5 points

4. Pol Espargaro, Spain, 158,5 points

5. Sergio Gadea, Spain, 141 points

8. Marc Marquez, Spain, 94 points

29. Cameron Beaubier, 3 points

*************************

Monster Yamaha Tech3

Colin Edwards remains firmly in the hunt for a top five world championship finish in 2009 after a tough Malaysian MotoGP race this afternoon.

Optimistic of a top six challenge in the dry, two days of hard work and preparation in hot and humid conditions counted for nothing after a torrential downpour saturated the 5.548km circuit just 30 minutes before the scheduled start of the 21-lap race.

The deluge forced Race Direction to delay the start for 40 minutes but once underway, Edwards was mounting a determined challenge for a top ten in front of 59,206 fans when he encountered small front-end issues with the wet setting on his Monster Yamaha YZR-M1.

He climbed as high as 12th place on lap 13 but was unable to maintain his pace in much cooler conditions than normal for the Malaysian GP, the intervention of the rain dropping temperatures to 27 degrees.

Edwards ended the penultimate race of the campaign in 13th position, the American closing the gap on Andrea Dovizioso in fifth in the overall standings to just four points heading to the season’s final race in Valencia on November 8.

British rider James Toseland ended a difficult weekend with 15th position to extend his impressive points-scoring run to seven successive races. The 28-year-old also ran into front-end grip problems but fought hard in tricky conditions to claim a single point, Toseland confident he can finish the season in style at Valencia next month.

Colin Edwards 13th – 148 po ints

“The weekend wasn’t great to be honest. The bike wasn’t fast in the dry for some reason and I just couldn’t get going all weekend. We tried a different setting this morning and it felt better, but it certainly wasn’t a miracle spark. But with the rain coming like it did it just made it a guessing game. I did two warm-up laps behind Valentino (Rossi) p to check the conditions and from that moment the front feeling wasn’t great. Even then I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get any weight on the front and that’s exactly what happened. I could carry the lean angle I wanted but the front wouldn’t load at all, so I couldn’t get the bike turned. When it was properly wet I felt like I was upping my pace and closing in on the group for tenth, but then the tyres started heating up and I was sideways all of the time. In the final laps I was losing a lot of time. I’m going to Valencia still fighting for fifth in the championship wi th (Andrea) Dovizioso) crashing, but I don’t like taking profit from the mistakes of other people. I just want to say congratulations to Yamaha and Valentino. He’s done another amazing job and nine world titles is just a phenomenal achievement.”

James Toseland 14th – 88-points

“I wasn’t too sorry when I saw the rain to be honest because it had been a tough weekend in the dry. We went with the base wet setting but I had the same problem in the rain that I did in the dry. I just didn’t have any grip on the rear and in the wet the problem was on corner entry to the apex. So my corner speed was just way too slow to make a decent lap time. I am not out there just riding around at the back. I was doing my absolute best and trying my hardest but it was impossible for me to go any faster with the feeling I had. It has been a tough weekend but I’ll look to bounce back and finish stron gly in Valencia for my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3.”

Herve Poncharal – Team Manager

“It has been a very disappointing weekend and easily the worst for us this season. We were struggling in the dry so I can’t say I was unhappy to see the rain because I thought this would give us a chance of improving our results. Unfortunately our performance was even worse in the rain and we can’t be happy. Now we have to understand why we struggled so much this weekend. The only good thing is that we go to Valencia with Colin still fighting for fifth in the championship and the whole team is motivated to finish the season on a positive note. Finally I’d like to pass on my congratulations to Valentino and Yamaha. They have done another incredible job this season. Valentino has proven once again what a formidable rider he is, and Yamaha has undoubtedly the most dominant bike in MotoGP