Ducati duo finish with bitter end at Estoril – MotoGP Update
The third round of the 2011 MotoGP season, the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal was held at Estoril on May 1.
The premier class action revived after a long three week break between the second and third round. The actual third round was the Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi Twin circuit, which was shifted to October 2, after the country was hit by an earthquake and tsunami.
The Portuguese Grand Prix saw many riders falling and the unfit riders, stream to the top. One of the unfit riders was Ducati team’s Valentino Rossi who started from ninth place on the grid and rode at fourth place throughout the race. In the final few metres
of the last lap he was chased down by Repsol Honda’s Andrea Dovizioso on the front stretch and finished at fourth place dropping Rossi to fifth place.
Rossi said, “Apart from Dovizioso, today went well! I’m joking, but Dovizioso obviously rode a race that was strategically perfect. I think he played with me a little, knowing that on the straight, he could probably beat me to the line.”
It was difficult for Dovizioso to pass Rossi, because the Italian was good at braking and corner handling strategy. The American Ducati rider let the Italian lead the path to the final lap of the race, before applying his trick at the last moments, as Hayden
crossed Rossi with just a fraction of a second. The team is still content with a fifth place finish which was gained after some hard work. Rossi was at ninth place with the help of his vast experience he managed to climb up several places for a third place
fight with Casey Stoner.
Rossi had some good lap times in the race resembling his qualifying lap times, but this time performed 28 times with a consistent pace, which is good progress. The Italian Ducati rider was regretting the last moment mishap where he lost the fourth place
finish, which could be his best with the Ducati team.
In the second round in Spain, Rossi finished fifth place when he has an accident with Stoner of Repsol Honda. He is now feeling a mere fifteen percent lack in strength which is a good sign for his season ahead. He anticipates being perfect for racing in-between
Le Mans and Cataluñya events.
Rossi’s team-mate, Nicky Hayden was not in full swing during the Portuguese race, with a 13th place start from the grid he climbed four places to finish at the ninth position. During the race he had a short contact with fellow native Ben Spies
rider for Yamaha Factory Racing team, who later got knocked out of the race in a crash, as a tool was left hanging with his bike. It cost him his performance and earned him a ‘Did Not Finish’ status.
Hayden said, “Starting from 13th, it was always going to be difficult for us, but the bike was good off the line and I got a good start. I made some early mistakes, but I was also recovering a few positions. I got into seventh, but I was having difficulty
back-shifting.”
Both Ducati riders had a poor race and were overshadowed by the powerful performance of the Repsol Honda team.
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