Reigning MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi's quest for a fourth successive world crown picked up renewed impetus after he secured victory at today's British Grand Prix.
Rossi cruised to a fifth win of the season at his beloved Donington Park where he had previously won three of the last four races in world motorcycling's premier class.
The 25-year-old Italian was only denied victory in 2003 after a post-podium time penalty imposed for illegal overtaking relegated him from first to third, although he went on to claim the world championship.
Back at the 2.5-mile Leicestershire parkland circuit yesterday, Rossi had set a blistering fastest qualification lap time of one minute and 28.720 seconds to claim pole position at a pace 2.303secs inside the outright lap record he posted last year.
But from prime position on the grid Rossi found himself passed by Marlboro Ducati's Loris Capirossi and then Spain's Sete Gibernau on the first lap of this afternoon's race. By the start of the third lap though, Rossi had re-asserted his control with Gibernau running in second and Capirossi third, although the Spaniard was
eclipsed by Telefonica Movistar Honda team-mate Colin Edwards.
Capirossi also found himself going backwards through the field as he was passed by stablemate Troy Bayliss and then Nicky Hayden, of the Repsol Honda team, who claimed fifth with two-thirds of the race remaining.
With 15 of the race's 30 laps run, Hayden relegated Bayliss to fifth while Rossi stretched his advantage to more than two seconds over 2002 World Superbike champion Edwards.
A calamitous error at the Craner Curves threatened to cost Bayliss dear but the Australian rider retained his composure - as well as his balance - to rejoin the race at the old hairpin none the worse for his unscheduled excursion over the grass.
By the time he took the chequered flag, Rossi's advantage over self-styled Texas Tornado Edwards had been extended to 2.945secs with Gibernau, a self-confessed struggler at Donington, finishing third. Hayden and Bayliss were next but Max Biaggi, who had gone into the race second to Rossi by just one point in the overall championship rankings, finished 12th.
The British contingent was led home by reigning World Superbike champion Neil Hodgson who finished in 10th position aboard the D'Antin Ducati while Shane Byrne, the 2003 British Superbike champion was 13th.
Ulsterman Jeremy McWilliams, Byrne's team-mate in the MS Aprilia Racing garage, finished 16th but Harris WCM rider Chris Burns endured another afternoon to forget on the WCM Harris machine with the Tynesider, who has yet to score a world championship point this season, ending his race in the pits after just two laps.
Filed by Barry J Whyte
