Portugal GP. Races. Driver´s comments

Elias: ‘I’m very happy because there are still several races left to score points and we’re getting closer to Poggiali’.
MotoGP, Valentino Rossi, 1.39´189 sec, 1st: A great race for sure. Different from Bruno. Bruno was more of a fight; more fun. Today was a very high level race with a fast rhythm. I make a good start and see Biaggi going very fast and trying to go away. I overtake Loris and Sete as soon as possible and try to catch Biaggi. It is possible to arrive behind him. We continue to make 39s I didnt think it was possible to stay at this pace. I follow Max for nearly half the race I then get past and make a good lap at 39.2 and it was possible to go. The win is very important for the championship, especially as Sete only arrived in fourth. MotoGP, Nicky Hayden, 1.40´298 sec, 9th: All weekend Ive been strugglin a little bit and in the first few laps really didnt feel that great on the bike. Things just werent clickin. Then I started to relax a bit and kept gettin faster and faster. In fact my fastest lap was on 27/28. The last third of the race things we gettin better and I got past Barros. I guess after the last few races I had higher hopes for this race. Im really looking forward to the next few races especially as I have spent some time testing at Sepang and Phillip Island. 250. Toni Elias, 1.42´265 sec, 1st: It’s been a complicated weekend. Everything was going well until a wild-card pushed me yesterday and I crashed. I thought I wouldn’t be able to be in the race. In the end everything worked out well. The crash changed my plans but thanks to the doctors I was able to take the start. I expected it to be a hard and long race from the beginning. This morning, during the warm-up I felt that I was able to lap fast but it was difficult to get the rhythm because I just couldn’t concentrate. I made a good start and I took over the lead for the first three laps. Then de Puniet and Porto passed me and I stayed behind them. I tried to attack but they reacted and it was impossible. And I didn’t feel much concentrated during the first few laps. I tried again later and this time I was able to take over the lead. From that moment on, I set a fast pace because I wanted to pull away. I was able to take five seconds and managed to win the race without problems. I’m very happy because there are still several races left to score points and we’re getting closer to Poggiali. There are still 125 points at stake and anything can happen. I was longing to win another race and despite yesterday’s crash we managed to do so. Now we’re second in the championship and that’s very positive for me.’ 250. Sebastián Porto, 1.42´519 sec, 5th: It’s been a very nice race, we knew that we where able to do a race like this. I was lapping very good until halfway the race, I was on my rhythm. But then something happened with the engine, it didn’t breakdown but there was less performance and then it was difficult for me to follow Elias who went away. The bike lost a lot of speed on the straight due to the problem and it was just impossible for me to go faster, although I tried to give it all until the end. Then came Poggiali and Rolfo and passed me. I tried to follow them to the limit of the bike’s performance but they took advantage in the straights, especially in the back one, where we had the wind against us and their bike’s would accelerate much more than mine. I’ve given all as always to try and get closer and I tried until the last lap. I arrived at the chicane and touched Rolfo. Once again it was my turn to crash, but apart from that it’s been a very nice race and I’ve had a lot of fun. With the settings we’ve found this weekend the bike has made a little step forward that will be great for the next races. 250. Fonsi Nieto, 1.43´494 sec, 9th: Things didn’t work out well today, this has been a weekend to forget. We’ve been having problems since the first day. I crashed, the engine stalled four times and it didn’t have the performance we wanted. We’ve been working hard to solve it but the bike didn’t have a good setting for the race. It was difficult for me to be fast. I started eager to give it all, but it’s just been impossible to fight with the other riders and keep a good pace. I tried to score as many points as possible and I’ll keep on working to be back in the front. There are five races left and we don’t have to give up. 250. Héctor Faubel, 1.44´641 sec, 13th: I started from the back, from the twenty-first place of the grid, and my intention was to pass as many riders as possible right from the start, in the first corner. I was doing great at the beginning but I was lapping with a group where we were constantly passing each other, loosing time and hindering us from moving forward. If we wouldn’t have been hindering each other, we may have been able to be more in the front but there were four or five of us constantly touching each other. It’s been a difficult race for me because I’ve been fighting all the time. The result isn’t bad, but it isn’t good either. It’s good because yesterday we had several problems and we where able to solve them. And it’s bad because my mission is to be within the top ten. Let’s see how things work out in Brazil. We’ve had some problems with the front fork today, but at least we’ve been able to solve the heavy unbalance of the bike we had yesterday. Now we only have a small problem we hope to solve in Brazil.                                                250. Joan Olivé, 1.45´080 sec, crashed out: It’s been a shame because my intention today was to finish among the top fifteen, but I touched another bike and unfortunately I crashed. I don’t know who the rider was, but I tried to pull through the inside and he closed the line sharply and touched me. Then he touched me again and that’s when I flew over the bike. There was nothing I could do then. The handlebar was broken and it was just impossible to continue. Everything happened in the third corner of the sixth lap. I hope to have better luck in the following races and to be back in the places I know I’m able to be. 125. Pablo Nieto, 1.46´379 sec, 1st: We’ve been waiting for this for a very long time, especially after how things have been going this season and went last year. After so many years here, in the World Championship, you’re really grateful for a victory like this. It’s been a bit late but better late than never. The important thing is that now everything is going to be different. During the race, when Hector and I took over the lead, I began to watch him, analysing his riding style and I finally tried to pass him. Everything went fine and I want to congratulate Hector because he has made a great race. The truth is that once you’re there you don’t think about winning, you just want to be ahead of the rider you’re following. Héctor is a good rider and has a great braking technique. But now I think: if I’ve already been able to win once, why not make it twice… 125. Héctor Barberá, 1.46´225 sec, 2nd: ‘I’m very happy with the result of today. I think it was already time for a good result, we’ve had two bad races, things just didn’t want to work out and today I managed to get back on the podium. My position on the grid wasn’t very good, I started from the sixth row. We had several problems both on Friday and yesterday and I hardly could lap during the qualifying practice. The start went great and I stayed in the group, I caught-up with the leading pack with twelve or thirteen laps to go. Then I tried to push harder but I noticed that it was just impossible to open a gap, so I decided that I just wanted to be in the front and set it all in the last lap. Everything worked out fine and I was leading, but Pablo caught my slipstream and passed. He won by two or three thousands of a second. We both took the risk, but I wanted to win no matter what and I didn’t care who I had in front, even if it was my teammate. Today I just considered him as another rival. 125. Dani Pedrosa, 1.46´317 sec, 4th: We made a good start, but when the race was stopped, the rhythm was broken and I lost concentration. We had a new start, with the same amount of laps to go and everything went more or less. We were a lot at the beginning and then some riders began to escape from the group. In the end, there were only for of us left. Perugini did not finish the race and that’s been very important for us, because now we have the opportunity to make up the points he scored in Donington and the advantage has become bigger. I think that a fourth place, despite the little problems we had during the race, is very positive. Tyre´s choice Repsol drivers Valentino Rossi:  Hard / HardNicky Hayden:   Hard / HardFonsi Nieto: Medium / MediumToni Elias: Medium / MediumSebastián Porto: Medium / HardHéctor Faubel: Hard / HardDani Pedrosa: Medium / MediumPablo Nieto: Soft / SoftHéctor Barberá: Soft / SoftJoan Olivé: Medium / Medium 2003 Season: All the results of the Repsol ridersAll season results and overall standings. Click on ‘Download document’ option on top right side of this page (Pdf format)