MotoGP Brno: Rossi and Yamaha again

Davide Brivio – Gauloises Yamaha team director: “I have to congratulate and thank the whole team, particularly Valentino’s engineers because they followed his requests to modify the bike precisely and gave him the package he needed to take victory today. He made the bike work and put on a great show for the fans with Sete Gibernau, who deserved to be on the podium. Valentino has a good advantage in the championship now and we will go to Motegi looking for the same result. Unfortunately Colin couldn’t do any better than seventh place today but the fight for second place is still very close and he is still in contention having collected nine points today. We will look for some solutions with him during the test and look forward to going to Japan in three weeks’ time.”

Loris Capirossi, Ducati Marlboro, 2nd: "I was angry with my start because normally I'm a very fast starter on the Ducati. But I knew I was strong - I'd had a very good rhythm all weekend because we focused only on our race set-up. Despite the bad start I stayed cool, I just tried to pass the guys one by one. Towards the end of the race my tyres were good and I was faster than the leaders but I didn't have time to attack them. Anyway, I'm so happy with this podium, even though, to tell the truth, I was lucky to get second and I'm sorry for Sete. My thanks to all the people at Bridgestone and also to everyone at Ducati."

Livio Suppo, Ducati MotoGP project manager: "Our thanks go to Loris, who rode brilliantly, to Bridgestone, who've done such a great job over the last few weeks, to Ducati, where all the guys have been working so hard and to our Technical partners as Shell Advance, for their great support. Maybe we were lucky to get second instead of third today, but we've already had our own share of bad luck this season, so maybe we deserved some good luck today! It was a shame that Carlos couldn't fulfil the promise he showed yesterday. Bridgestone made a big step forward here, now we go to Motegi, hoping the new evolution tyres work similarly well at other tracks."

Max Baggi, Repsol Honda: 3rd: “That is an amazing result and one that makes me very happy for both myself and for all my team. It has been a very hard weekend and I knew that the race would be difficult from the fourth row. The start was not so bad but I was touched in turn one when it was all very close and had a very big slide in fourth gear. I composed myself and tried to get the tyres to warm up – especially the left side where we had troubles all weekend. After a few laps I could see that I can make progress – little by little - and it was possible to move up the field. I start to believe I could move forward and I did. We made the best possible result from our position and I hope this is the started of the more positive part of the season for me. For sure it has not been easy so far. We test here for the next two days and I am very much looking forward to the next races with renewed confidence.”

Alex Barros, Camel Honda: 4th: “I would like to say I’m happy to have done a great race, because it was a real battle and very enjoyable, but I’m still not satisfied. As at Sachsenring, I had to attack hard in the first part of the race and then both the front and rear tyres didn’t allow me to fight at the end. Then not only did I make it up alongside Sete and Valentino, but I couldn’t even finish third. In all honesty the story’s a bit different, because on the last lap I would have been able to challenge for the podium, Sete stopped right in front of me, and I had to close the throttle too. However that’s the way it went, we need to think about the next objective, Motegi, and try to make the most of tomorrow’s test to improve our staying power, because in everything else both the Michelins and the bike are perfect.”

Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 5th: “That was really a tough race. I got a good start and was right in there early on. Me and Melandri went back and forth a few times. I just didn’t want to let the leaders get away. I found myself running into some of the corners a little too hot and got a little ragged at times. The pace was so fast up front but that’s what you get with the best riders in the world. They dropped the hammer at the start and just went. I tried my hardest to make my boys proud but it didn’t happen this weekend. It was all good experience and I’m happy to be testing here tomorrow because we’re going to have to be in good shape for the rest of the season.”

Marco Melandri, MoviStar Honda: 6th: “This morning we made a few changes to the bike and I set a good pace that gave me confidence for the race. I got a good start and forced my way into the lead group but over the first few laps I started to lose traction. I pushed my rhythm to try and stay near the front but I really punished the front tyre. From there on I just tried to finish the race. The two days of tests will be really important ahead of Motegi.”

Colin Edwards (Gauloises Yamaha Team), 7th: “I started alright but after five laps we were in trouble. We changed the setting of the bike a little after the warm-up but the track was much warmer than we expected for the race and we loaded up the front a bit too much. It was a repeat of the race at Mugello – the bike was spinning and I couldn’t get any edge grip on the rear. I pushed on the pegs, stood up, leaned back… everything I could think of to make it stick! The positive side is that we still got some points and we’ve got a two-day test coming up where we can work on some of these problems and hopefully find the solution we need. We haven’t tested since Le Mans so it will be nice to have a chance to rack up plenty of hours on the track without the pressure of a Grand Prix, as we get ready for a tough finish to the season.”

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