Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

MotoGP Race Results:

1. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 22 laps, 44:03.480
2. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, -3.514 seconds
3. Max BIAGGI, Honda, -4.330 seconds
4. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, -16.257 seconds
5. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, -17.930 seconds
6. Carlos CHECA, Yamaha, -21.181 seconds
7. Colin EDWARDS, Honda, -22.471 seconds
8. Norick ABE, Yamaha, -31.079 seconds
9. Marco MELANDRI, Yamaha, -31.158 seconds
10. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, -31.625 seconds
11. Neil HODGSON, Ducati, -34.094 seconds
12. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, -54.124 seconds
13. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, -54.288 seconds
14. Jeremy McWILLIAMS, Aprilia, -57.471 seconds
15. Nobuatsu AOKI, Proton, -78.515 seconds
16. Andrew PITT, Moriwaki, -78.691 seconds
17. Michel FABRIZIO, Harris WCM, -103.138 seconds
18. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati, -2 laps, DNF, mechanical
19. James ELLISON, Harris WCM, -2 laps, DNF, crash
20. Ruben XAUS, Ducati, -3 laps, DNF, crash
21. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, -4 laps, DNF, crash
22. Alex BARROS, Honda, -8 laps, DNF, crash
23. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, -10 laps, DNF, mechanical
24. Gregorio LAVILLA, Suzuki, -18 laps, DNF, retired

Kurtis Roberts, Proton, DNS
Shane Byrne, Aprilia, DNS


MotoGP World Championship Point Standings (after 10 of 16 races):

1. ROSSI, 184 points
2. GIBERNAU, 167 points
3. BIAGGI, 158 points
4. EDWARDS, 104 points
5. BARROS, 86 points
6. HAYDEN, 83 points
7. CHECA, 82 points
8. CAPIROSSI, 75 points
9. TAMADA, 69 points
10. MELANDRI, 64 points
11. ABE, 49 points
12. XAUS, 46 points
13. NAKANO, 41 points
14. Kenny ROBERTS, 35 points
15. BAYLISS, 34 points
16. HODGSON, 29 points
17. HOFMANN, 27 points
18. HOPKINS, 22 points
19. BYRNE, 15 points
20. McWILLIAMS, 12 points
21. FABRIZIO, 8 points
22. TIE, AOKI/PITT, 2 points
24. Kurtis ROBERTS, 1 point

(Various press releases in the order in which they were received.)

More, from a press release issued by John Hopkins’ publicist:

HOPKINS CHARGES 21ST TO 8TH AT CZECH GP BEFORE BIKE BREAKS

BRNO, Czech Republic (August 22, 2004) – Suzuki’s John Hopkins sliced his way through the field of the most talented road racers in the world making his way from 21st to eighth before his factory GSV-R expired on lap 11. Hopkins’ rapid ascent through the field highlighted a weekend that saw the young Californian either fastest or second fastest in every practice session on the 5.4-kilometer Brno circuit.

The race began with Hopkins blasting away from his 21st starting position and passing 10 riders and making it all the way up to 11th on the first lap. It was one of the most spectacular single lap performances in MotoGP this season.

“The night before I’d been playing out every conceivable scenario in my mind to make my way through the field,” Hopkins said. “At the start my clutch was slipping a little so I had to use the front brake to keep it from creeping. I got by a few guys going into turn one. Turns three and four are a set of switchback style turns. I charged up on the outside of Turn Three and knew that would put me on the inside in Turn Four. It worked great, I must have gotten four or five riders in that set of turns.”

Hopkins continued making his way through the field moving into the top 10 by lap four.

“I got by Checa and Tamada and was closing in on Edwards,” Hopkins added. “I wasn’t really even concentrating on Edwards, I was looking beyond him to the lead group and figuring out how I was going to chase them down. Everything was working great. The tires were perfect; the bike was working really well.

“I was just moving up on the inside of Edwards when I heard a funny noise and the bike started losing power. I kept hoping it was something electronic and it would clear up, but unfortunately it was the motor and I had to pull off.”

Hopkins said his goal of a podium was probably out of reach because of his poor qualifying result, but he felt a top-five was a real possibility.

“Even though the race didn’t end how I’d hoped it, the way I was able to make it through the field leaves me all the confidence in the world going into Portugal,” he concluded.

The Portugal round of the world championship is in two weeks on Sept. 5 in Estoril.


More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team:

NAKANO AND HOFMANN IN THE POINTS AT BRNO

Fuchs Kawasaki riders, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann, showed true grit and determination as they fought their way through the field from the back of the grid, to add to their points tally in today’s gruelling Czech Republic Grand Prix at Brno.

Nakano finished in 12th place, just one tenth of second ahead of Hofmann, as the Ninja ZX-RR team-mates engaged in a furious dice over the final seven laps of the 22-lap race.

Nakano had stormed to 17th at the end of lap one, but he struggled with a less than ideal rear tyre choice and, by lap ten, Hofmann had charged to 16th to lead the group of Jeremy McWilliams, Nakano and Ruben Xaus.

By lap 18 Nakano had taken over as the pace maker in this tight battle and, over the final stages, the Japanese ace was shadowed by Hofmann all the way to the chequered flag.

Despite the points finish, both Nakano and Hofmann were less than satisfied, knowing that without the frustrating problems suffered with grip levels and engine power delivery in wet qualifying, better results were possible in today’s race.

With Nakano starting from 25th on the grid, and Hofmann one place further back, both riders rode superbly to overcome a charging pack of MotoGP rivals and finish in the World Championship points.

The Kawasaki team is staying on at Brno for an important two-day test session, which will enable evaluation of new components and allow back-to-back comparisons with today’s race performances.

Revised chassis, suspension and engine components – including a modified exhaust system – are on the test agenda for the continuing Ninja ZX-RR development program.

Shinya Nakano: 12th
“I made a good start, but in the early part of the race I couldn’t push hard; I didn’t feel comfortable with the set-up and I think we probably made a wrong rear tyre choice. The problem was lack of dry practice time, and I also suffered with front end chatter. Over the last five laps I pushed to stay in front of Alex, but even though I finished in the points after starting at the back of the field, I don’t enjoy racing so far from the front. The test here over the next two days is now very important to me and to Kawasaki.”

Alex Hofmann: 13th
“It was a really enjoyable race, especially towards the end with Shinya and Jeremy McWilliams. I thought I had a chance to pass Shinya coming to the final corner on the last lap, but the yellow flags were out because of a crash. After the start it was difficult to pass in the early laps, but once the race settled down I found a good rhythm and got to the front of the group with McWilliams, Shinya and Xaus. After that it was a hard race right to the finish. It was a frustrating two days of qualifying in wet conditions, so getting some points is a bonus, but I hope we can make a step forward at the tests over the next two days.”

Harald Eckl: Team Manager
“It is satisfying to score points after starting from the back of the grid, but it was hard work for both Shinya and Alex. At the moment we don’t have enough top end power, and that makes it difficult to pass on the straights, with the result that both riders lose time in the early stages of the race. If we had started closer to the front I’m sure we could have challenged the group for a top ten place. It was a tough weekend, but the test over the next two days, with new chassis, suspension and engine components, will hopefully provide some solutions for the coming races.”


More, from a press release issued by Dorna Sports:

Gibernau takes key victory at Brno

Sete Gibernau took victory in the Gauloises Grand Prix Ceske Republiky today to boost his hopes of wrestling the MotoGP World Championship title from Valentino Rossi, who he now trails by seventeen points with six rounds remaining. Gibernau led the majority of the race from a chasing pack made up of Rossi, Max Biaggi, Alex Barros and Nicky Hayden. However, both Barros and Hayden crashed out to leave a three way scrap which Gibernau controlled to perfection.

After allowing Rossi a brief spell at the front at two-thirds distance, Gibernau swiftly moved back in front and gradually increased his pace to an unstoppable crescendo, lapping close to record time and leaving Rossi floundering in second. Biaggi was also powerless to prevent the Spaniard, settling for third place and a welcome return to the podium after taking twelfth in the last round at Donington Park.

“This is a big win for us and I’m pleased for the team because we had a big decision to make and it paid off,” commented Gibernau, who will now stay for two days of testing alongside Rossi and several other MotoGP riders at the Czech circuit.

“Honda had brought a new engine here and some other parts but we didn’t have a good opportunity to set things up because of the weather so we decided to stick with what we had, which we knew was a motorcycle capable of winning this race. I was able to prove that today and I am delighted. Now we can concentrate on testing the new engine and hopefully take another step forward before the next round in Portugal.”

The fight for positions further down the field became more intense after Barros and Hayden’s misfortune, with the extra available points inspiring Makoto Tamada to fourth place after a long battle with Loris Capirossi. Carlos Checa eventually got the better of Colin Edwards to take sixth whilst Norick Abe, Marco Melandri and Kenny Roberts completed the top ten.

High hopes for Troy Bayliss, who started from the second row and finished on the podium here last year, ended two laps from the end when he was forced to retire with mechanical problems which had dogged his Ducati from the start. Meanwhile John Hopkins, who was also confident after setting the fastest time in the weekend’s only dry practice yesterday morning, was forced to retire with an engine problem after working his way from 19th on the grid up to eighth.

The MotoGP action was preceded by a controversial 250cc contest, which was won by Sebastian Porto after several calls to stop the race due to rain. The first drops appeared on the track just a few laps in, when Dani Pedrosa had joined the lead group from 13th on the grid and was one of several riders to raise his hand in protest. With no red flag visible Porto took his chance to escape, only to be hauled in by Pedrosa, Alex de Angelis and Randy De Puniet a few laps later. Pedrosa then made his own break before the rain returned for a second time, seemingly causing De Angelis to crash and prompting another charge from Porto. Again there were no red flags and Pedrosa could only watch as Porto and De Puniet both went past, sealing a one-two for Aprilia and their 100th victory in the class. Third place for Honda rider Pedrosa means he now leads the championship by 30 points from De Puniet, with Porto a further 13 points behind. There was further controversy after the race when Fonsi Nieto, who crashed out of eleventh place on the eleventh lap, was fined 5,000 US dollars by Race Direction for taking a flag out of the hands of a marshal and waving it at the side of the track.

Jorge Lorenzo took another breathtaking victory in the 125cc class with a last-lap charge which seems to have become his speciality. Andrea Dovizioso had threatened to repeat his dominant win at Donington Park with an early break but was hauled in by the pack and had to fight all the way to the line to clinch second place. Roberto Locatelli battled through from 30th on the first lap to take third in a dramatic finale, whilst Casey Stoner crashed out of second place on the second lap and Hector Barberá could only manage seventh – further strengthening Dovizioso’s grip on the class. The young Italian now leads by 36 points from Locatelli.


More, from a press release issued by Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha:

ROSSI SECOND AND STILL IN CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD

Reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi finished a fighting second in today’s Czech Republic Grand Prix after a determined 22-lap race. The Italian had a close battle on his YZR-M1 machine with championship Honda rivals Sete Gibernau and Max Biaggi, ultimately holding on to finish in second, 3.514 seconds behind Gibernau. Rossi’s team-mate Carlos Checa also had a tough fight throughout the race to a final sixth place.

After an unfortunate start Rossi slotted into fourth place at the end of lap one, with Checa just inside the top ten riders. After a slight scare at the end of the first lap as his wheel touched the trackside grass causing a serious wobble, Rossi went on to pass Honda riders Alex Barros and Max Biaggi in the ensuing laps into second position. Meanwhile team-mate Checa entered a fight to stay in the top ten as Makoto Tamada (Honda) and Kenny Roberts (Suzuki) closed in.

With Barros out of the picture having crashed out after 14 laps, Rossi made a beeline for the lead. The Yamaha rider managed to pass Gibernau on lap 17, then the two swapped places no less than six times as Max Biaggi crept up close behind the duelling pair into third. Finally it was not to be Rossi’s day, as a worn rear tyre meant he was unable to make another steady pass on Gibernau. Checa won his final personal duel by holding off Colin Edwards’ Honda, passing him to finish sixth.

Rossi’s second place leaves him with a 17-point cushion over Gibernau, 184 to 167. Biaggi sits third on 158 with Edwards on 104. Checa is currently seventh but just four points shy of fifth place in the order.

VALENTINO ROSSI (2nd, 44:06.994)

“We tried! The race was at a top level, the rhythm was very good and it was a great fight. I tried to follow Sete and understand a good point to overtake. With five or six laps to go I made my attack. But we had lost grip with the rear tyre and I had lost a little bit too much time. In the earlier part of the race the bike was good under acceleration but not later, and then it also became difficult under braking. When our bike loses rear grip it becomes very difficult to stop. In the end Sete was too strong and had a better rhythm than mine. It was impossible to beat him. Anyway I’m quite happy, we’ve worked well but we need to get our bike to 100% for the whole race next time. Now we have two days of testing where we will look at solving that.”

CARLOS CHECA (6th, 44:24.661)

“The conditions were the same for me as everyone else but we had some limitations because of the lack of set-up time. I started quite well in the big group at the front, and the lap time was good but then the rear grip dropped down and I got involved with Edwards. His bike was a little bit faster than mine so that made it difficult to pass him on the brakes, as I was not close to him on the corner entry. One time I tried and ran a little bit out but I was able to pass him eventually, as he had a problem that slowed him down. We need to keep working but I was pleased that the lap time was good at the beginning.”

DAVIDE BRIVIO – TEAM DIRECTOR

“All in all a good result. I think that we had a good race and a good fight to the very end for the win with Valentino. We are still leading the championship and so we are still going forward. We are testing after this race for two days starting tomorrow, with a new fairing and some electronics. For Carlos his result is not so bad, considering that both riders had a very short time in the dry to set up the bikes. Normally this year we have needed as much time as possible because Valentino has not so much experience on this bike.”


More, from a press release issued by Proton Team KR:

LONE AOKI PUTS PROTON KR IN THE POINTS AGAIN

Nobuatsu Aoki: 15th position
Kurtis Roberts: Did Not Start*

Proton Team KR rider Nobuatsu Aoki finished in the points for a fourth time this year, prevailing in an almost race-long battle with wild card Moriwaki Honda rider Andrew Pitt for 15th place.

Aoki was racing alone, after team-mate Kurtis Roberts suffered elbow and wrist fractures in yesterday’s final practice session. The Japanese
rider started from 22nd on the grid, but was 18th at the end of lap one. From the fourth of 22 laps of the 5.403km circuit, Aoki had Pitt right behind him and pushing hard. The Australian wild card’s Moriwaki Honda was using similar Dunlop tyres, making it an even contest from that point of view.

From then on, Aoki had no respite, with the Honda-powered rider trying everything he could to get by. But Aoki’s bike and tyres were working perfectly, and the experienced rider was able to maintain a consistent lap time, and cross the line less than two tenths of a second ahead of his rival to claim the last championship point.

The strong and consistent performance was an encouragement for the team, looking at an improvement in fortunes, with more powerful engine parts expected for the next round, the Portuguese GP in two weeks time. Roberts is expected to be fit to race in Portugal.

The race, run in dry conditions after two days of rain in practice and more showers on race day, was watched by 69,000 people, packing the
natural grandstands of the spectacular Brno circuit. It was won by Sete Gibernau (Honda) from defending champion Valentino Rossi (Yamaha).

NOBUATSU AOKI

I was really pleased to get that championship point. Everything worked perfectly today – the bike and the tyres, and I really appreciate the
efforts of all the engineers. We need to take one step higher again, and again, because the others are also improving all the time. All race long I had Andrew right behind me. I knew he was there, and that kept me pushing not to let him get past me. I just kept going at 100 percent
effort all the way … and I made it.

CHUCK AKSLAND – Team Manager

Nobu got a good result, very well deserved. He was consistent all race long and did his best. He earned that point. Kurtis’s injury aside, it
was a great weekend for the team, they did a good job. The engines were consistent all weekend. We have modifications coming for Portugal with more performance, so our aim is to keep on improving.


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:


Capirossi scores fifth place finish at Brno

Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss this afternoon completed a difficult Czech Grand Prix weekend with a fifth place and a DNF. The pair had high hopes of good results after scoring second- and third-row starts after two days of mostly wet practice and qualifying. But they didn’t quite have the pace to run up front in the fastest-ever Czech GP, even though Capirossi’s best lap was just 0.293 seconds off the new lap record.

“The constantly changing weather conditions made life difficult for us,” said Ducati Marlboro Team Livio Suppo. “Our bike is newer than all the others, so the lack of dry practice time probably hurt us most of all. Even so, Loris was pretty fast, his best lap time was very close to the record, and with more dry set-up time he would have been even closer. He rode a great race, trying 110 per cent as always. Unfortunately Troy didn’t find the right feeling from his bike for dry conditions. He tried some changes during morning warm-up but they didn’t do the trick. Now we spend two more days here testing, which will be crucial to our process of development. We will be working especially closely with our Ohlins engineers to try different suspension set-ups.”

Capirossi fifth at end of a difficult weekend
Loris Capirossi rode a typically determined race at Brno today, running just one place outside a podium finish until the final two laps when he slipped to fifth.

“I’d be a liar if I said I was happy with the result,” said the Ducati Marlboro Team man. “It was a difficult race and I gave 100 per cent and more. The bike has definitely improved but it still lacks some stability, so it was quite difficult to ride. Certainly we weren’t helped by the weather because we needed more time in the dry to come up with better settings. We need to work on stability and also on improving the bike’s manoeuvrability in the direction changes, so our tests over the next two days will be vital in continuing improvements.”

Qualifying promise doesn’t deliver for Bayliss
Ducati Marlboro Team rider Troy Bayliss was very much out of luck at Brno this afternoon. Although the Australian had been fourth in yesterday afternoon’s soaking wet final qualifying session he knew that he would have a tough race in the dry. Nonetheless he was looking to salvage a handful of championship points until he fell on the penultimate lap when he hit something on the track, probably oil.

“I knew it was going to be tough,” said Bayliss. “The bike didn’t feel right in the dry, from the middle of the corner to the exit. It’s strange really because the bike worked great out of the box at Donington, but I couldn’t ride it here. Then I hit something with a couple of laps to go and down I went, then Ellison crashed at exactly the same spot a few moments later.”


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki:

ROBERTS IN TOP 10: HOPKINS FOILED
Team Suzuki Press Office, Brno, Czech Republic – Sunday, August 22, 2004:

Team Suzuki MotoGP rider Kenny Roberts Jr claimed another top ten position in today’s Czech Republic GP, just six tenths of a second from eighth after a close battle in the closing laps.

But team-mate John Hopkins faced bitter disappointment after a charging ride through the field: He’d pushed through to eighth place after starting 21st on the grid and had his eye on further gains when he was sidelined by an uncharacteristic engine problem after 12 of the 22 laps of the 5.403km Brno circuit.

Wild card rider Gregorio Lavilla had an abbreviated afternoon, pitting with an engine problem in the early stages of the race, which was run in dry conditions in front of almost 70,000 fans.

The Suzuki regulars both qualified badly, bamboozled by bad weather and poor tyre grip in the timed sessions, but both had run strongly in the dry free training sessions, with Hopkins fastest on both Friday and Saturday and Roberts third on Saturday. Their strong potential was confirmed in race-morning warm-up, when they placed second and fourth fastest.

Roberts started from 16th on the grid and Hopkins from 21st. Both made places in the early stages, vaulting up the order to finish lap one with Hopkins 11th and Roberts 12th. They swapped positions briefly after that, both still moving forwards, and then Hopkins – with a better combination of settings – moved away from his team-mate.

The 21-year-old Anglo-American fought off a challenge from Makoto Tamada, who eventually finished fourth, then moved past Carlos Checa. He was looking for a way past Colin Edwards when his engine lost power and he was forced to retire.

Roberts kept his pace and at the end of the race found himself in a four-bike group battling for eighth. He finished third in that group, his fourth top-ten finish of the year.

The race was won by Sete Gibernau, from defending champion Valentino Rossi.

The Suzuki team will stay at Brno for two days of testing on Monday and Tuesday.

KENNY ROBERTS Jr. – 10th place:

“The start was not so great. Everybody was ‘kinda packed up and I just tried to stay out of trouble. I’d thought we’d be able to get by a few people earlier than I did, but it didn’t work out. Three or four laps into it John came by. I got back by him then he came by again and though I was stronger in a couple of places, I didn’t know what his rhythm was like, so I just tried to stay behind him. I can’t compare myself to other bikes because the engines are completely different, but compared with John, he had a little bit different set-up that I want to try in testing tomorrow and he had superior grip to me at the rear. He could run a lot more lean-angle, corner speed and accelerate harder. Hopefully we can mess around with settings tomorrow and see if it offers us anything for tracks like this where you need a lot of corner speed and grip. At the end I was with Abe and Melandri and I tried to stay close to them in case one of them made a mistake, but I was riding as hard as I could just to be there.”

JOHN HOPKINS – Did not finish:

“After the dry practices and again this morning I knew we could run the lap times of the front runners, but unfortunately I was starting from 21st position. I had to get a good start and get by as many as possible in the first lap. I ate, drank and slept that first lap from yesterday afternoon until the end of lap one, contemplating any situation that might arise. I didn’t get a great launch, but I passed quite a few on the outside into Turn One, then some more under brakes and on the outside into Turn Three. I picked up about seven places right there. After that I was on a mission and I had to keep passing people as quickly as possible. Out of every corner I had my sights set on the leaders. I had a tight battle with Checa the n I got held up a bit by Colin Edwards. But when I got behind him, that’s when the bike started losing horsepower. I tried to carry on in case it was a little glitch, but then the engine stopped on the back straight. I had my sights set on the podium, and fourth would definitely have been achievable. I’m disappointed, but from now on we’ll go to every race knowing we can run at the front.”

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager:

“John had an amazing first lap, making up ten places. He was riding right on the limit, as he had to. He carried on picking up places and pushing hard until a mechanical problem robbed him of what would have been a good result. I’m sure that, the way he was riding and the way the tyres were working, he could have been in the top five. Kenny wasn’t able to get the same level of grip as John, which we will be investigating, but as always he made the best of what he had.”


More, from a press release issued by Camel Honda Racing Information:

Seventh podium of the season for Max Biaggi.

A brilliant fourth for Makoto Tamada

The bright yellow RC211V of the Camel Honda team performed brilliantly to take third and fourth in Round 10 of the MotoGP World Championship 2004. It was Max Biaggi’s seventh podium of the year and a great fightback from Makoto Tamada who started from 17th on the grid, and took the chequered flag in 4th. Max Biaggi made a marvellous start from row three, getting right amongst the front runners before fighting for his podium position.

Sito Pons – Camel Honda (Team Principal)
“it was a great day for our team with Max on the podium and Makoto fourth. I can’t say I’m 100% satisfied though, because we lost points in the overall standings to our main rivals. Nevertheless that is recoverable if we remember that there are still six races left this year. Now we will focus on the two test days here tomorrow and Tuesday in Brno, to refine the bike’s set-up and because we can hope for better days than these in terms of the weather.”

Max Biaggi – Camel Honda (Michelin Tyres) – 3rd – 44:07.810
“First of all I have to thank my team and Honda because despite the problems we had during the weekend, in the short time between the end of the warm-up and the race they managed to get in shape to fight for the podium. I think I put the rest in, firstly with a good start, probably my best of the year, and then fighting tooth and nail for the top spots. We weren’t right in the braking areas, and now we have two test days where I want to get the bike ready to take on Estoril.”

Gianluca Montiron – Camel Honda – (Makoto Tamada Team Manager)
“I really happy with the work Makoto and the team have done, They found a good balance on the bike even though there were many more things to try to get it better. It was also a fortunate race, which Makoto ended with a positive result, and all from his sixth row start with a time set in the wet, conditions in which we are still not competitive. Nevertheless we fought back, Makoto gave everything, and took this great result.”

Makoto Tamada – Camel Honda (Bridgestone Tyres) – 4th -44:19.737
“It was a shame about the grid position, my whole race depended on the start to see if I could get amongst the top guys. I would have preferred a fourth place where I fought with the top riders. Anyway, the race served to get some important information for our development, and to improve our chances, especially because after Estoril comes Japan, my home race and I want everything right so I can return to winning ways there!”


More, from a press release issued by d’Antin Ducati:

Chalk and cheese results in Brno

In the Czech Republic GP today the d´Antin MotoGP riders had contrasting luck. Neil Hodgson managed to take eleventh place, making up for a complicated weekend, but Rubén Xaus didn’t finish the race due to a technical glitch which provoked his crash two laps from the end, when he was fighting to get into the points.

Eventually there was no rain on race day, but the warm-up didn’t allow sufficient time to get the right set-up for the Ducatis, so the pair of Hodgson and Xaus had to take a calculated risk, with the latter coming off with a small crash with no lasting damage.

The Briton holds on to sixteenth in the standings with this result, while the Spaniard site in twelfth after not being able to pick up points here in Brno.


NEIL HODGSON: “I didn’t go well on the first lap, but I knew that there was a long race ahead, and I fought at the limit on every single lap. I’m happy because I think I’ve done okay, but it was hard because the tyres were sliding all over, and physically I had no problems in finishing the race. In the morning I went to the Clínica and I had no less than 15 injections, but my ribs didn’t bother me. I’m sure I won’t be saying the same later on tonight! With things as they are this is a good result and I want to recover within two weeks so I can be right for the Portuguese race, but there I’ll be missing out a little on the other riders, because I’ve never been.”

RUBÉN XAUS: “I think I lacked a bit of rhythm because I don’t know the track and we stopped racing for a couple of weeks, and with mainly wet practices for a dry race. This all made things harder and I didn’t have good feeling, although halfway through I began to feel better and despite knowing I was out of the points I didn’t want to force the issue too much, but I wanted to finish the race, and knew was confident I could score points. At the end it wasn’t to be because I had a technical problem which made me crash two laps from the end. It was a shame, and I hit myself quite hard, but I can’t do anything about it now. I hope to have a bit more luck in the next race in Estori, although I don’t know the track at all.”

LUIS D´ANTIN: ” The weekend was conditioned by the changeable conditions and it made everything harder. The team worked really hard, but I have to pick out Neil’s performance because he was at a very technical track which he hardly knew, and