2006 MotoGP - VALENCIA GP

R17, OCT 29, 2006 - VALENCIA, SPAIN

• BAYLISS TO RIDE IN PLACE OF GIBERNAU - newly crowned world superbike champion Troy Bayliss will fill in for injured Sete Gibernau this weekend.
• EDWARDS RE-SIGNED TO YAMAHA FOR 2007 - his contract has been extended till end of 2007.
  EDWARDS: "I couldn't be happier to be staying at Yamaha for another year ... It's no secret that this season hasn't achieved the results we should have had, but in the last few races I feel that things have started to turn around and we hope to finish on a high in Valencia ... I'm really happy at Yamaha and I can't wait to start working on the new bike."
• BEFORE RACE: ROSSI, 244 POINTS vs HAYDEN, 236 POINTS
• VALENTINO ROSSI: MY ONE CHANCE - Valentino Rossi travels to Spain this week knowing that he cannot afford to let this incredible opportunity slip after admitting that a fifth title defence was effectively out of his hands just five rounds ago. Hayden’s well-publicised misfortune in Portugal has perhaps overshadowed the fact that it is Rossi’s own form – a run of nine top-three finishes from the last eleven races – that has propelled him to the top of the standings and fulfilled his target of arriving at the final round with a sixth consecutive premier-class title in sight. (YAMAHA)
• NICKY HAYDEN: "I go there with nothing to lose , I need to win and hope that Rossi has a bad weekend. I know that’s a long shot but we won’t surrender until the chequered flag on Sunday

RACE   (TOP OF PAGE)

RACE RESULT , OCT 29, 2006

1. Troy Bayliss (Aus) Ducati 2. Loris Capirossi (Ita) Ducati 3. Nicky Hayden (US) Honda *** 2006 CHAMPION *** 4. Dani Pedrosa (Spa) Honda 5. Marco Melandri (Ita) Honda 6. Toni Elias (Spa) Honda 7. Shinya Nakano (Jpn) Kawasaki 8. Kenny Roberts Jr (US) KR211V 9. Colin Edwards (US) Yamaha 10. Carlos Checa (Spa) Yamaha 11. John Hopkins (US) Suzuki 12. Makoto Tamada (Jpn) Honda 13. Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha 14. James Ellison (GB) Yamaha 15. Garry McCoy (Aus) Ilmor X3 RACE De Angelis Locatelli Barbera Lorenzo *** 2006 CHAMPION *** Debon S Aoyama Dovizioso Poggiali De Gea Guintoli RACE Faubel Kallio Gadea Bautista Pesek Espargaro

RACE REPORT - HONDA - HAYDEN WINS CHAMPIONSHIP      (TOP OF PAGE)

• One of the closest MotoGP title fights ended in victory for Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) here at Valencia today as the American cruised home in third behind Ducati riders Troy Bayliss (winner) and second-placed Loris Capirossi. It was enough for the Kentucky Kid to end the reign of Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) who fell on lap five.
• The tension was palpable as this all-or-nothing 30-lap contest got underway in front of a capacity 130,000 crowd in bright sunshine with a hotter than expected 43-degree track temperature and a 32-degree ambient temperature. The scene was set for an epic World Championship decider.
• Bayliss led into turn one from the lights with his team-mate Capirossi tucked close behind him and Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC211V) third. But further back Hayden, who’d sped away from slot five on the grid clouted Rossi who’d had made a sluggish getaway from pole. Hayden lay sixth at turn one on lap one.
• Nicky, in the space of three turns was fourth, Marco Melandri (Fortuna Honda RC211V) deprived Rossi of sixth, and Dani was then in second after stealing past Capirossi. There was plenty of intent from Honda riders intent on maximizing their own chances of end of season glory. Melandri was vying for third in the World Championship with Capirossi.
• The opening laps were a hard-fought demonstration of what makes MotoGP such a compelling sport. Nicky went to third on lap two, then almost snatched the lead from Bayliss at the end of the straight on lap four, with Melandri now third. Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) was working on Rossi for sixth. Rossi was perhaps biding his time, waiting to establish a rhythm, before making progress up the field shadowing the flying Hayden.
• Hayden, for what it was worth, had changed the design of his leathers for this all-or-nothing race. Gone was the Kentucky Kid logo across the seat of the suit in favour of a deck of cards with the facing card a question mark – and a stack of gambling chips, with the slogan ‘All In’ laid over the top. He was riding all out – no question.
• On lap five, the lap that decided the direction of the 2006 World MotoGP Championship, Nicky lay 0.3 seconds behind the inspired Troy Bayliss. And as Rossi hit the mid-point of the left-hand turn one, his machine slid from under him. The Italian and his Yamaha ended in the dirt, his title chances effectively over. He remounted in 20th place with a mountain to climb.
• The order was Bayliss, Capirossi, Hayden, Melandri, Pedrosa, Stoner and Vermeulen. Rossi had too much to do and as long as Hayden could maintain station in third while Rossi lay lower than eighth, he could, against all pre-race odds lay claim to the title in a series in which he had scored in every round and won two races.
• As mid-race rolled by Rossi had climbed to 16th, but he was a full 28 seconds behind race leader Bayliss. Then Vermeulen crashed and the thought loomed that sheer attrition might gift Rossi the places he needed to eat into Hayden’s chances.
• As the laps ran down to the flag Hayden hung close to Capirossi ready to steal a place on the Italian if he needed to, but then as it became clear Rossi had too much to do, Nicky merely reeled off the laps he needed to clinch the biggest prize on two wheels.
• With three laps to go Rossi was nine seconds shy of Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda RC211V) in 12th and barring cruel luck the crown was Nicky’s. Sure enough Mister Consistency, the ‘All-in’ Kentucky Kid, was not going throw away a lifetime’s dream and the product of four hard years dedicated to this particular task. But Mister World Champion is who he now undoubtedly is.
• Finishing with 252 points to Rossi’s 247, Nicky said, “I’m so blessed. When you dedicate your life to something and it comes true it means so much. I have to thank the people around me who never stopped believing: Honda, my team, Michelin, my friends and family. It just goes to show when you keep fighting to the end and never give up then good things happen to you. I can’t really say just how much this means to me right now.”
• Dani, who finished fourth, said, “I’m very happy for this result – for myself, for Nicky and for the team. The team has won every title this year – the riders’ title, the constructors, the Team title and the Rookie of the year so this is very good for us. I think we did a good job today. I made a good start and I was waiting until Nicky was behind me. When they showed me that Nicky was third and I was second I let him past and showed him with my foot where he should pass me. Then I slowed down quite a lot to give Nicky some space in second place. I didn’t push for the last five laps and brought it home.”
• Melandri in fifth, and fourth overall, said, “I’m disappointed to have lost third in the championship by a single point. I had a good feeling with the bike and I was sure I would have a good race. I was really fast over the first few laps but when the tyres heated up, it got tough. I was racing hard because I wanted third in the championship and I put a lot of stress on the left of the tyre. I couldn’t ride as I wanted to and just had to focus on finishing the race as high as possible. My compliments to Nicky, he was great, well done.”
• His team-mate Toni Elias (Fortuna Honda RC211V), sixth, said, “I am happy because I made a good comeback from 13th to sixth. At the start I found it tough but as the laps went by I got a good rhythm together. I made a mistake on the 20th lap but other than that I am satisfied. I have to thank my team, Fausto Gresini, my chief mechanic Cecchini and all the guys. And my compliments too to Nicky Hayden for the title.”
• Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR211V) was eighth. He said, “I’d like to congratulate Nicky, and I feel for Valentino. Nicky and I have the same language, and we talk, but I’m also close to Valentino – we’ve worked with the riders’ safety committee for five years. He’s a champion whether he wins or loses… we all know that. He’s going to come back strong next year. Nicky rode well all year, and consistently, and he deserves to be up there to win the championship. So it was a fun year, and we look forward to improving.”
• Tamada, 12th, said, “For this race I could not get a good qualifying time and had to start from the fifth row. It was a difficult race today. I didn’t get a good start and I didn’t have good grip from the front or rear tyres. This was my last race for the Konica Minolta Honda team and I wanted a good result, so 12th place is very disappointing. I just wish to thank all the people in the Konica Minolta team who have helped me during my stay with the team and also all our sponsors."
• Casey Stoner (LCR Honda RC211V) crashed out on lap 25. He said, “Today I really I wanted to get a nice result for myself and the LCR team. But it’s strange, I don’t know what is happening – so many times recently we are fast in practice and have the perfect race set-up, the perfect tyre and then the bike feels nothing like it does in practice. Today it just wouldn’t turn like it did in practice. I’m really disappointed, after everything was so sweet at the start of the season. But I want give a big thanks to the whole LCR team who gave me this opportunity and stuck with me this year.”

RACE REPORT - YAMAHA - ROSSI FINISH RUNNER-UP TO HAYDEN      (TOP OF PAGE)

• Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi slid out of the Grand Prix of Valencia today and lost his grip on the MotoGP World Championship for the first time in six years on the final day of an implausibly dramatic season. Nicky Hayden (Honda) lifted the title after claiming third place behind surprise winner Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi (both Ducati), with Rossi recovering to cross the line in 13th place but missing out on the title by just five points.
• The fifth lap mishap came after a bad start from Rossi, who looked to be in perfect shape to defend his eight-point advantage going into the race after qualifying on pole position. However, the bad luck that followed the Italian throughout the first half of the season returned to strike its final, decisive blow when the front end of Rossi's YZR-M1 tucked under braking and sent him spinning into the gravel. Another heroic charge from the defending champion saw him recover seven places and brought him back into the points but it wasn't enough to hold off Hayden.
• The last ever MotoGP race of the 990cc era, before maximum engine capacity is reduced to 800cc in 2007, also proved to be a let-down for Rossi's Camel Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards. The Texan had shown good pace throughout the weekend but higher track temperatures reaching 43ºC this afternoon did not suit the set-up of his machine and he was unable to reproduce that practice form. After starting tenth on the grid he made up one place to finish ninth, a result that lifted him to seventh in the final championship standings.
• Colin Edwards (9th; +26.072) "Well, obviously that was a disaster from all angles! After two or three laps I lost the front a couple of times but I'm not really sure why. We chose a soft front here but it was the same one as in Motegi and Estoril and it had worked great all weekend here. Today it was quite a lot hotter so maybe that's what did for us. Basically from then on I couldn't turn it properly, I had to put it all on the knee and slow right down to turn, otherwise I was going straight on. I was really feeling that I might crash any minute and I had to follow Hopkins for the whole race; without any corner speed I just couldn't get the jump to pass him. It's a disappointing end to a difficult season for me. I want to say a huge thank you to my team and everyone at Yamaha for all their work throughout the year; they've never given up and I'm sorry that we couldn't finish on a better note. Bad luck to Valentino, he's shown once again how good he is this season and I'm sorry for him and for the whole team. It's all over for another year but we'll both be back in March with the new bike, ready to get some serious revenge!"
• Valentino Rossi (13th; +38.546) "Of course this is a big disappointment for me because to arrive at the final race with an eight-point advantage and then not win the title is a disaster. Basically I made two mistakes today - one was at the start and then the second one was the crash. It has been a very emotional season, with some great moments, some bad luck and now some mistakes. But this is racing. All I can say now is a big 'congratulations' to Nicky because he is a great guy, a great rider and he is the World Champion because he has been the best this year. I have known him a long time, I know his family well and even though I am disappointed I am also very happy for them. It has been a great fight with him this year - not like in the past with other riders when there have always been some polemics - and we have great respect for each other. I want to say a huge thank you to Yamaha, to all my team and engineers and to everyone else involved, they've done an amazing job this year and now I am looking forward to working towards next season with the 800; I am sure it will be another exciting season and another big battle!"
• Davide Brivio - Camel Yamaha Team Director "It is normal that the feeling now within the team is one of disappointment but we are also proud that we brought this fight to the final round after all the bad luck we had in the first half of the season. Valentino has worked incredibly hard and shown on several occasions why he has been such a great World Champion - even today he kept on fighting to the very end. It is a sad day for us but we are already looking to the future with great excitement about the new 800cc era and the chance to win the title back in 2007. I want to thank all our riders, team staff, sponsors and technical partners for their excellent work this season and, from our behalf, congratulations to Nicky Hayden."

RACE REPORT - DUCATI - BAYLISS 1ST, CAPIROSSI 2ND      (TOP OF PAGE)

• Ducati Marlboro Team riders Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi finished MotoGP's 990cc era in awesome style at Valencia today, storming to a dominant one-two finish in front of a capacity crowd of 129,000 noisy fans.
• Ducati's recently crowned World Superbike champion led from start to finish in a one-off ride replacing the injured Sete Gibernau, while Capirossi came through from third on the first lap to shadow his team-mate to the flag. Along the way Capirossi smashed the lap record, secured the team's first one-two MotoGP finish and took third overall in the World Championship, the Ducati Marlboro Team's best finish in the MotoGP riders' series.
• The race was a perfect end to the 990cc Desmosedici project that started so well at Suzuka 2003, where Capirossi scored a podium result first time out. Bayliss' brilliant win brings the team's total of MotoGP wins to seven, the other six won by Capirossi in 2003, 2005 and at this year's Spanish, Czech and Japanese GPs.
• During its four seasons in MotoGP the Ducati Marlboro Team has also scored a total of 27 podiums, nine pole positions and eight fastest laps. Next year MotoGP switches to 800cc engines.
• Troy Bayliss, Ducati Marlboro Team, race winner, 19th overall, 25 points "Honestly, it's been a fairytale weekend, I'm still pinching myself. I've had a great year, winning the World Superbike championship was a good start! Then just when I was kicking back I got a phone call asking if I was interested in doing this ride. It was something I couldn't knock back because I started the Desmosedici project with Loris at the end of 2002 and had some great times in 2003 and 2004, so to be able to come back and finish off the story at the last 990 race was incredible. I brought a few guys with me - Paolo Ciabatti, Davide Tardozzi and Ernesto Marinelli - and together with my old squad from 2004 we took it step by step and really enjoyed the weekend. Thanks to everybody because this will be my last ride in MotoGP, I've had some great times but I'm really comfortable where I am and this is probably best left to the young guys. To take a win is incredible - I've showed I can still ride around in circles pretty fast."
• Loris Capirossi, Ducati Marlboro Team, 2nd, 3rd overall, 229 points "This has been an incredible season, one of the best, with many different race winners and a lot of nice fighting. This weekend started really well, Friday and Saturday were very good and today was pretty good. My start wasn't so great, some guys overtook me. Anyway, I got past them and tried to follow Troy, but he rode really, really well today. My pit board told me that second was good enough for third in the championship but it would have been difficult to beat him. I am really happy with third overall and we are only 23 points behind the champion. I have had some bad moments this season but all year my team did a really great job, so my thanks to them because my bikes were always so good and I never made any mistakes. Now we are ready to put all our focus into next year. We start testing the 800 again in a few days and we know the bike is already not so bad. We also believe a lot in Bridgestone's power, sometimes the tyres weren't perfect but sometime they were really good. Congratulations to Troy. When I saw how fast he was on Friday I said ‘wow, this is a good talent, a good guy!'."
• Federico Minoli, president and CEO Ducati Motor Holding "This day will go down in Ducati's history. This is the first time we have had a one-two finish in MotoGP, the first time we have won the first and last races of the season and our best-ever championship finish. It's a great end to the year, a good omen for 2007, great for team morale and very important for our technical partners Bridgestone and Shell Advance and all our sponsors."

RACE REPORT - MOTOGP DORNA      (TOP OF PAGE)

• In another incredible race of what has been an amazing season, Nicky Hayden achieved motorcycling’s ultimate accolade of being crowned MotoGP World Champion. The American star’s third place, coupled with Valentino Rossi’s early crash, gave Hayden his first ever MotoGP title at the Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana in a race won by Ducati stand-in Troy Bayliss.
• Starting from fifth on the grid, the Repsol Honda rider laid his chips down early, pulling away from the grid and veering sharply to the right and nearly touching Rossi, who led him by eight points ahead of the final race. By lap seven Hayden was in a comfortable third, a position he stuck in until reaching the chequered flag.
• In the pre-race press conference, Hayden had been insistent that Rossi was not a “choke artist,” but that he needed a bad day from the Camel Yamaha rider to take the title. It was an uncharacteristic error on lap four that proved to be Rossi’s undoing, as he lowsided his Yamaha M1 and was unable to make up enough points upon rejoining the race. The Italian eventually finished thirteenth.
• With all the focus on the overall classification, the fantastic achievement of Troy Bayliss could easily be overlooked. The Australian rider was standing in for the injured Sete Gibernau to finish the journey of the Ducati Desmosedici 990cc bike which he started back in 2003, and did so in style by leading from the first corner on his 50th Grand Prix appearance. Bayliss took the early holeshot and was untroubled by team-mate Loris Capirossi, who finished second, as he earned first ever MotoGP win. Capirossi also had reason to celebrate when he crossed the line, taking third place in the championship from compatriot Marco Melandri.
• Dani Pedrosa was alongside Hayden for the second race in a row, but this time there was no reason for friction between the two riders. On the second lap the Spaniard took a wide line to let his team-mate through, and did a sterling job of keeping the rest of the field away from Hayden.
• Immediately behind Pedrosa were two other Honda riders, Marco Melandri and Toni Elias. A top six finish tops off a good year for Melandri, who just missed out on third spot in the overall standings, and continues Toni Elias’ run of good form which culminated in victory two weeks ago in Portugal.
• Shinya Nakano was seventh in his final ride for Kawasaki, ahead of Kenny Roberts Jr, Colin Edwards and Carlos Checa.
• Hayden becomes the first rider apart from Rossi to win a MotoGP World Title since 2000, before the championship was run on 990cc four-stroke machines. On that occasion it was compatriot Kenny Roberts Jr. and Hayden joins him as the seventh American to win a MotoGP World Championship.
• MotoGP will be run on 800cc machinery next season, and the first race will take place at Qatar on March 10th, 2007.
• Jorge Lorenzo clinched his maiden 250cc World Title at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit in Valencia with fourth place in an action packed Grand Prix. The Fortuna Aprilia rider has been the dominant figure in an exciting season for the quarter litre category, and only had to finish ahead of Andrea Dovizioso to take the crown. However, the gripping action in the race centred not on the title battle, but an epic three-way duel which ended in Alex de Angelis’ first ever Grand Prix win.
• The San Marino rider completed a marvellous day for the Valencia-based Master MVA Aspar Team, who had already tasted victory in the 125cc class. Having trailed the phenomenal Roberto Locatelli the majority of the race, he took advantage of an unforced error by the Japanese rider which saw the KTM rider crash out and Locatelli briefly run off track to break away. Aoyama’s failure to finish also gives de Angelis third place in the championship.
• Locatelli was nothing short of incredible from the start, powering round the outside to take his umpteenth holeshot of the season. The Team Toth rider earned his highest place of a 2006 season where he has also taken the prize for best privateer.
• Valencia’s very own Hector Barbera completed the top three at his home race despite being slow off the line, heading a trio of Fortuna Aprilia riders. New World Champion Jorge Lorenzo placed himself in the middle of Barbera and the returning Alex Debon, who did a great job of holding off Lorenzo’s last remaining title challenger Andrea Dovizioso, who himself was beaten on the last few laps by Shuhei Aoyama. The Japanese rider’s sixth place, combined with Marco Simoncelli’s tumble on lap ten, confirmed the Japanese rider as this season’s best rookie.
• Manuel Poggiali, David de Gea and Sylvain Guintoli completed the top ten for the final race of the 250cc season.
• Hector Faubel started the day’s proceedings at Cheste with a popular home victory, kicking off the most important day of the 2006 season in style. On the Master MVA Aspar team’s home turf, Faubel was first past the chequered flag with a near two second advantage over Mika Kallio. It was a special day for Red Bull KTM’s Finnish star as well, racing his final 125cc Grand Prix and pipping another local youngster, Sergio Gadea, to the line to take second.
• Alvaro Bautista, who had dropped down from pole to finish fourth, finished off the podium for only the second time this season, but still took time after the race to celebrate his memorable season. The Spaniard let off a Valencian “mascleta” firework on the track after finishing ahead of Lukas Pesek and Pol Espargaro.
• Despite finishing an impressive sixth, Pol Espargaro was just beaten to the Rookie of the Year title by Bradley Smith, who came in 12th. Pablo Nieto, Gabor Talmacsi, Mattia Pasini and Thomas Luthi completed the top ten.

RACE REPORT - BRIDGESTONE      (TOP OF PAGE)

• Dream comes Troy with 1-2 in Valencia
• Bridgestone-shod Ducati riders Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi dominated the Valencia Grand Prix at Circuit Ricardo Tormo this afternoon taking a sensational 1-2 as the 17-race season draws to a close, Ducati and Bridgestone's best ever result.
• World Superbike Champion Bayliss has made his MotoGP return for a one-off race appearance this weekend which marks his debut on Bridgestone tyres. The victory, Ducati and Bridgestone's fourth of the season, ensures Bridgestone tyres have taken top and tail wins in Spain this year with the season-opener in Jerez won by Capirossi and today's dominant performance by Bayliss in Valencia.
• After a trio of wins, including Brno and Motegi, Capirossi was content to settle for his fourth second position of the year to add twenty valuable points to his season tally. His final total of 229 points elevates him to third in the riders' championship, the highest position ever attained by a Bridgestone-shod rider in MotoGP. He also claimed the quickest lap of the race, 1m32.924s, a standard only matched by newly-crowned World Champion Nicky Hayden and race winner Bayliss.
• Shinya Nakano was able to use his Bridgestone race tyres to good effect to claim a seventh place finish. Team-mate Randy de Puniet's rookie season ended after just five laps after he crashed out. Suzuki ended their successful season with John Hopkins continuing his run of points-scoring finishes to take 11th, which confirmed his place in the top ten of the riders' classification on equal points with Portuguese GP race winner Toni Elias. Chris Vermeulen was also unable to complete full race distance eventually dropping out on lap 13 from a strong top ten position.
• Bridgestone capped off its strongest season to date in MotoGP with its best ever result, four victories, eleven individual podium positions, six pole positions and a total of 695 points with its three teams. The season claimed its debut wins on European soil, three in total with two in Spain and one in the Czech Republic, a third consecutive win on home ground in Motegi, Japan, as well as pole positions with four of its riders and front row starts in 15 of this year's 17 races.
• In attendance at today's momentous GP, Hideo Hara, Bridgestone Corporation, Vice-President and Officer, Motorsport commented: "Today was a very positive result for Bridgestone and I would like to say thank you and well done to the Ducati team for their excellent victory and second place. This result is the perfect way for Bridgestone to end its most successful season. I think we can be satisfied with our results but I am confident of achieving more MotoGP success in 2007."
• Hiroshi Yamada - Bridgestone Motorsport - Manager Motorcycle Racing: "That was an amazing race for Troy, Loris, the Ducati team and, of course, Bridgestone. We knew from Friday that our tyres were working well at Valencia, but we could only really evaluate the performance over 20 laps, so there was a question mark over their performance in full race distance. In the end, Troy and Loris showed that the tyres were race-winning material, quick, consistent and durable. It was our first ever one-two and a very emotional way for us to end our best ever season. We came into 2006 without any victories in Europe and we managed to start and end the year with Spanish success and helped Loris to finish third in the championship. I would like to say thanks to each of our teams and riders for their hard work, co-operation and dedication over the season which has helped us become more competitive in an increasingly competitive field. The 2006 season ends today, but the 2007 season starts already tomorrow with new bike and tyre regulations. We certainly relish the challenges that are coming our way and are more motivated than ever."
• Troy Bayliss - Ducati Corse - Race Winner: "It's been a fairytale weekend, I'm still pinching myself. I've had a great year, winning the World Superbike championship was a good start! Then just when I was kicking back, I got a phone call to ask if I was interested in doing this ride. I was something I couldn't knock back because I started the Desmosedici project with Loris at the end of 2002, so to be able to come back and finish off the story at the last 990 race was incredible. To take a win is incredible - I've showed I can still ride around in circles pretty fast."

RACE REPORT - MICHELIN      (TOP OF PAGE)

• KING NICKY WINS ANOTHER WORLD TITLE FOR MICHELIN
• Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda Team RC211V-Michelin) won Michelin's 26th premier-class World Championship at Valencia today after the most exciting MotoGP season ever. The American's success completed Michelin's 100 per cent record in the five 990cc MotoGP World Championships and also secured its 15th consecutive premier-class crown.
• 2006 has been another year of phenomenal success for Michelin. The French tyre brand has won 13 of the year's 17 races, taken 11 pole positions, scored 12 fastest laps, filled 40 of 51 podium places and taken eight of the top nine World Championship positions.
• Hayden won his first world title with a perfectly judged ride to third place this afternoon, after sole title rival Valentino Rossi (Gauloises Yamaha YZR-M1-Michelin) spoiled his chances by sliding off on lap five. The Italian, winner of the previous five premier-class titles, remounted to finish 13th and end the season just five points down on Hayden.
• "Today was another dramatic day in what has been a dramatic season, our congratulations to Nicky for doing a great job," said Nicolas Goubert, who completed his stint as Michelin's director of motorcycle racing today, passing the baton to his successor Jean-Philippe Weber. "This has been another great season for us. The lap times kept improving during 2006, as they have done throughout the 990cc era, and I'm really happy that we have maintained the advantage in MotoGP that we had in 500 GPs. The world's three major motorcycle tyre manufacturers now compete head to head in MotoGP but we still come out well ahead every year, and that is something of which we are very proud. We had many good performances in 2006 and it was particularly good to win at Sepang, where we got beaten in 2005. Also, we have never been beaten in a wet MotoGP race!"
• Hayden, winner of three MotoGP races with Michelin, said: "I'm still looking at the race results to make sure I'm not dreaming, but dreams do come true! Thanks to all the people who've been behind me - my family, my friends, Repsol Honda, Michelin, everyone. Michelin don't win all these races and world titles by being lucky, they put in the work and take the information from the riders. We've seen a lot of improvements since I first came to MotoGP, like the bigger front and the wider profile rears. I was the first guy to race the wider profile front last year, it gives me a lot more confidence and grip, especially into downhill corners. When I started using it last year my results really improved. The 2006 rear made a big difference for me because it gives more and when we started using this year's bike we were looking for more edge grip. I liked it as soon as I got on it."
• Michelin has scored more than 350 victories in premier-class motorcycling racing since 1973.

QUALIFYING   (TOP OF PAGE)

ROSSI ON POLE

GRID, OCT 28, 2006

1 Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha, 1:31.002 *NEW RECORD* 2 Troy Bayliss (AUS) Ducati 1:31.210 3 Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 4 S Nakano (Jpn) Kawasaki 5 N Hayden (US) Honda 6 D Pedrosa (Spn) Honda 7 C Stoner (Aus) Honda 8 C Vermeulen (Aus) Suzuki 9 J Hopkins (US) Suzuki 10 C Edwards (US) Yamaha 11 De Puniet 12 Melandri 13 Elias 14 Roberts 15 Tamada 16 Checa 17 Hofmann 18 Cardoso 19 Ellison 20 McCoy GRID 1 H Aoyama 2 Lorenzo 3 De Angelis 4 Locatelli 5 Simoncelli GRID 1 Bautista 2 Faubel 3 Gadea 4 Pasini 5 Kallio

QUALIFYING REPORT - YAMAHA - ROSSI ON POLE      (TOP OF PAGE)

• Rossi in pole position for title bid at Valencia
• Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi will launch his bid for the MotoGP World Championship title in the best possible circumstances tomorrow after sealing pole position for the final race of the season in today's qualifying session at Valencia. The Italian repeatedly smashed the pole record here to make sure of the top spot, eventually clocking a best lap of 1'31.002 to hold off the twin challenge of Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi (Ducati), who join him on the front row. Tomorrow, in front of an expected crowd of over 120,000 fans, the five-time MotoGP World Champion will defend an eight-point advantage over Nicky Hayden (Honda) as he aims to secure his sixth consecutive title.
• Hayden, the only man with a mathematical chance of denying Rossi, starts from the second row after qualifying fifth fastest, meaning there are three riders between the championship contenders on the grid. Unfortunately Rossi's Camel Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards is not one of those, having struggled to significantly improve his lap times on a qualifying tyre this afternoon. Nevertheless, the in-form Texan has set an impressive pace throughout the day on race rubber. In the morning free practice, when Rossi also topped the time sheets, Edwards was fourth fastest and in the afternoon he lapped consistently inside the circuit record before being forced to settle for tenth place on the grid.
• Valentino Rossi (1st - 1'31.002; 30 laps)"We knew we had great potential with the qualifying tyre because we tried it this morning in the free practice and then this afternoon I did three very good laps, each one better and better and then the final lap was very fast. To do a 1'31.0 was really incredible. This pole position is crucial for me because it is an important part of my race tactics to start from the front. The session couldn't have gone much better for us because we have a couple of other riders between myself and Nicky. It is a shame Colin is not one of them but he has a good race pace so hopefully he can help me out like he did at Estoril. The team has done a great job this weekend, especially with the balance of the bike. Now we need to make one or two small changes for tomorrow and then we'll just wait and see. I hope the weather will be like this - for the riders and for the fans because it looks like there will be a great crowd! Now we have the most important thirty laps of the season left to complete our target."
  
• Colin Edwards (10th - 1'31.711; 28 laps)"I'm really pleased with the race setting although we could still make a little more time up in the second sector so that is something we will look at in the warm-up tomorrow. I'm also having a slight problem under braking into turn one but it's good to know that even with those small setbacks we are still right up there in terms of the pace we can expect to see at the front tomorrow. The bike is a lot better than yesterday - we were confident that the changes we had in mind would work and they did, so I have to give my thanks to the team for that. They've done a great job on the bike and we're all set to give a good showing in the last race. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get it done on the qualifying tyre today so the starting position is a little further back than we would like but I know this circuit really well and hopefully I can use that knowledge to make as many passes as possible at the start of the race, get up there and help Valentino win this championship."
• Davide Brivio - Camel Yamaha Team Director"We couldn't have asked for a better starting position for the most important race of the season but the main thing is that Valentino's general feeling with the bike is good and he is comfortable going into such a big day tomorrow. Of course, anything can still happen but we feel ready for this last battle and happy in the knowledge that our bike will be competitive enough to go out and race. Unfortunately Colin wasn't able to take advantage of the qualifying tyre today but we're pleased with his pace on race rubber and we expect a big effort from him tomorrow. If he can get a good start then I'm sure he can stay with the lead group and help out Valentino, just like he did at Estoril. We are ready for D-Day!"
• Tech3 Yamaha confident of strong race at Valencia
• Two hours of practice and qualifying for tomorrow's final MotoGP of the year at the Grand Prix of Valencia have placed the Tech 3 Yamaha Team in an encouraging frame of mind for a good performance in what is the final race with the team for both Carlos Checa and James Ellison.
• Carlos and James finished the critical one hour qualifying session in 16th and 19th positions respectively but these places are deceptive as on race tyres the Tech 3 Yamaha Team is right in the hunt. Carlos's lap times especially are similar to those of pole sitter and fellow Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi and, encouragingly, just over a second off the fastest pole time of the defending world champion.
• Also during qualifying, Carlos did almost an entire Grand Prix distance on race tyres to boost his confidence for his final race with the Tech 3 Yamaha Team while teammate James had his session interrupted with a crash as he was pushing hard following Carlos in an effort to move up the grid. Although he had a small hiccup with the low-side crash, the Englishman still lowered his lap times from yesterday to set him in the mood for a good performance.
• Carlos Checa (16th, 1'32.747, 31 laps)"I am not too disappointed with the session, although of course we would like to be closer to the front, but I did a race pace on a new tyre selection so we hope we can do the same times and be able to do the entire distance. We are quite satisfied with the job we did as on the last lap we did a flat 34. Our main problem is the consistency and to be able to race all laps in the 33s will be quite difficult. Unfortunately, with qualifying tyres we had a lot of chattering and couldn't improve too much. I thought I may be able to do one more lap but this was not possible. We are not in the best place on the grid as we are a bit further back than we would've liked but I am confident after doing the lap times today on race tyres that if we can get a good start we may be able to push our way through a few positions to get closer to the front but we have to remember that this is a very hard place to pass so we must aim for the best of starts. Also, as it is my last race with the team I want to have a good result to say thanks for all the hard work they have put in this year. At the beginning of the year we knew this would be a very difficult season but for everything that has happened I must say that it is one of the most personally satisfying years I have had in my career."
• James Ellison (19th, 1'33.953, 25 laps)"The session was ok at first and I really thought we may pull out a half decent qualifying position but we are still hitting a barrier that we can't push through, as once we start pushing through it we are having heaps of chattering problems on the right side. It starts to chatter then you try and ride through it and sometimes you get away with it and it stops chattering and sometimes it doesn't and that's what happened when I lost the front through the second right-hander. I can follow Carlos on exactly the same line and speed but when we look at the telemetry we see how different each bike is performing but it seems to have been the case all year. We have a pretty good idea for a race setup as I can run around in the 34 second bracket quite comfortably so I am fairly confident that we can run a good pace tomorrow and finish off a difficult year in the points.
• Herve Poncharal - Tech 3 Yamaha Team Director"First up congratulations to Valentino as this could be the most important pole position of his career. Saying that, it was a not so bad day for us today although the time sheets may show different. We look quite good on race tyres as we did 20 laps with Carlos earlier in the session and the lap times was very consistent with the entire block in the 1 minute 33 second bracket which after two days appears to be what the race pace will be and this is quite promising. Unfortunately we didn't qualify as well as we could've done and the starting position is not what we would've have liked but we saw Carlos at Estoril start from quite far behind after an incident at the first corner and he came back to a very decent position after the first few laps. We hope tomorrow that he will be able to make his way through the field for a similar result. As it is Carlos' last race for the team in Spain front of his home crowd we would like him to do well so we will all be trying our best. James was riding quite well also until he fell when pushing. We are happy to see him pushing hard and although he didn't improve after he crashed, he was very aggressive and this is what we like him to do and tomorrow we hope that he can do the same thing and finish his time with the team with a satisfactory result."

QUALIFYING REPORT - DUCATI - BAYLISS 2ND, CAPIROSSI 3RD      (TOP OF PAGE)

• Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss will start tomorrow's final race of the 990cc era from the front row following a storming performance in today's enthralling qualifying session. This is the team's third double front row of the year after Jerez and Mugello.
• The remarkable Bayliss, who wrapped up his second World Superbike title for Ducati earlier this month, was second quickest, just two tenths off pole, even though this is his first MotoGP outing of the year. The result equalled his best-ever MotoGP grid position, achieved at Jerez in 2003. Capirossi was less than a tenth down in third place and is feeling confident for tomorrow's race in which he aims to secure third overall in the World Championship.
• Both men ran up front throughout the session, setting a rapid pace on their Bridgestone race tyres, then getting the best out of their Bridgestone qualifiers. Among the supporters in the team's pit this weekend are members of the America's Cup team Luna Rossa, including skipper Francesco De Angelis, currently based at the port of Valencia.
• Troy Bayliss, 2nd fastest, 1m 31.210s "It's been a great weekend so far, now I'd just like to finish it off with a good result. This is a great opportunity to finish the story I started with the Desmosedici in 2003 because this is the last 990cc MotoGP race, so I really appreciate getting the ride. I'm back with my old guys from this team in 2004 and I've come with a few guys from Superbikes, Ernesto Marinelli, Paolo Ciabatti and Davide Tardozzi, so I've felt at home all weekend. We expected quite a bit before we came here even though I hadn't been on this year's bike or on Bridgestone tyres. We didn't put any pressure on ourselves, we've just taken it step by step and every session we've got better. The bike and tyres are obviously working pretty good, though we'll be looking for a little more in the morning because you've never got a perfect bike. To be on the front row is so important here. Now I hope to get a good start and be part of the race."
• Loris Capirossi, 3rd fastest, 1m 31.307s "Troy and I are like wine - the older we get the faster we get! I am very happy with the work we've done today, especially this morning when I did a semi-race simulation of 20 laps, maintaining a very good pace throughout. This afternoon I started on new race tyres and managed a 32.2 which is really good. We will have to wait and see what the conditions will be tomorrow but I think we are pretty strong because that race simulation suggests we can be fast all race. Furthermore, it's great that we are starting from the front row because overtaking here is very difficult."
• Federico Minoli, president and CEO Ducati Motor Holding "Troy is the promising young man of motorcycling! We are very happy for him, he's a great racer and a great friend of Ducati. We gave him the present of racing here and he has given us the present of a front-row start. Loris is as strong as ever. To have two bikes on the front row for the last 990 race is a dream come true. Tomorrow will be interesting because the times are so close. We will enjoy the day and see what happens."

QUALIFYING REPORT - HONDA - HAYDEN 5TH, PEDROSA 6TH      (TOP OF PAGE)

• This final qualifying session for the final MotoGP race of the season was not quite what Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) wanted. On his fastest qualifying lap Nicky was forced off line on the third time split when he encountered a slowing rider and will now start from row two as fifth fastest qualifier. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) starts from pole with Ducati riders Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi completing the front row.
• Nicky has Kawasaki man Shinya Nakano ahead of him in fourth and his team-mate Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC211V) alongside him in sixth. Nicky briefly held pole with 15 minutes of the hour remaining – but if his race set-up proves ideal for tomorrow’s 30-lap encounter he would gladly relinquish the top grid slot in exchange for a win.
• It was Capirossi who laid down the first marker here with a 1m 32.255s lap as riders worked on race tyre endurance tests in the 50 minutes before the majority of riders fitted ultra-sticky qualifying rubber. But with 25 minutes gone Randy de Puniet (Kawasaki) opted for a qualifier to put in an early pole time of 1m 31.914s.
• Capirossi then returned the compliment on the half-hour mark with a 1m 31.682s time to hold pole before the pace hotted up. With 20 minutes to go the action started with the order; Capirossi, de Puniet, Bayliss, John Hopkins (Suzuki), Rossi, Hayden and then Casey Stoner (LCR Honda RC211V)
• Nakano then rocketed to the second fastest time before Bayliss marked his one-off return to MotoGP with a blistering 1m 31.585s lap to go pole. But delighted as most onlookers were with the Australian visitor’s impact, most eyes were on the more serious business of where Hayden and Rossi would end up.
• Nicky hit the front on the 15-minute mark and Rossi went second fastest ahead of Bayliss. With ten minutes left on the clock, Rossi put in a 1m 31.234s lap to snatch pole, the order on the front row being Rossi, Hayden, Nakano.
• Then with three minutes remaining Bayliss stole pole again, but only for a matter of seconds as Rossi followed him over the line to record a 1m 31.002s lap that would not be bettered. The placings behind pole would be fiercely disputed though.
• Nakano fought back onto the front row in third and it looked as if he might stay there until a fired-up Capirossi charged into third spot relegating Nakano to row two in his final ride in green livery.
• Casey Stoner, riding with an injured back, ended the day in seventh place with Marco Melandri (Fortuna Honda RC211V) 12th fastest, Toni Elias (Fortuna Honda RC211V) 13th on the grid, Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR211V) 14th and Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda RC211V), in his last MotoGP ride, 15th.
• Nicky said, “We’re starting on the second row and that means I need a lightning start tomorrow. We’re definitely going all in for the win and it’ll be interesting because there are some guys going really fast out there. I need fast guys – but I don’t need them to be faster than me! I didn’t get on the front row where I needed to be which makes it a bit harder for me – and I’m not thrilled about that. I just need to focus on the race and finish the year strong – whatever happens happens.”
• Dani said, “On the qualifying tyres this afternoon at first I was not so fast. I improved a little on my later runs and we finished in sixth place – which is not perfect because Rossi is on pole. From the second row I will need to do a great start tomorrow and get away with the leaders. It’s going to be a big race in front of many, many fans so I’m really looking forward to it.”
• “I made a small mistake on my fast lap,” said Stoner. “And lost 0.2s, which would have put me up in the top four positions. But I’m close to the front, and not 14th, which is where I was before I got that new tyre from Michelin. The tyre felt more predictable and didn’t upset the bike. My back is OK when I am riding so that’s OK. This race is always close in qualifying but a lot of riders drop-off towards the end. I’m just going out to do my own thing in the final race of the season.”
• Melandri said, “I am not satisfied because it will be a very hard race tomorrow. I hope to make a good start as I have the race rhythm to be up with the front-runners. I did not make best use of the qualifying tyre and could not guarantee myself a good position on the grid. I want to try and get a good result so that I can confirm third place in the Championship.”
• Elias said, “I’m not happy with the result because I wanted to be further up. However, I don’t want to write off my chances as in Portugal I started 15th but ended up winning the race. I hope to make a good start and make up as many positions as I can quickly. My race rhythm has improved over the weekend so I hope I can get a good result.”
• Kenny Roberts said, “I think the machine is closer than I am at the moment. There’s probably more to come from myself than anything. This morning I did some mid- to low-33s, and felt pretty good. I thought I could go quite a bit faster. I started on used tyres, then we got down to the time that I was doing this morning. I guess if we’d have left the bike with one setting and just kept throwing in tyres I might have been a little bit better off, but we’re always trying to improve it, and just never seemed to hit.”
• Makoto Tamada said, “I made a long series of laps with a race bike setting and I have to say that, with these conditions, the set up I’ll have at my disposal tomorrow is really satisfying. When using qualifiers, the feeling with the bike changed completely and, as many times throughout the season, I was not able to make the best use of the grip I had. The bike handling becomes harder in corner entry.”

FRI PRACTICE, OCT 27, 2006

1. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 2. Randy De Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki +0.18 3. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Suzuki 4. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda 5. Casey Stoner (AUS) Honda 6. Dani Pedrosa (ESP) Honda 7. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 8. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki 9. Shinya Nakano (JAP) Kawasaki 10. Troy Bayliss (AUS) Ducati

FRI REPORT - YAMAHA      (TOP OF PAGE)

• ROSSI MAKES TENTATIVE START TO TITLE QUEST IN VALENCIA
• Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi today began preparations for the race that will decide the destiny of the MotoGP World Championship title as the first free practice sessions took place at Valencia. Fans have already begun to stream into the Ricardo Tormo circuit to witness the first exchanges of what promises to be another historic chapter in this sport's great history, with bright sunshine and warm autumn temperatures of 25oC welcoming them to the eastern coast of Spain for the final round of the season.
• In the morning session Rossi and his Camel Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards helped raise the heat with a series of quick laps that left the Italian on top of the time sheets, with the American sixth fastest, over lunch. However, the pace picked up considerably in the afternoon as a number of riders tested out their qualifying rubber ahead of tomorrow afternoon's grid decider and the pair slipped down the order, with Rossi ending the day seventh fastest overall and Edwards, who was unable to improve on his best lap from the morning, down in eleventh.
• Loris Capirossi (Ducati) clocked the fastest time of the day with a lap of 1'32.220, ahead of Randy de Puniet (Kawasaki) and Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki). Rossi and Edwards will look to close the gap as they work on further setting refinements to their YZR-M1 machines in the final free practice session tomorrow morning, before official qualifying gets underway at 2pm local time.
• VALENTINO ROSSI (7th , 1'33.274; 51 laps) "We found a good setting this morning and we were quite fast from the start, but this afternoon some of the others made big improvements and caught up with us! This afternoon we tried a lot of different things and quite a few tyres, trying to find the best possible package for tomorrow and Sunday. Tyres are fundamental here and its very hard on the left side of the tyre especially. This track isn't so easy and it takes time to find the right setting, but the feeling from the bike is good and in general our race pace is quite fast so we're not really worried. We've got one or two things to improve, especially in a couple of the hard braking areas, but I think if we can make just a couple of improvements then we will be able to fight at the top. For now we will stay calm and focused and tomorrow things will be clearer."
• COLIN EDWARDS (11th , 1'33.545; 39 laps) "It's okay, everything is under control! Our new breakthrough, 'miracle' setting that we found in Motegi needed a few tweaks before it was perfect for Estoril and here it's the same story. In fact we need to make a few small changes back towards the Motegi setting in order to have it perfect for this track. Everything we're learning and understanding here, especially with the setting, is going to be really valuable next year, even with the new bike, so that's quite exciting. We understand why it was perfect in Portugal and why we've got some problems here, so there's no need to panic. We'll make some changes tonight and I'm confident that we'll be back up there tomorrow."
• DAVIDE BRIVIO , CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR "With Valentino we worked a lot today on many different things. We're still trying to fine tune the setting and select the right tyres but anyway the situation is not so bad. Colin this morning was quite fast but now we need to look at what happened this afternoon because he couldn't improve on that time. We've got some work to get through tonight to see how we can improve with him but it seems his team understands what they need to do and I am sure they will be able to bring everything together for tomorrow. It's not a perfect start but we're relaxed, it's only Friday and we have all of Saturday to improve."

FRI REPORT - DUCATI      (TOP OF PAGE)

• GREAT START TO 2006 FINALE FOR DUCATI MARLBORO MEN
• Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi made a perfect start to the final Grand Prix of MotoGP's 990cc era at Valencia this afternoon, setting the fastest lap of the day in warm, cloudy conditions. Troy Bayliss, replacing the injured Sete Gibernau, also got off to a brilliant start, going tenth quickest, even though he didn't use qualifying tyres.
• Both Capirossi and Bayliss are very happy with Bridgestone's latest race rubber. Capirossi rode a 1m 33.0s with these tyres. He also tried one qualifying tyre but believes he will be able to go significantly quicker when he tries different Bridgestone qualifiers tomorrow.
• Bayliss, who recently secured his second World Superbike crown with Ducati, enjoyed a warm welcome from the Ducati Marlboro Team, with which he contested the 2003 and 2004 MotoGP series. The Australian immediately felt at home, working to get the best out of the Desmosedici GP6 for its last race. Four years ago Bayliss gave the GP3 its public debut here on the occasion of the 2002 Valencia GP.
• Loris Capirossi, Ducati Marlboro Team, 1st, 1m 32.220s "I'm very happy because we've worked very well today - the team is being very reactive. We totally changed the set-up for this afternoon, so the bike is now pretty competitive here. We have learned so much this season, understanding that the Desmosedici's settings needs very careful attention to work at each track. And everything we have learned this year will be crucial for the future because the GP7 chassis is very similar to the GP6 chassis. I'm happy with the new race tyres that Bridgestone have brought here. I did a run of 15 laps on the same tyres, setting the fastest pace of the day in race trim without any endurance worries. This season I have tried many different qualifying tyres and sometimes it's easy to lose your way with qualifiers, so it was good to test one today, even though it wasn't exactly what I wanted for this track. I'm very happy to have Troy as my team-mate here and I'm hoping to end the season as well as I can."
• Troy Bayliss, Ducati Marlboro Team, 10th fastest, 1m 33.433s "I'm very happy with the start I've had, considering this is my first time on Bridgestones. I haven't used a qualifier yet, so I'm doing okay. When I first went out the bike felt quite a bit different to the Superbike but after a couple of laps it felt like I've been on this bike before. Of course, a few things have changed since 2004, but it wasn't long before I felt reasonably good on it but a little bit away from perfect. Ernie (Ernesto Marinelli, Bayliss' Superbike crew chief) and myself don't know the Bridgestones, what temperature the front works best at and so on but we've got a few got a few good ideas to test tomorrow. Loris made a couple of changes this afternoon that really helped him, so now we know what to do. With Sete injured it made sense for me to come here, I want to do a good job but I'll just do what I can do."

PREVIEW   (TOP OF PAGE)

YAMAHA PREVIEW

• One of the most exciting seasons in the history of the MotoGP World Championship reaches an intense climax next weekend as Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden (Honda) go head-to-head for the title in a final-round shootout at Valencia. The amphitheatre-style surroundings of the Ricardo Tormo circuit on the outskirts of the Spanish city provide the perfect stage for the ultimate instalment of a 17-round epic that began on the Iberian peninsular in less than perfect fashion for Camel Yamaha rider Rossi nine months ago.
• Since being knocked from his bike in the first corner of the first race at Jerez, the Italian has been through virtually every emotion known to a motorcycle racer. A dramatically unpredictable season of twists and turns has seen Rossi visit the gravel traps, the hospital and the top step of the podium in almost equal measures, with technical problems also robbing him of vital points in the first half of the season. However, since finding himself a massive 51 points behind Hayden after round eleven at Laguna Seca, the five-time World Champion has shown his true colours with a string of five consecutive podium finishes.
• His latest, second place in the Grand Prix of Portugal at Estoril, coupled with a crash for Hayden, finally lifted him above the American to the top of the standings for the first time this season and opened up an eight-point gap between the pair with one round to go. It means that for the first time in fourteen seasons the destiny of the MotoGP World Championship will be decided in the final round, with the drama set to unfold in front of a sell-out crowd in excess of 120,000 people in the firecracker atmosphere of Cheste.
• Colin Edwards will once again be looking to play the role of good team-mate after his star performance at Estoril just over a week ago. The Texan was back to his best form in Portugal, qualifying second on the grid and providing a crucial helping hand to Rossi in the early stages of the race – only to narrowly miss out on his second rostrum of the season as he took fourth place at the line. This weekend Edwards’ clear objective is to go at least one position better and make sure he is celebrating alongside Rossi on Sunday evening.
• VALENTINO ROSSI: MY ONE CHANCE
  Valentino Rossi travels to Spain this week knowing that he cannot afford to let this incredible opportunity slip after admitting that a fifth title defence was effectively out of his hands just five rounds ago. Hayden’s well-publicised misfortune in Portugal has perhaps overshadowed the fact that it is Rossi’s own form – a run of nine top-three finishes from the last eleven races – that has propelled him to the top of the standings and fulfilled his target of arriving at the final round with a sixth consecutive premier-class title in sight.

  “Things went very well for us in Estoril - we’ve achieved our goal of coming here still fighting for the championship and for this I have to thank everyone in the team so much,” says Rossi. “Each person has worked at 100% to bring us back to this position and now we’re all very excited about this final race. Of course it’s not going to be like other times, when I have won the championship with some races to spare and less pressure. Now I only have one chance. It’s a big pressure for everyone but it’s great for the show.

  “Valencia isn’t one of my best tracks and we also know that Hayden is really strong there, so it’s definitely not going to be easy. On the other hand we know that the M1 works quite well there and in the race last year it was very good in the second half of the race especially. If we can start from the front then I think we can try for the win, but whatever happens it’s going to be a really exciting race. Hopefully Colin and I can be at the front together like in Estoril and we’ll just see what we can do!”

• COLIN EDWARDS: A TEAM PLAYER
  Colin Edwards says his number one aim this weekend is to help out his great friend and team-mate Valentino Rossi in his quest to win the title. The best way to do that, of course, is for the Texan to keep his excellent form going and continue with the recent progress the pair have made with the set-up of their YZR-M1 machines. Edwards’ attitude is a reflection of a tight team ethic at Camel Yamaha and it is something he hopes will pay dividends when the chequered flag greets the 2006 MotoGP World Champion on Sunday.

  “I’m pretty excited about the last race of the season, it’s going to be pretty close I reckon,” says Edwards. “Estoril worked out well for the team and I was able to help Valentino out, which was the number one aim. Obviously I was disappointed not to be on the podium but my bike worked great and I think that we’re in good shape to do it all again at Valencia.

  “I’ve raced at Valencia for years so I know it really well and I know I am quite fast there. Like in Estoril, the aim is going to be to get on the front row alongside Valentino and then just to help him out in the race as much as possible. Of course this time out I want to be on the podium too, a Yamaha one-two would be the perfect end to the season!”

• DAVIDE BRIVIO: THE FINAL PUSH
  For Camel Yamaha Team Director Davide Brivio the Grand Prix of Portugal epitomised the togetherness and spirit shown by his riders and staff since bouncing back from the brink of failure midway through the season. With just one round remaining the Italian is asking for one final, definitive push before a well-earned break and the start of the new 800cc era in 2007.

  “Since the summer break we have just taken the races one-by-one, working our hardest and keeping our focus, and the results have been excellent,” reflects Brivio. “Our objective from Brno onwards was to keep fighting until the end of the season and try to get to the last round with a mathematical chance of winning the title. After Portugal that mathematical chance is a lot stronger than we expected but it is not over yet and, as we all know from our experience this season, anything can still happen.

  “It looks like being another dramatic weekend but from our point of view the objective is just the same as it has been for the last five or six races – to keep our heads down, work hard and stay focused on the job of giving our riders the best possible package for Sunday. If we can do that then I’m sure Valentino and Colin will do their part too, and hopefully we can celebrate together on Sunday.”

• TECHNICALLY SPEAKING: VALENCIA ACCORDING TO JEREMY BURGESS
  With its unique stadium-style surroundings the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia is a spectacular, if somewhat cramped facility characterised by a never-ending burst of tight corners, connected by short straights. The long penultimate looping left-hander and the fast entry to turn one contrast violently with the otherwise geometric flip-flop chicanes and slow-speed corners of the infield.

  “Valencia isn’t one of Valentino’s favourite tracks because it is so tight and twisty, but we won there in 2004 and finished third last year after starting well down the grid, so we know the M1 works well,” says Jeremy Burgess, Chief Engineer to Valentino Rossi. “One of the big lessons we have learnt this season is that if you want to win in this class nowadays then you really have to start from the front so we will again be using the free practice sessions to make sure we have the right bike settings for both qualifying and the race.

  “Technically there is not much to say about Valencia other than the obvious fact that it has a lot of low gear usage and very little throttle – with the back straight and the start-finish straight being the only two high speed sections. The last long left is different to any other corner in the world and it can be crucial to the outcome of the race so for that reason it requires special attention when setting the bike up to make sure you have the speed coming towards the line. The rest is slow and anti-clockwise – there’s not much else to say about it really!”

HONDA PREVIEW      (TOP OF PAGE)

• The climax of the extraordinary 2006 MotoGP World Championship takes place at the Valencia circuit in Spain this weekend, with Nicky Hayden looking to launch a sensational comeback to clinch his first world title. The 25-year-old American rider sits eight points from the top of the standings and will be going all out in Sunday’s 30-lap race to secure the championship he’s led for most of the season.
• Hayden rates the Valencia circuit as one of his favourites on the Grand Prix calendar and the Repsol Honda star proved his pace here last year, finishing just 0.097s seconds adrift of the winner, Marco Melandri on the Movistar Honda. After the disappointing result in Estoril, Hayden will be going into this weekend’s decider with nothing to lose. If he scores nine points more than title rival Valentino Rossi, the crown will go to Hayden.
• 21-year old Spaniard Dani Pedrosa will be riding for the third time this year in front of his home crowd. The MotoGP Rookie of the Year has a brilliant record at Valencia in the smaller Grand Prix categories having taken the race win, pole position and fastest lap on three previous occasions , in 2004 and 2005 in the 250cc class and in 2002 on the 125. Pedrosa will be looking to bounce back from the Estoril weekend with a strong performance and has declared his intention to do all he can to assist Hayden’s championship cause. A Repsol Honda one-two, with Hayden taking the chequered flag first, would add the Riders’ world championship to the Constructors’ and Team titles which are already in the bag.
• The Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana Ricardo Tormo first held a round of the motorcycle World Championship in 1999, and has hosted the final MotoGP event of the season since 2002. Completed in 1999, it’s a modern venue with excellent viewing facilities for up to 150,000 fans. Many of the grandstands afford a view of almost the entire 4.005km (2.487 miles) lap, and the total weekend attendance last year was a staggering 212,312 spectators.
• Dominated by medium to slow corners, MotoGP bikes spend much of their time in second and third gears at Valencia, and for this reason it’s not regarded as a classic Grand Prix circuit. But there are challenges, chief among them the fast left-hander at the end of the lap which crests a rise and is the scene of spectacular rear wheel slides as the 250bhp MotoGP bikes become unweighted.
• With practice beginning on Friday followed by qualifying on Saturday, Sunday’s 30-lap Grand Prix of Valencia begins at 14.00 CET. This race also marks the end of the spectacular 990cc MotoGP era, with 800cc rules coming into effect for the 2007 season.
• How Hayden can take the 2006 title:
  The Repsol Honda ace needs to score at least 9 points more than Valentino Rossi to take the World Championship. The possible finishing results to ensure this are:

  Hayden 1st (25 points) with Rossi 3rd or below (16 points)
  Hayden 2nd (20 points) with Rossi 5th or below (11 points)
  Hayden 3rd (16 points) with Rossi 9th or below (7 points)
  Hayden 4th (13 points) with Rossi 12th or below (4 points)
  Hayden 5th (11 points) with Rossi 14th or below (2 points)
  Hayden 6th (10 points) with Rossi 15th or below (1 point)
  Hayden 7th (9 points) with Rossi 16th or below (0 points)

• Nicky Hayden , World Championship Position: 2nd , 236 points
  “When I think about the last race I still feel pretty sick but the truth is I’ve got to get over it because whinnying or talking about it any more won’t change that doughnut in the points column. My shoulder is feeling a little better, the clutch is finally better and my boy Elias did me a huge favour at Estoril and gave me hope! Valencia is a track I really like and the atmosphere there is unreal - it’s as good as it gets as far as a crowd to race in front of. So I go there with nothing to lose , I need to win and hope that Rossi has a bad weekend. I know that’s a long shot but we won’t surrender until the chequered flag on Sunday. I know my team is in my corner and I have lots of fans , especially back home , still riding with me. Also it’s the last race for MotoGP as we know it so I am sure this one will be another classic!”

• Dani Pedrosa , World Championship Position: 5th , 202 points
  “It’s been quite a difficult time since the race at Estoril, for obvious reasons. It’s hard to just forget such an incident, especially when it was so important for Nicky and the team, but that is what I must do now. I have to put it behind me and to focus on getting the best possible result this weekend. I’ll do everything I can to help Nicky , we have a big challenge ahead but we can make it. Valencia is a small circuit, but it’s a good test of the bikes. On a MotoGP machine it’s going to feel very tight and the key will be to get a good balance from the bike in the many medium and slow corners. It’s very flat and it’s very good for fans because they can follow the whole lap of a rider from almost every spot. And since it's the last race of the championship and in Spain, the atmosphere is going to very intense. I’ve been on pole position and won the race here three times before so I really hope the weather stays fine and I’m able to put in a strong performance this weekend and get the right result for the team.”

MOTOGP DORNA PREVIEW      (TOP OF PAGE)

• After a magnificent season and one of the most exciting races of all time in the last race at Estoril, the breathtaking 2006 MotoGP World Championship will go right down to the wire. The final race of the year, the Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana, will welcome a sell-out crowd into the Ricardo Tormo circuit ready to see either Valentino Rossi or Nicky Hayden take the ultimate accolade in motorcycle racing.
• The five-time MotoGP World Champion Rossi leads the championship for the first time this season, and could not have chosen a better race to enter with an 8 point advantage. The Italian has made an outstanding comeback against all odds after a series of DNFs gave him his worst ever start to a premier class season. Since his last mechanical failure at Laguna Seca, the reigning World Champion has been on a run of five consecutive podium finishes, his last victory coming in Malaysia at the start of the triple flyaway. In its simplest form, if Rossi can make it six wins this season at Valencia, or finishes above rival Nicky Hayden in the race, then he will take a sixth consecutive premier class title and become the only champion of the 990cc MotoGP era. There are also possibilities based on Hayden finishing ahead of the Camel Yamaha rider.
• Having led the championship for nearly the entire season, Nicky Hayden suffered a crushing blow in Portugal when team-mate Dani Pedrosa took him out of the race on lap five. Hayden has offered the opinion that the Spaniard could make it up to him with a second place at the Cheste circuit this weekend, which combined with a Hayden win would send the crown to Kentucky. For the first time this year, the title is out of the American’s hands, and the 51-point advantage that Hayden held after his last win at Laguna Seca has been slowly converted into the current 8 point deficit. With nothing left to lose, the Repsol Honda rider will be going all-out in what may be his best ever chance of a premier class title.
• Although a discreet result in Portugal ended Marco Melandri’s title hopes, the Italian could still catch Hayden for second place. 19 points behind his American rival, the rider who recently renewed his contract with Fausto Gresini’s team for 2007 will have last year’s race in Valencia fresh in his mind, where he took glory and edged out Hayden to become the 2005 MotoGP World Championship runner up.
• Loris Capirossi, one of the season’s outstanding performers, also saw the mathematical possibility of a title slip away at Estoril. Capirossi is the only other rider apart from Hayden and Rossi to lead the championship this season, and will hope to cement Ducati’s best ever finish in the series by sneaking third from Melandri.
• As mentioned previously, Dani Pedrosa will want to make amends for the all-Repsol Honda crash in the last round by helping his team-mate win in the Spanish rookie’s home country. His final race on a 990cc machine before the introduction of new rules which could favour Pedrosa’s build and style more, he will be eager to show the kind of riding that left him with a possibility of maiden season glory until lap five in Portugal.
• Kenny Roberts Jr’s season has continued to improve alongside his KR211V bike. As new parts have been added and chassis modified, the American has climbed up the standings to currently lie in sixth. Roberts was even battling for the win until the very last lap at round 16, admitting later that he was expecting to see the chequered flag one lap earlier than it appeared.
• The aftermath of Estoril created much excitement in the premier class, with a number of developments on Sunday night. Lucio Cecchinello confirmed last Monday that it would be all change in his LCR Honda team next season, with Casey Stoner leaving the team and veteran Carlos Checa moving to the Italian’s one-rider outfit.
• Speculation abounds as to the future of Herve Poncharal’s Tech 3 Yamaha team as a result of the switch, whilst Stoner later confirmed that he will race for Ducati in a one year deal with the option of an additional season.
  Surprise victor on Portuguese soil Toni Elias has also renewed his contract with Fausto Gresini, once again accompanying Marco Melandri next season.
• Sete Gibernau will miss his home race after breaking one of the plates inserted into his collarbone when he crashed with Stoner two weeks ago. The Spaniard has already been forced out of four races this season after the spectacular crash in Catalunya back in June, three of those times replaced by Alex Hofmann in the Ducati Marlboro team. However, it is Troy Bayliss, the rider who lined up for Ducati’s first MotoGP outing in 2003, who will give the 990cc Desmosedici its final run-out.
• Practice for the Gran Premio bwin.com de la Comunitat Valenciana get underway on Friday, with the crucial MotoGP race taking place on Sunday at 2pm local time (GMT+1 after clocks go back on Sunday morning).
• In 250cc, Andrea Dovizioso will need a repeat of the kind of performance that took him to victory in Portugal if he wants to take the quarter litre title this season. He lies 13 points behind Jorge Lorenzo, who could have already been crowned 250cc champion if results had gone his way last time round. Both riders will continue their rivalry next year in the quarter litre category, Dovizioso becoming the latest rider to confirm that he is staying in 250cc for another year.
• The battle for third place rages on too, with Alex de Angelis holding a ten point advantage over Hiroshi Aoyama. The Japanese rider confirmed this week that he will stay in 250cc despite receiving an offer from a MotoGP team, revealed by Harald Bartol and Harold Eckl to be Kawasaki Racing. De Angelis, yet to win a grand prix in any class, could complete his best ever season in the category by taking the bronze in the overall classification.
• 2006’s best privateer Roberto Locatelli and Yuki Takahashi complete the top six in MotoGP’s second tier.
• Alvaro Bautista, the dominant force in 125cc racing, has been breaking yet more records since his championship win in Australia. The Spaniard, on his debut ride on the latest version of the 125cc Aprilia, was the runaway leader in the bwin.com Grande Premio de Portugal as he took his seventh victory of 2006.
• Bautista also overtook Valentino Rossi and Kazuto Sakata as the rider with the most podium finishes in the category in a single season, having taken a rostrum place on 14 occasions this year. The Italian and Japanese were both title winners in the year of their records, in 1997 and 1993 respectively. Bautista’s 325 points earned this season also puts him above Rossi’s 1997 total of 321, the previous record.
• Mika Kallio’s third place at Estoril, coupled with Mattia Pasini’s crash at the same race, confirmed the Finn’s second consecutive runner-up finish in the 125cc category. The KTM rider moves up to 250cc next season.
• Hector Faubel, Sergio Gadea and Lukas Pesek round off the lower cylinder class’ top six.
• Circuit information: The Circuito de la Comunitat Valenciana - Ricardo Tormo was completed in 1999 and held rounds of the MotoGP and Spanish Motorcycle Championships in the same year. The Cheste track has several layouts, running anticlockwise with varying lengths. MotoGP events are held on a 4km track comprising of five right handed corners, eight left handers and a 650m straight.
• Although the track is regarded as quite small, the pit complex contains 48 garages whilst the stadium