Cheste closes the 2005 Championship with victory for Pedrosa and podium finish for Hayden.
Pedrosa makes an exhibition in the 250cc and Hayden plays the leading role together with Melandri in a magnificent battle for the MotoGP runner-up spot.
Excellent and exciting end of the season in Valencia. A sell-out at the Ricardo Tormo circuit closed the 2005 world championship with a great race in the MotoGP class where Marco Melandri and Nicky Hayden fought for the runner-up place in the premier class until the very last corner. Melandri won the duel and Hayden, third, got on the podium in Cheste with the satisfaction of having made an excellent race, fighting for his chances until the very end. Valentino Rossi took the highest step of the podium.The MotoGP race was a monologue between the two riders.
From the initial grouped, formed right after the start, Sete Gibernau crashed, having to retire and Rossi was missing because he was making up positions in the back. Marco and Nicky we quickly left alone with the Italian rider always in the lead. Further in the back there was Max Biaggi, who after a tight fight with Alex Barros finished sixth. Melandri tried to escape but Hayden stayed at his wheel, also controlling Rossi’s progression. In the overall standings of the MotoGP World Championship Hayden finished third and Biaggi fifth.Dani Pedrosa absolutely dominated the 250cc race. The World Champion made a tactically perfect race starting from the pole position. During the first laps, Dani gave the lead over to Barberá and Lorenzo who set a very strong pace.
Faithful to his habits, the Repsol rider took some laps to study his rivals and after a mistake made by Barberá, he escaped behind Lorenzo quickly opening a gap to the following group made up by Stoner, Aoyama and De Angelis. Sebastián Porto was not in that group. The Argentinean rider, who did not take part in yesterday’s qualifying, did not take part in the race either, following the recommendation of the doctors due to the dizziness he is suffering since some weeks ago.
14 laps before the end of the race, Dani overtook Lorenzo at the end of the straight and from that moment on he started to set a very strong pace that the rider from Mallorca was not able to follow. In the last third of the race, Pedrosa lapped in solitary with Lorenzo second, while Stoner, De Angelis, Barbera and Aoyama were swapping positions in the back. Lorenzo and Stoner finally joined Pedrosa on the podium, Aoyama was sixth and De Puniet eighth.Disappointment in the 125cc. Sergio Gadea, pole-man, crashed six laps before the end of the race, while he was leading.
The rider from Valencia took the lead from the very start, defending it against Italian rider Matia Pasini. Sergio gave the leading spot over for eight laps, riding only a couple of tenths behind Pasini and when he took the lead back he immediately opened a gap. But a mistake made him crash and he was forced to retire. His team-mate Héctor Faubel, lapped most of the race in fifth place. He tried to fight for the podium but the leading group made up by Kallio, Talmacsi and Pasini was much too far ahead, so he had to settle for the fourth place. Kallio won the race and Tomas Luthí, ninth, became 125cc World Champion.
Rider´s comments:
MotoGP. Nicky Hayden
2nd, 46’58.249:
‘That was good racing! At the beginning I was a little tight as I’ve crashed here for the last two years when things got hot and I didn’t want to blow things this year. Once I’d loosened up and the bike was moving around a bit I started to get comfortable. I tried to be in a position all the race to take advantage of Marco leaving the door open but he rode real solid and never gave me the opportunity. On the last corner I was going to go up the inside and when he got all sideways I ditched the plan and tried to square off the corner but it just didn’t happen. Of course I’m disappointed – I want to win. In the end I’m happy we’ve had a good end to the season and I’d like to thank all those that have stuck behind me this year; Honda, Michelin and all the sponsors. We’ll be back stronger next year.’
MotoGP. Max Biaggi
6th, 47’19.406:
‘I’m very sad at ending the season in this way. It looked like we were in a better shape yesterday when we ran with the race tyres but it did not go well this morning. The crash caused some pain in my finger and in my right leg but the bike was badly damaged and definitely didn’t feel the same this afternoon even though the team did a great job in rebuilding it in as very short time. In the race we are so slow into the corners. The front goes – jump – jump – jump. I go as always at 100% and last year I finish second, just 0.4s behind the leader. Today I am 21’s down on the winner. This is hard for me to accept.’
250. Dani Pedrosa
1st, 43’33.395: ‘It’s not been an easy race. The truth is that it’s been really difficult because the bike moved a lot in the rear and it skidded. I had to control the tyres and it was difficult to set good lap times. The start was very good and the pace has also been faster than last year, although I had to be more conservative in the last laps. I’m very happy with today’s race and with the season in general. I feel very lucky with all we’ve achieved this year. We’ve achieved great results and I won one more race than last year, although we’ve been on the podium less times. Another important detail is that today we were deciding the makes championship between Honda and Aprilia and we’ve managed to win it again in the last race, just like last year. I want to dedicate all of this to all those who have helped me. To my team and my mechanics, who have been working restlessly to give me the best bike, to the fans and also to the people around me, who have always been there. A cycle has come to an end and we’ll start a new one. Next year will be very different and we will have to look at the races in a different way. That’s the intelligent way of looking at things and not trying to look for rivalries or comparisons, where there are none.’
250. Hiroshi Aoyama
6th, 44’04.639:
‘What can I say, there’s nothing more I could do today. The bike worked well throughout the weekend, but we lacked a bit of top speed during the race, it wasn’t as fast as it was during the practices or the warm-up. From the eighth lap, the rear tyre also started to skid and the bike was moving a lot. It was the last race of the season and I didn’t want to crash but to finish in the best possible way.’
250. Randy De Puniet
8th, 44’09.883:
‘I am disappointed as I did not want to end the season like this, I wanted to finish sixth at least, but the engine was not running well and it was hard to maintain my rhythm. It’s a shame because we have not got the results we wanted this year as things have just not gone our way in the races. I want to thank ‘Aspar’, my Aprilia team and Repsol for all the support they have given me this year.’
125. Héctor Faubel
4th, 40’39.041:
‘I got away really well, considering I started in sixth, and was second at the end of the first lap. I stayed with them but as the pace got quicker I struggled with the engine. I was with the second group but was able to increase my own pace and pull away to lap on my own. At that point I realised it would be impossible to catch the lead group and had to settle for fourth place in the end. It has been a very good year for me as I have built up a lot of experience for next season. Everyone at the team deserves a ten for the work they have put in during the year.’
125. Sergio Gadea,
DNF:
‘I started very well and was leading from the first corner, but I knew that it was a long race and that I would have to conserve my energy. After lapping comfortably in a lead group of four riders, I decided with 11 laps left to try and break away and managed to open up a gap of 1.5 seconds, but then I fell coming out of Doohan’s corner. It was a shame because it was a great chance for me to win, especially at home where so many people were watching me. I must thank Jorge and all the team because they have given me everything throughout the year.’
