Valentino Rossi took fourth place in the US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca today, after a spirited ride in difficult conditions from fifth on the grid. Team-mate Edwards was unable to fulfil his dream of a home-race success and crossed the line in eleventh after a race led from flag-to-flag by series leader Casey Stoner. Rossi lost some ground at the start and found himself behind Edwards for the first part of the lap. He quickly moved ahead of his team-mate however and the pair crossed the line for the first time in fourth and fifth respectively. On lap five Marco Melandri took Edwards and set off after Rossi, overtaking the Italian a few laps later and relegating him to fifth. After Melandri had in turn passed Dani Pedrosa, Rossi quickly began to close the gap on the Spaniard until he was able to strike at the end of lap twenty to claim fourth. For several laps he then looked to be closing the gap to Melandri but a lack of grip forced him to slacken off and he eventually crossed the line 30.664 seconds behind Stoner.
Edwards looked comfortable in sixth for much of the race but as his tyres too lost performance in the latter stages he was caught by a collection of riders and relegated to eleventh. Rossi and Edwards hold on to second and seventh respectively in the championship but the gap from Rossi to Stoner is extended to 44 points, with seven rounds remaining. The MotoGP paddock now embarks on a well-deserved summer break before action recommences at Brno in the Czech Republic in late August.
Valentino Rossi - Position: 4thTime: +30.664
"Today was incredibly disappointing because, with the tyre situation like this, it was like our rivals were in a different race. My team and I worked very hard, especially after yesterday's crash, and we did the maximum we could to have our bike in the best possible condition. However without grip it was impossible to fight with the leaders. I rode the best race I could and I was very happy to pass Pedrosa, but I couldn't catch Melandri; we just didn't have the right rhythm or grip today. I'm very sad for last weekend in Sachsenring because there Michelin was strong and we missed a chance to make up some important points there. After today we can see just how important! It seems that tyres are the deciding factor for this season and this is a pity for the fans and for the show. We are not giving up; there are seven races left and we know that Michelin are going to work as hard as they possibly can in order to make the situation better for the second part of the season, but Stoner is very strong and we know it will be very hard. Anyway, we have some holidays now and we will be back in Brno to fight as hard as we can until the end."
Colin Edwards - Position: 11thTime: +47.376
"I think it was pretty obvious today to everyone that we were struggling and why. We had a problem all weekend and we changed the bike in every possible way to try to work around it but unfortunately it proved impossible. We went round in circles but we couldn't change the underlying problem and the basic fact is that we had no grip. Of course I'm pretty disappointed that this happened at my home race, with all my family and friends here and it's a great pity we couldn't give the American fans more to cheer about today. My guys worked really hard all weekend, they all deserve their holidays now and then we'll all be fresh for a new start in Brno."
Davide Brivio - Team Director
"It was quite clear today that the tyres played an important role. Last week our tyre was better but this week the situation was reversed and our riders couldn't fulfil their potential. It's a great pity because this championship should be about seeing all the best riders fighting together but at the moment this is being limited by other factors. Everyone worked incredibly hard this weekend but unfortunately Valentino wasn't able to fight for the win as we hoped and Colin, too, wasn't able to exploit his potential in front of his home fans. Now we have to keep working but we know that the situation won't be easy or quick to change. Thank you to both riders, the team and the engineers because they have worked very hard in difficult circumstances all weekend. Everyone has some time off to recover from a very hard few months now before we start again; we will keep the same fighting spirit and we won't give up."
Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 Delivers Season Best Result
Under perfect cloudless summer skies at the Grand Prix of the USA held at the Laguna Seca circuit in the Californian hills, the Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 Team secured its best result of the 2007 MotoGP season when Grand Prix winner, Makoto Tamada finished in eighth spot.
It was an intense race as Makoto battled with up to seven riders in a race long duel with only seconds separating the group after a gruelling 32 laps of the tight layout.
Sylvain Guintoli also put in an impressive performance fighting his way up to the group after an incident with another rider metres after the start caused him to drop back momentarily. A top ten result also looked possible but a slight mistake in an intense battle with Carlos Checa negated his charge to a top ten finish.
While the team will now take a holiday during the summer break, Dunlop will continue its development work to ensure the progress continues for the remainder of the season.
Makoto Tamada - Position: 8thTime: +42.355
Finally, I have had a good result. We knew we could have one of our best races this year from the practices as we found a setting early on during the weekend and we also found tyres that we knew would work all race. It is so good to ride on a tyre that I know will allow me to put in competitive lap times for the entire race. I had a good start and got away with a big group. The race was a lot of fun as I had a big battle with a lot of riders like Edwards, West, Barros and De Puniet. This has given me a lot of confidence to come back after the summer break. Thanks to everyone that has been putting in so much work. Now I can't wait for the next race.
Sylvain Guintoli - Position: 13thTime: +58.410
I am disappointed with the result but I am happy with my riding. I got another bad start then had a hit from Kurtis Roberts, which put me back in last, but I was able to fight back and get with a big group. It took me some time to get past Checa but when I did I was able to pull away but I made a mistake at turn five and he got back in front of me. I fought back and passed him again but made another mistake at the Corkscrew to let him back in front. I put my head down and was able to pass him again. It is disappointing as if I hadn't made those mistakes I feel I could've been up with Makoto in the top ten but I feel that now we have a package that we can fight for some better places after the break.
Hervé Poncharal - Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 Team Manager
Without doubt this has been the best weekend of the year for us and it has come at the right time just before the summer break, which is a good boost for the rest of the year. I would like to congratulate Makoto an all the engineers for the hard work they have put in. We were pretty strong as our tyres worked well in the heat and it reflects the progress Dunlop and the team are making to finish in eighth position and battling for even better positions. I am sorry for Sylvain as after a bad start he fought back well and it looked like he might finish with Makoto but around a tight circuit like Laguna Seca one little mistake is all it takes to drop you behind. Now Dunlop will continue working during the holiday some of us have and I expect that we will have other good results for the rest of the season.
Circuit Length: 3610
Temp: 30
Weather: Sunny
Race 1 - 32 Laps - MotoGP United States:
1. Casey Stoner - Ducati - AUS 44'20.035
2. Chris Vermeulen - Suzuki - AUS 0'9.865
3. Marco Melandri - Honda - ITA 0'25.641
4. Valentino Rossi - Yamaha - ITA 0'30.664
5. Daniel Pedrosa - Honda - ESP 0'35.622
6. Randy De Puniet - Kawasaki - FRA 0'38.306
7. Anthony West - Kawasaki - AUS 0'41.422
8. Makoto Tamada - Yamaha - JPN 0'42.355
9. Alex Barros - Ducati - BRA 0'43.520
10. Roger Lee Hayden - Kawasaki - USA 0'43.720
11. Colin Edwards - Yamaha - USA 0'47.376
12. Shinya Nakano - Honda - JPN 0'52.848
13. Sylvain Guintoli - Yamaha - FRA 0'58.410
14. Carlos Checa - Honda - ESP 1'15.366
15. John Hopkins - Suzuki - USA -2 Laps
Rider Standings:
1. Casey Stoner - Ducati - AUS 221
2. Valentino Rossi - Yamaha - ITA 177
3. Daniel Pedrosa - Honda - ESP 155
4. Chris Vermeulen - Suzuki - AUS 113
5. Marco Melandri - Honda - ITA 113
6. John Hopkins - Suzuki - USA 104
7. Colin Edwards - Yamaha - USA 93
8. Loris Capirossi - Ducati - ITA 77
9. Alex Barros - Ducati - BRA 76
10. Nicky Hayden - Honda- USA 73
11. Alex Hofmann - Ducati - GER 60
12. Randy De Puniet - Kawasaki - FRA 50
13. Toni Elias - Honda - ESP 49
14. Makoto Tamada - Yamaha - JPN 31
15. Carlos Checa - Honda - ESP 29
18. Sylvain Guintoli - Yamaha - FRA 21
Team Standings:
1. Ducati Marlboro Team 298
2. FIAT Yamaha Team 270
3. Repsol Honda Team 228
4. Rizla Suzuki 217
5. Honda Gresini 162
6. Pramac D'Antin 136
7. Kawasaki Racing Team 94
8. Tech3 Yamaha 52
9. Konica Minolta Honda 29
10. Honda LCR 29
11. Team Roberts 12
Manufacturer Standings:
1. Ducati 233
2. Yamaha 197
3. Honda 190
4. Suzuki 151
5. Kawasaki 74
6. KR212V 12
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