Post-race Rider Comments from Donington

[Newsbot]

After completely dominating the British GP race weekend Dani Pedrosa says he is happy about his 'almost perfect' weekend. Meanwhile, Valentino Rossi thought his second place 'felt like a win' as it was 'an amazing race and a very important result'.

Dani Pedrosa

“I’m happy because this was almost the perfect weekend the team did a great job in every session. My start was good and then I pushed really hard and tried to get past Marco but it was not so easy. When I tried to overtake I braked but I couldn’t stop the machine so I was getting closer and closer to him and he was about to turn in. I was saying, “please leave room!” and luckily he did. Then I was able to get back in front. I didn’t know at that point if I could open up a gap because this class is really close, but at the end I slowed down a little bit to be careful. I’m really pleased with the win and I think the English crowd enjoyed the race too, and this British wea...

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[Dom]

Honda Rider Quotes

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1st." “I’m happy because this was almost the perfect weekend the team did a great job in every session. My start was good and then I pushed really hard and tried to get past Marco but it was not so easy. When I tried to overtake I braked but I couldn’t stop the machine so I was getting closer and closer to him and he was about to turn in. I was saying, “please leave room!” and luckily he did. Then I was able to get back in front. I didn’t know at that point if I could open up a gap because this class is really close, but at the end I slowed down a little bit to be careful. I’m really pleased with the win and I think the English crowd enjoyed the race too, and this British weather is really good! I’m not looking at the championship position because that’s not my target this year. My focus is still on getting the best performance from myself and taking profit from my opportunities.”

Marco Melandri, Fortuna Honda: 3rd. " Today was an incredible day! Bearing in mind my physical condition two weeks ago, I have to be very satisfied. I want to thank the Clinica Mobile for the work they did to allow me to race here in good shape. After the first few laps I could feel that my strength was going, but I made a big effort to maintain my pace. The first part of circuit was harder for me to negotiate, but as the race went on I improved on that part and the bike worked perfectly. It's a shame I lost second because of a small error on the penultimate corner, but the battle with Valentino was great and I think the fans really enjoyed the spectacle."

Casey Stoner, LCR Honda: 4th." “I was hoping for a better result but I didn’t get the job done today. I had the perfect set-up for two days until qualifying, and then again in the race the bike was not reacting the way it was in practice. When I was in front of Marco, Valentino and Kenny I couldn’t find the drive, the rear-end was spinning up. Plus I lost a little bit of fitness and I couldn’t brake as hard as normal, so I just eased off and settled for fourth. Towards the end I lost touch and I wasn’t close enough to make a pass when Marco and Valentino were fighting each other.”

Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: “It’s been quite a tough weekend and things didn’t quite go for us here. This morning, being fastest in the warm-up in the wet was quite positive and had me hoping for rain in the race, though really we needed that 20 minutes to try a few more things out. We used a quite lot of time on Friday testing some new parts and yesterday we made some progress, though we had a little electrical problem in the afternoon.
That’s all excuses though and the bottom line is that we didn’t get it done this weekend. I was coming through the field and making up some places when I made a mistake, got into the chicane bit hot and went straight on. That hurt, but I got back on the track, put my head down and clawed back a few places. We’ll regroup now, think about what didn’t go so well this weekend and try to do better in Sachsenring. Everyone in the team worked really hard this weekend we’ll come back strong at the next race.”

Kenny Roberts Jnr, KR Honda: 5th. "I raced with the old chassis today, the one we built after the Barcelona race, because I felt more at home on it than the new one. The start was OK and I closed on the leaders but as the race went on I had to change my style and racing lines and dropped back a bit. The front end of the bike was really good early in the race while the fuel load was heavy but it felt light when the fuel load went down. Then the rear end of the bike was working much better. When Valentino caught me I tried to stay with him for a couple of laps before he went away from me.I was under no pressure from the guys behind so I rode out the race and took the points. I have been through three bikes and a crash this weekend and I have to thank everybody in the team for what they did for me this weekend.
When we get to Germany for the race I have to find the best machine balance on Friday if I am to get a good set up for the race. We have made so many changes and a lot of progress these last few weeks but now we have the time before the German GP to sit down and analyse everything."

Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda: 11th. "We tried some different settings in the warm up today but didn't have enough time to check everything we needed to. We changed the geometry a little and the suspension to get a better balance and raced with the 16.5inch tyres we have used all weekend. So I started the race with different settings to those I used in qualifying. My start was not so bad but I ran wide in the first corner. The bike was under-steering in the fast corners today but not as much as yesterday. After the opening laps I held the same position for almost the whole race."

Michel Fabrizio, Fortuna Honda, substitute rider for the injured Toni Elias. Did not race due to broken collarbone sustained in practice.

[Dom]

Yamaha Quotes

Valentino Rossi (2nd; + 3.864)

"That was an amazing race and a very important result for me. I am in a better position as far as the points are concerned and that is more important than winning the race. To be honest after Assen I wasn't sure if it would be possible to fight for a top result here but I wanted it so much because Donington is a very special place to me and the fans give me such incredible support every year. We were really surprised that the bike didn't work on Friday but the whole team worked really hard to find the right setting and the right tyre.

After qualifying we decided we would try some new things this morning but the wet warm-up meant we had no chance to do that so we just took a gamble with the setting and it worked. It took me eight laps to understand just how good my pace could be and from that point I realised that my goal had to be the podium. I had some hard battles along the way but when I got up to Melandri it got even harder! We had real fun and neither of us wanted to back down. He was faster than me in some places and I was faster than him in others.

In the end it came down to the last hairpin and we both braked around 20 or 30 metres deeper than normal. We both ran wide but luckily Marco went even wider than me and I was able to get in from of him. I finished second but today it felt like a win."

Colin Edwards (6th; + 21.710)

"It just hasn't clicked for us this weekend and I'm really disappointed, even though sixth place brings in a few decent points. Last year everything came easily here but from the first practice it was clear that it wasn't going to be the case this time around and we never really found our way, it was as simple as that. The bike wasn't too bad for the race and I could catch other riders easily but we didn't have the set-up to get past people on the brakes. That made life really difficult and the race was a struggle from start to finish. It's been a hard few weeks but now I have a bit of a change of scenery as I will head out to Japan to prepare for the 8 hour. I hope we'll be in better position to fight at Sachsenring in a couple of week's time."

Davide Brivio - Camel Yamaha Team Director

"This was a very important race because despite Valentino's injury we have been able to close the gap to Nicky Hayden in the championship. Valentino said it was more like a victory and the feeling in the team is the same because of the physical condition he was in and the fact he started from so far back on the grid. There was never any doubt about Valentino's qualities but he has performed like a true World Champion over a difficult few weeks and he deserves a rest now.

Our engineers also did a great job to put everything together in time, they have also been working hard and will enjoy a couple of days off before the next race. Now we have eight races left and 35 points to make up before Valencia."

Carlos Checa (10th, Fastest lap 1'30.496)

"It was a very hard race and I was pushing all the time. We changed some things from yesterday but in the warm up we couldn't test them because of the wet track. At the start of the race with the different settings it took a few laps before I could get the good feeling from the front and rear tyres but then I got the confidence to start pushing the pace. It was not easy to pass Tamada at first, but when I got the rhythm my pace was a bit faster than him and I was able to overtake him and get away. This was a good feeling for me to pass a factory Honda and then to be able to catch De Puniet and pass him as well.

It was a question mark for me to know the endurance of the tyre because of the changed settings but basically we've been growing and learning more about the set-up with the tyres as the Dunlops improve. We must be satisfied with the result as the starting point here wasn't easy. We made good progress through the weekend and I'm happy with the job that the mechanics and the team did, as well as the performance of the Dunlop tyres. I wish, I hope and I want to keep going like this and improve overall to get even better results in the next races."

James Ellison (14th Fastest lap 1'31.402)

"I got a good start but after that it all went a bit downhill. We made a few changes after qualifying so we didn't get a chance to test them in the morning warm up because of the rain so as a result during the race we didn't have any grip in the rear. Once we got a bit of wear on the edge of the tyre we started dropping back which was disappointing as I was running wide everywhere. Early in the race I was in front of Carlos and I wanted to stay there to have a good fight with him but it didn't happen. On the positive side I think we have learnt a lot more about the setup that will help us in a couple of weeks with the nature of the Sachsenring track where we go to next. I was happy to have raced and finish in the points in front of the British crowd but I wish I could've done better

Herve Poncharal - Tech3 Yamaha Team Director

"This was another good weekend after Catalunya and Assen and for sure these three races have been the best since we started the season. Carlos had a good pace in the race. He passed Tamada on a factory Honda with Michelins and De Puniet on a factory Kawasaki with Bridgestones, which is good for us. The last 10 laps he was lapping quicker than Hopkins and Capirossi in front of him so we are happy with the consistency and durability, but definitely we have to qualify better, because the gap we have after five laps - even though we are lapping the same as the guys in front - if we are seven or eight seconds behind them, we know there is no way we can catch them in a class like MotoGP.

I'm very happy with Carlos as he was pushing 100% from the first lap to the end. It was really good for him to beat the Honda and come back on De Puniet, who was more than five seconds away at one stage, and put him behind us. It's another top 10 finish that was almost impossible to dream of at the start of the year.

I'm also happy to see James in the points. For sure he is little disappointed about not doing better in his home grand prix but he also had quite a stable pace but it's altogether a good result and it's a good way to end these three races in a row that have been tough for everybody. We got some good points and now Carlos is equal with Vermeulen so the championship is now halfway through and I think if we can continue the way we have been in the last few races and reduce the gap to the leaders a bit more the second part of the championship will be quite exciting."

[Dom]

Suzuki Quotes

John Hopkins:

“I’m pretty disappointed because I would have liked to have finished a lot higher, maybe in the top five or six. It just wasn’t on the cards today! I did everything I could and got the maximum out of all that I had today. The Suzuki was working really good and the Bridgestones had been working really well in the early laps. We had a minor difficulty and lost a lot of grip but we just kept at it and tried to pick up as many points as I could. I have got into the top 10 and my ultimate goal this year is to get up into the top five. We just need to keep doing well and firstly we need to get some good points in Germany and then I am really looking forward to my home Grand Prix in America!”

Chris Vermeulen:

“The start of the race was ok, I knew I had a hard race tyre and I was quite comfortable where I was in the pack. Colin went past me and he went a little deep so I tried to go up the inside of him but he turned the bike back in and I had nowhere to go. I went over and bent the handlebar into the frame so I had to come into the garage and get the bike fixed up. We went out again and I was able ride at a reasonable pace but I had no brake adjuster and it was getting a bit difficult to ride, plus the footrest was rubbing on the chain so it wasn’t the best! We made big steps this weekend and before I crashed we were a lot closer to the leaders than we have been. We now have to take this forward to Sachsenring – a circuit I’ve never been to before – and see how we go there.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:

“All-in-all for both riders and for Suzuki we have to say we have had a successful weekend in terms of our qualifying and the potential shown by both riders – especially John – in the first third of the race. Bridgestone will freely admit that they had an extremely difficult weekend at a track that we knew may be tough. I want to say thank-you to John for maintaining a better pace than looked possible as the tyre degradation became extreme, and thanks to Chris for getting his bike back to the pits, getting it fixed and trying to get some points.

“We will have better days, and I run the danger of becoming boring by repeating myself, but as we keep moving forward the day will come when bike, rider and tyres match the situation and we look forward to running up front over the full race distance!”

[Dom]

Kawasaki Quotes

Randy de Puniet: 12th

"I got a bad start, once again, but for the first half of the race I was able to follow the group with Valentino Rossi, Nicky Hayden, Colin Edwards and Shinya, but then I started to lose grip at the rear in the middle of the race and I wasn't able to continue at the same pace. My original strategy for the race was to try and stay with the leading group from the start, and for that reason we opted to go with the softer of the two rear tyre compounds we had available. A disappointing start put paid to that plan. I just tried to keep pushing as hard as I could when the rear tyre started to go off, but I think I was losing one second each lap, which allowed Carlos Checa and Makoto Tamada to catch me towards the end. I was hoping for better than 12th today after good practice and qualifying sessions yesterday, but my pace during the early part of the race was encouraging and I'm happy to have another race finish behind me."

Shinya Nakano: DNF

"Right from the beginning of the race I was struggling with a gearbox problem that made it difficult to shift down through the gears. After a few laps I figured out how to compensate for this problem using the clutch. I was pushing as hard as I could to catch the group of riders in front of me, but then I felt the engine suddenly lose power and I had no other option but to retire from the race. It's disappointing after finishing so well in Assen, but now we need to concentrate on our preparations for the next race at Sachsenring, which is an important one for the Kawasaki Racing Team."

Harald Eckl: Team Principal

"It is not the day we expected. After good practice and qualifying sessions yesterday, today's result is disappointing for us. Of course, we need to analyse the problem that Shinya experienced with his race bike and, if necessary, come up with a solution ahead of the next race at Sachsenring. Randy was also disappointed with his result today, but I think he went for too soft a rear tyre for today's conditions, and that's why he lost the two places right at the end of the race."

[Dom]

Ducati Rider Quotes

LORIS CAPIROSSI, finished 9th, 5th overall (107 points)

"Today was better than Assen but I am completely finished. It was very hard because I couldn't ride the way I want to ride. I tried to rest as much as possible here, which interfered with my tyre choice. I was smiling when it started raining this morning because I thought that would help us on tyres, but we don't get to choose the weather! After ten laps or so I started sliding around and also feeling the pain, so I just tried to keep Randy (de Puniet) behind me. Now we have two weeks before the next race, so I hope I will arrive at the Sachsenring in good shape, otherwise it will be another difficult weekend. We haven't had the results we deserve at the last three races, we deserve more than finishing eighth or ninth which makes me sad."

ALEX HOFMANN, finished 13th, 16th overall (19 points)

"We had problems all weekend, our tyre wear was a little too much for race distance, though we did improve tyre wear compared to the first day. It was a difficult choice but I chose quite a hard rear which initially didn't give me the feeling I wanted. It was difficult to pick up the pace, then when I did put in some strong laps and caught (Carlos) Checa, I couldn't keep that pace because I lost some grip. I feel pretty down because this will probably be my last race for the reds and I wanted to do extra good, I wanted to do improve on Assen but we had a tougher weekend here. Anyway, we did our maximum and I'd like to say thanks to everyone for giving me this chance."

LIVIO SUPPO, Ducati MotoGP project manager

"That was another heroic ride from Loris and thanks also to Alex for doing a good job at the last two races. This was another difficult weekend because Loris didn't do all of practice and Alex was still getting used to the bike/tyre package. Last year this was a difficult circuit for us, we've made a big step forward since then but we still need more. Now we have a two-week break, during which Loris should be able to get stronger and we also expect Sete to be back with us. A big thank you to our technical partners, in particular Shell Advance, for their support during these difficult races".