MotoGP Blog

A grid with Rossi placed towards the back is a grid likely to precede an eventful race. The grid in the spring sunshine of southern Australia lived up to this maxim, and then some.

The run down to the right-handed Doohan Curve and the left of the Southern Loop is perfect for mixing things up in the chaos of the start. Right from the off, Stoner hit the front and held his nerve through the first corners on cool tyres. Hayden and Pedrosa also got a great start, taking second and third into the Southern Loop. Meanwhile Dovizioso is pushed to the outside of Doohan, onto the rumblestrip and eventually the grass, exiting turn 1 dead last.

Dovi held last place for only a few seconds as the dangers of cold tyres asserted themselves. Pedrosa first, running wide in Turn 2, wide enough to run onto the grass with the bike cranked over. The result was inevitable: him and his bike tumbling towards the gravel trap. Guintoli and Vermeulen then indulged in a few hundred metres of motocross, but were both able to rejoin.

A couple of frantic corners later and Stoner and Hayden have gapped the rest of the field, Toseland heading the chasing pack, in a scrap with Edwards, Lorenzo, Nakano and the rest in a bunch. de Angelis high-sides right in front of Rossi, gifting him 8th place at the end of the first lap, and Dovizioso has shot up to a surprising 10th, having already got past the Kawasakis, Suzukis and satellite Ducatis.

By lap two a pattern was starting to appear. Stoner and Hayden were in their own race away at the front, while a pack of four or five riders battled it out for third place. Initially, the pack consisted of Toseland, Lorenzo, Edwards and Nakano. Edwards would, over the next three laps, drop steadily back and be replaced by Rossi and Dovizioso, both riders charging through the field. Indeed by the end of lap three, Rossi would scythe past Edwards and Nakano in one move on the start/finish straight for fifth.

Toseland and Lorenzo were engaged in their own battle. Toseland, using his knowledge of the track for WSB races, was able to run slightly different lines from anyone else and held a worthy third place. His battle with Lorenzo, on similar tyres, made it clear that there is not much between the Tech3 and the factory bikes in terms of raw power. Rossi was hunting them both down, clearly faster than those around him in the race.

Up at the front, Stoner was lap by lap establishing his lead over Hayden, a tenth or two every lap. Behind them Rossi takes Lorenzo for 4th at the bottom of Lukey Heights and sets about Toseland. The Englishman was not for giving up his place however, and a series of overtakes between Toseland and Rossi was the most exciting passage of the race. Overtakes and re-takes all around the lap, for several laps, was reminiscent briefly of the Rossi/Stoner race in Laguna. Ultimately, Rossi wins out and starts the chase for Hayden.

Just behind the Rossi/Toseland battle, the chasing group re-forms. Toseland, Lorenzo, Nakano and Dovizioso are now enagaged in, with the exception of Nakano, a fight between the rookies. If these laps were any indication of the new talent in the paddock, we’re in for a good few years of cracking racing yet in MotoGP, daft rule changes or not.

Back to Stoner; he is giving everyone a lesson in consistency. Out in front on his own, he is banging in the laps, fast enough to grow the gap to Hayden without taking too many risks. It is a mature, capable performance from the Aussie. Hayden’s lap times start to suffer, as perhaps his Michelins start to deteriorate after the hiding he has handed out to them. The track is hard on the left side of the tyre, and Hayden seems to be struggling getting power down in corner exits.

Ten laps to go and Hayden is 5.6 seconds ahead of Rossi, and Stoner 3.9 seconds ahead of Hayden. Rossi needs to take half a second a lap out of Hayden to catch him before the end of the race, seemingly impossible as he is currently managing only a tenth or two. The rookie fight behind him is hotting up as Dovi, Jorge and JT are at it hammer and tongs, the satellite bikes matching the factory Yamaha all around the track. Nakano is having his best race of the season, taking a watching brief on the battle immediately in front of him. This circuit produces some wonderful racing from it’s flowing lines, it is no wonder so many of the riders love it.

Suddenly, on lap 26 of 27 Rossi closes by virtue of pulling a 1:30.5 to Hayden’s 1:31.7 and he takes Hayden, using the Hayden slipstream. The rear-facing camera on Hayden’s bike reveals a shot rear Michelin, chunks missing from it. Dovizioso, Lorenzo and Toseland swap positions in several places around the lap, at one time in Doohan three-abreast around the corner. Nakano watches.

Stoner takes the victory, making it look easy with a monster wheelie across the line. Rossi second and Hayden a worthy third place. Somehow in the final corners, Lorenzo slips ahead of the pack and Nakano gets the advantage ahead of the battling JT and Dovizioso, using his old racing head to take advantage of the confusion caused by Lorenzo’s move.

A cracker of a race from Phillip Island.

MotoGPBlog Man of the Weekend: a close call this weekend between the dominance of Stoner, the tenacious Rossi and the rapid Dovizioso. Ultimately, it has to be Rossi for his fight from 12th to second.

A beautiful, sunny spring day in Australia sees a dry session for qualification.

Toseland sets the early pace 1:31.9, a foreshadowing of Toseland’s performance for the session, and possibly the weekend. He does not hold the top spot for long before Stoner puts in a strong 1:30.4, then 1:30.1. The TV coverage shows Stoner drifting it sideways over Lukey Heights.

From the early laps, the riders looking strong early on are as follows: Pedrosa, Toseland, Lorenzo, Rossi, Dovizioso, and Stoner. No Suzukis and no Kawasakis are looking comfortable or fast here.

Edwards pops up with 30 minutes to go 1:30.0 - has he beaten de Puniet to the qualifier? It very much looks like it. Qualifiers have broken quite early today, as Dovizioso is next to try them with a 1:29.6.

Hayden is looking good this weekend, his Ducati announcement seeming to have given him the ability to have fun on the bike again. He puts is a 1:29.6. Rossi is still some way off the pace, but puts in a 1:30.0, for 4th place. Fastest of this round of qualifying tyres is Lorenzo, with a 1:29.4 for pole on his Michelins, closely followed by Toseland 1:29.5. The Michelins are working well here today.

Into the final quarter of the session and Stoner heads out on a qualifier, and although slow in the first sector and with a big slip in Lukey Heights, takes second before Hayden, just behind him, takes pole with 1:29.2.

Rossi spices up the session with some drama when he takes a fall, getting the Southern Loop wrong, running out wide out on the grass parallel to the track, unable to stop or turn. He finally reaches the gravel run-off at Honda Corner and the bike is pitched up in the air and as a result he hits the ground hard. Later in the pits it looks like he may have whiplash but nothing more serious than this.

Jorge sets a new outright lap record at the circuit with a 1:28.9, faster than Hayden’s 990cc lap record, and the first sub-1:29 lap at the Island.

Lorenzo, Pedrosa, Hayden now make up the front row with 10 mins to go, before Stoner gets second, and he is very fast in the last sector, the long left-handers. Hayden follows him over the line with a 1:28.756, immediately demoting Stoner to 3rd. Lorenzo replies, but loses speed in the second sector (Honda Corner), and is as a result 1/10th down over the line.

Last minute madness prevails and the laps are completed thick and fast:
- Stoner: 1:28.665 for provisional pole
- Pedrosa: 1:29.2
- Hayden: 1:28.75
- Lorenzo: 1:28.73
- de Puniet 1:28.8, following Lorenzo closely.
- Toseland: 1:29.0

As a result the front two rows for tomorrow are:
- Stoner, Lorenzo, Hayden
- De Puniet, Toseland, Pedrosa

Pedrosa failed to get a quick lap on his final qualifier, meaning de Puniet with his tow from Lorenzo was able to push past him and almost onto the front row. He stayed out for an additional lap, but by then his qualifiers were shot. Rossi ended 12th, despite heading out in the final minutes of qualifying. It looks like he’ll be fine to take part tomorrow, and will no doubt be fighting his way up the field.

Stoner rode the Ducati for pole with great skill, battling the deteriorating qualifiers and keeping the power on despite the bike kicking and bucking through the final corners. A well deserved pole, and as so often this season the other Ducatis were nowhere to be seen. Lorenzo looked fast on race setup and with qualifiers and the battle tomorrow may be a showdown between Stoner, Lorenzo and Hayden, with a Rossi overtaking sideshow to entertain us, as well as an in-form Toseland, familiar with the track, swapping punches with Edwards and de Puniet.

It was a cooler day today, six degrees down on yesterday. However, it was dry and never threatened rain for once.

Cracking starts from Pedrosa, Stoner and Hayden saw them come through to the front off the line, and Lorenzo get the jump on Rossi in the first couple of corners. As the rest of the field tracked through the first couple of corners it was to be an early bath for wildcard Akiyoshi, who dropped his big chance at turn 2.

Up at the front, Stoner and Pedrosa had their heads down and were gapping Hayden, while Rossi forced his way past Lorenzo for fourth place, and then Hayden for third. The Italian then set about catching Stoner and Pedrosa at the front.

Rossi clearly had the speed through the corners and was using this to his advantage through the S-curves and Hairpin bend in particular to close on the leaders. Both the Honda and the Ducati had the drop on him out of the final corner and down the start/finish straight on sheer acceleration. There were just enough corners where he had the advantage for him to close, lap by lap, on the leaders.

Stoner, clearly faster than Pedrosa but unable to pass owing to the Honda’s speed out of corners and immense speed down the straights. It looks like the Honda with Pedrosa on board clearly matches the Ducati for acceleration. Finally, on the turn right and under the oval, Stoner lunges and forces them both wide and slow. Stoner immediately apologises to Pedrosa by raising his left hand, but does not hand him the place back, and quite rightly so: this is racing after all. However, the move upsets both of the leader’s rhythms, and Rossi uses this to his advantage to close further. Within two corners, Rossi passes Pedrosa, and this is the last Pedrosa will challenge at the front.

As Pedrosa is dropped by Stoner and Rossi, the chasing pack of Hayden, Lorenzo and Capirossi starts to close. Within half a lap, Lorenzo emerges at the front after passing Hayden, and sets about catching Pedrosa. It was a chase that would last to the end of the race.

Stoner responds to Rossi setting a fastest lap of the race and gaps Valentino slightly - can he hold him off to the end of the race? Meanwhile Lorenzo makes steady progress against Pedrosa who’s performance seems to have dropped off - is the Honda already reducing power to save fuel?

With eleven laps to go, Rossi passes Stoner and gets the hammer down. He was not to be seriously threatened for the remainder of the race. It was 11 laps of faultless, fast riding from the champion, taking his eighth title in style. Meanwhile, Lorenzo had a podium in sight, if he could just pass Pedrosa.

It took Jorge ten of the remaining laps to catch Pedrosa, and a last lap dive for the inside, using the superior corner speed of the Yamaha almost resulted in glory, or disaster. In the end it was neither, as his front Michelin appeared to briefly make contact with Pedrosa’s Bridgestone rear. However both continued in position, Lorenzo coming off the worst, his challenge over.

With a check back over his shoulder to ensure Stoner was far enough back, Rossi hoisted his front wheel for a massive wheelie over the line. Stoner and Lorenzo also joined him in celebrations, and first to Rossi was Casey Stoner, graciously slapping Rossi on the back.

Thereafter followed a bizarre, stage managed celebration by Rossi, in which he donned a t-shirt reading “sorry for the delay” in Italian with a clock showing 8 o’clock. He then sat at a desk and signed the back of a helmet with a chequered flag motif (all caught on a camera attached to the pen - like I said, well staged managed). He then put the helmet on and rode around to the celebrations proper. Even his Mum was in the paddock.

And that was it, bar the champagne. Rossi takes his eighth World Championship with a stunning run of victories. There was no riding for 4th place today. He was riding for the win.

Autosport are reporting that the single tyre rule for MotoGP in 2009 has been announced. There are now five days for tyre manufacturers to submit their proposals and the selected supplier will be announced on the 18th October.

The reasons why MotoGPBlog believes this to be a bad idea were documented last year, and not a lot has happened to change this.

Do not assume the single tyre supplier will be Bridgestone - Michelin were first to the PR punch this morning.

As has happened all too few times this year, the qualifying session at Motegi started dry and sunny.

Rossi took the initial pole, but Stoner was never far behind, matching Rossi to within couple of hundredths. Cheekily nipping to an early third place was Toni Elias, achieved by latching on to the back of Stoner on his hot lap, something that gets the Aussie’s back up.

A couple of hot laps later and provisional pole swaps between Rossi and Stoner, Casey pulling a 1:47.484. As a measure of this pace Capirossi, winner of the last three races here and holder of the lap record was 10th 0.6 seconds off the pace.

30 minutes in to the session and a group of four contenders for pole have emerged: Rossi, Stoner, Lorenzo, and Pedrosa.

As per usual, de Puniet is the first to try qualifiers and he takes pole with a 1:47.172. Everyone follows suit and the pole time tumbles:
- Edwards: 1:47.082
- Capirossi 1:47.0
- Hayden goes 1:46.666
- Rossi 1:46.5

After this rush to the tape, Stoner is down in 8th and Pedrosa away down in 15th, but neither have tried a qualifier, with 18 minutes to go.

Stoner finally tries the stickier rubber and sets a new target for the rest of the field: 1:45.831.
The battle is hotting up now: Lorenzo 1:45.750, with 13 minutes to go. Meanwhile Rossi can only manage a 1:46.3, fastest in first sector and PB in other sectors.

Hayden suddenly finds his speed, landing 3rd, 0.4 secs off Jorge, and de Puniet stays in the saddle to take 5th place. Not for long though, as Pedrosa comes out on qualifiers and goes 5th. On the same lap, Rossi pulls himself up to 3rd.

With 5 minutes to go the order is:
Lorenzo, Stoner, Rossi, Hayden, Pedrosa, de Puniet

The track is momentarily quiet, with only Hayden on an out lap as the rest put in their final qualifiers - the rest that is except Stoner, who has exhausted his allocation. A flurry of riders head out of the pit lane for their final run, and about half a lap around Hayden catches the rider at the back, West, who is not looking behind and blocks Hayden’s run. Hayden immediately backs off and saves his tyres for another run with everyone else.

Capirossi is at the head of the pack, and moves up to 5th. Just behind, de Angelis falls at last corner, and despite brave marshals running out into the track to recover his bike, several of the riders have to slow, including Rossi.

Unaffected was Lorenzo with the eventual pole time of 1:45.543, Pedrosa and Hayden also improving.

The front rows for tomorrow are:
Lorenzo, Stoner, Hayden,
Rossi, Pedrosa, Capirossi

Capirex’s performance means he is in with a chance of a fourth win in a row, while Rossi will be moderately happy to be top of the second row, ahead of Pedrosa. A happy man tonight will be Hayden, clearly beating Pedrosa and standing an excellent chance of repeating his Indy performance in Motegi. Always fast is, of course, Stoner, if he can keep it rubber-side down.

The championship may well be almost over, but there is still plenty of racing to be done.

One of MotoGPBlog’s regular readers was present at the Indianapolis MotoGP race in 2008 - Bridget Kirkland. Bridget has been kind enough to write up her experience for us; it gives an authentic feel and a personal take on what it was like to be there. Bridget also has some images up on Flickr of the event.

Grab a cold one and get a little taste of Indy for those of us not able to be there in person.

Thanks Bridget!

Inaugural Indy 2008
The makings of my journey to Indy was a bit sporadic, just as my life seems to be. It was a last minute decision to drive to Indy. So, on Friday, September, 12, I left Spartanburg, S.C. on a road trip with a short pit stop in Columbus, Ohio for a little fam time with my sister. On Saturday morning I woke up to a very fierce thunderstorm. Lying in the bed, I wondered if I really should go through with the trip. Thinking no more of those thoughts, I got ready to go. However, the rain was a just a sign of a how wet the weekend would be.

The drive from Columbus to Indy was rather short and quick, only three hours. It was a fun drive. I was jamming to tunes, and getting myself all pumped up for the excitement. On I-70, the closer I got to Indy, the more race traffic I saw. You can usually spot such fans - cars with lots of alpine stars stickers on the windows and loaded full of guys. The great thing was that the closer I got to Indy, the nicer it was getting outside.

As I exited the highway, it was so hard to contain my excitement. The traffic was easy. Due to the fact this was Indy, they seem to have the crowd/traffic thing well under control. I turned into a $10 parking lot right near the South part of the track. It was about a five minute walk into the track. I can remember the walk into the track seemed like forever. I could hear the bikes and I could not seem to get in fast enough. I just wanted to see. And seeing, I finally did. I sat down at the first stand I found. Sitting there with my heart pumping, I couldn’t believe that I was actually there and that I was there all by myself. Not only was this my first trip to Indy, but my first solo road trip. At that moment I remember thinking: Whatever this weekend was to be, boring or filled with the sporadic moments I had come accustomed to lately, that it was all in my hands.

Enough sitting… it was time to explore. I could not help noticing the extremely large Ducati area. So that was where I was off to. I was welcomed by a sea of red: people painted red, dressed in red and with red hair. Unlike many of the Ducati areas I have been to at the races, this one was by far the biggest and definitely the most fun. I knew I would be back to spend most of the race time there. There was a great view of the track coming out of the straightaway that headed into Turn 2, T3 and intoT4. So I had multiple viewing spots, which I liked.

I could not believe the massive size of this track. I do prefer the intimate feel of Laguna a lot better. I was trying to find grassy areas on the infield to watch from, and there were some, but I didn’t like that I could only see that particular area. I continued to walk all the way back along the eastern side of the track to the north side, searching for that perfect spot, when all along, I realized, it was going to be that Ducati area.

Heading to the Village I had a list of things I needed to get. I strolled by the riders’ huge trailers, but didn’t see anything interesting. The vendor marketplace was crowded with the regulars - Alpine Stars, Hayden Brothers and many helmet and t-shirt shops. I did wait in a line for about 45 minutes to get Spies’ and Edwards’ autographs. At this point I realized I was alone again and so I started random conversations all over the place. It is amazing that people will talk to you so much more easily when it is just you. I don’t think I would have met so many people if I had been there with someone else. I went into all the sponsors’ tents, nothing out of the ordinary. All this time I was continually getting photos of practices and qualifying. The noise … the smell of the gas - it was all around and I was loving it!

I was impressed with the people and everyone was so nice. Everyone had a story to share about their own journey to Indy. As the racing wound down toward the end of the day, I noticed more and more cold ones in the hands of race fans. People were getting happier, as I was too. Some of the people were on their way to the flat track, however, I returned to the hotel to change and get ready for a night out in downtown Indy. I couldn’t help but enjoy the night out and I knew, as I journeyed back to the hotel room at 4:00 am, that I would be kicking myself in the butt the next day. And I did. A couple grande lattes later, I was ready for what the day was to bring. I remember thinking, “Bring it on – it can only get better!”

The morning started with some sun and lots of wind. The exploring was done. The day felt a little different too. I noticed that the traffic was crazier, the parking was more ($20), and the people were excited!

The 125’s started, then ended early due to the changing weather as the wind and rain started to pick up as the rain bands from Hurricane Ike made their way across the midwest. The Ducati people could barely keep their tent from blowing away. I found out they were delaying the 250’s and then it was time for the big event. However, at that moment, a monsoon literally stalled right above the track. I found better cover under a concession stand. The rain, and the drinks, kept pouring! And neither was letting up. The more the rain came down, the crazier the fans were getting. I recall people shouting and running around in the rain, mostly the red people.

Slowly the rain lifted and the drying crews came out. It’s amazing how they can just suck the water out of the road! So, it was apparent that the race was due to begin soon. I left my Chicago boys partying under the stand and went right to my area. I faced Turn 2, T3 and T4, ready to capture all the action. The crowd did not go anywhere. In fact there were so many people all around me and during the practice runs the hair on my arms was standing up. I was so excited!

The bikes were back on and as they came out of the straight away into Turn 2, with just enough water on the road, those of us standing in that exact spot were being pelted with water that the bikes shot of the road. None of us seemed to mind at all. In fact, the water seemed to have its own special power. As the races started the crowd cheered, and you could hear the bikes coming around one by one. This is what I drove eight hours to see, and if I had any regrets - not that I did – that moment assured me I had done the right thing.

We all know what happened next: Rossi, Hayden and Rossi again to the lead. I don’t know if the broadcasting picked up the noise that was made in the stands. The fans went crazy when Hayden jumped into the lead, and when Rossi took it back, it was just as much of an uproar. I think most people were just there for the racing and whoever was going to give the best show, they would get the cheers!

I was impressed with the amount of foreigners who attended and I was happy the Americans were on good behavior. It seemed to me like one big happy family on the inside and outside of the track. Everyone was there for the love of the race. I saw many people meeting and discussing favorite riders. I saw Italians inviting people from Chicago to the races and exchanging numbers so they could meet up again. The feeling was great. The town of Indianapolis was very welcoming as well. Signs everywhere welcomed bike fans! The city streets had bike parking everywhere. I was impressed and left with the feeling that I would be back next year. Next year, however, I won’t be going solo.

It was damp at the start of the session, damp enough to bring out Rossi and Lorenzo on intermediates at first. It turned out to be the wrong decision, both rapidly returning to the pits to fit slicks.

Those that did brave the dampness without tread were immediately quick - Pedrosa in particular was fast from the off, as was Hopkins on the Kawasaki, looking like his head is in the right place this weekend.

As the track dried further, the times dropped. Pedrosa took the best time to 1:48.322 which stood for a fair chunk of the session. The search for settings appeared to be eluding Lorenzo and Toseland far and away detached at the bottom of the timing sheets. The only rider able to come near the times of Pedrosa was Stoner, and the Aussie overhauled the Spaniard with 17 minutes to go by 0.2 secs.

Race winner for the last three years, Loris Capirossi was nowhere until the final minutes of the session when he appeared, just a second off the pace in third place. By the end of the session he would slip to fifth, just ahead of Hayden who got his stuff together before time-out. Also resurgent late in the session was Rossi, with Dovi not far behind.

If this session tells us anything, it’s that Pedrosa and Stoner are going head-to-head this weekend. Dovizioso looks confident, perhaps stemming from his new role at Repsol Honda next year and Rossi will be there or there abouts, as always.

As Sunday morning dawned in Indianapolis, the organisers faced a tough call: to bring the MotoGP race forwards to avoid the onset of Hurricane Ike, or to stick to the proposed schedule of 125cc, MotoGP and 250cc, in that order. With the day shaping up with some rain but also some patchy sunshine, the decision was taken to stick to the schedule. It almost came off, but the warning signs were there when the 125cc race was red flagged. Of course, by this time it was too late to change anything, the MotoGP juggernaut would just roll on.

The initial laps were frantic, as you might expect in these conditions. Stoner grabbed the holeshot but was soon swamped by other riders, including Dovizioso who showed great control and feel on his Honda to take the lead. Not for long though, as through all the slips, near-highsides and losing of front ends (everyone had their moments but not even de Puniet fell off) Nicky Hayden rose to the top in style, hanging out the back end of the bike with what looked like minimal traction control, the Michelin taking all he could throw at it. I was cheering him on, I can only imagine what the American audience were doing.

Rossi, having dropped as far as fourth started to climb the order, swapping places with a battling Dovizioso who did not give up his place easily, having mastered what many others struggled with all day - getting off the racing line was treacherous due to both slippery tarmac and deeper water.

It was all Rossi could to to match the rampant Hayden. For now tyre issues were forgotten, this was suddenly a head-to-head between Hayden and Rossi, a battle for grip and forward motion beyond electronics and rubber composition, pneumatic valves and team politics. It was MotoGP in the raw, two riders at the top of their game, trying everything to obtain and exploit grip. In particular, Hayden was moving about on the bike like we have not seen all year, hanging right off on the right-hander into the back straight to keep the bike upright and get the power down. He was a man transformed. He was also the man with the fastest lap.

Around lap 10, Hayden had the upper hand and in drying conditions pulled a lead on Rossi. Further back, Jorge Lorenzo pushed past Dovi for third, while Stoner seemed content to stay on the bike in 5th. Ben Spies, repeating his wet performance in Donington, sat in a creditable 6th with Pedrosa just behind on his Bridgestones.

Then the weather had a say again. The rain came, and with it came speed for Rossi and Lorenzo. Rossi again battled with Hayden, but this time the Michelin wets which had taken such a beating from the American in the early laps could not maintain their performance in the wet and Hayden had to concede to the Italian. The rain became heavier, and suddenly the wind picked up. First small debris was visible getting blown across the track, then the Yamaha tent in the infield fell victim to gusts, and the riders would later report avoiding beer cans and plastic cups as they were blown across the tarmac. The only sensible decision was to red-flag the race, a decision Lorenzo may wish was made a lap later as he had just passed a now struggling Hayden. However, Hayden held second place on the last trip over the yard of bricks and so took second place.

Some doubt remained over whether the race would resume. TV pictures of destroyed tents and air fences being lifted by the wind to be worse than useless soon made the decision easy - there would be no resumption. Rossi was declared the winner and celebrations could begin for the Yamaha team. The podium was a unique affair for MotoGP - a hydraulic lift raising the podium-sitter’s bikes to take part in the celebrations.

The victory takes Rossi into such a lead in the championship that a fourth place in Motegi will get the job done. This is where Stoner sealed his victory last year. Just four races ago, the title fight looked like going to the wire - how quickly things change in MotoGP.

Finally, a word about Pedrosa. I previously billed this as a potential career-defining weekend for the Spaniard, but such were the conditions little could be gleaned from his performance - better than most but far from a podium. He gets some breathing room, but must perform well in Japan to retain his credibility.

MotoGPBlog has a special report in the works from Indianapolis - an eye-witness report of the event from Bridget Kirkland who was there, camera in hand through all the weather, and an epic journey home. Check back soon for Bridget’s take on the weekend.

MotoGPBlog man of the weekend: A tough call this week, with Ben Spies proving his talent and trouncing the other Suzuki riders, and Rossi again giving a masterclass in consistency. However, the winner is Nicky Hayden for his epic battle with Rossi and brilliant tail-out style from start to finish. Couple this with the announcement from Ducatii that he will be joining them next year, and it has to be his weekend.

It was dry qualifying today, with FP3 having rewarded the riders with a dry final 30 minutes and a chance to get a handle on their track and settings, Tony Elias reaching the top of the timing sheets as FP3 ended.

First of the pole contenders to post a serious time was Casey Stoner with a 1:43.7 on race rubber, closely followed, and pipped, by Hayden with a 1:43.5. Ten minutes in to the session and Pedrosa’s best time so far was a 1:46.5. He was to languish down the order for some time yet.

As the riders adapted to the track at full speed, many of them on their hot laps were using the raised kerbing on the outside of the final corner as a berm to get them turned and off down the straight. This could almost have been made for Hayden’s tail-out style, a style he demonstrated throughout the session, often spewing blue smoke off the rear wheel through turns 4 to 7 and 13 - 15. There did not appear to be much in the way of traction control on his Honda, and it suits him: he gets second with a 1:43.0 from the latest pole-sitter Rossi (1:42.9). It was Rossi’s lap that beat the unofficial MotoGP lap record set by Canepa with a 1:43.0 set in tyre testing.

With twenty five minutes remaining, the time of qualifiers arrived. Elias, looking strong and combative was first with a 1:42.7, and just behind him on the track, Edwards leapt from 14th to pole; 1:42.4

With the switch from race setup to qualifiers, times suddenly started tumbling: Hayden 1:42.2; de Puniet 1:41.5; Lorenzo 1:41.4, Stoner gets in a 1:41.6’s to stay in contention with pole and ahead of Rossi. With the rapid change in pace, someone had to suffer, and Elias on pole a few minutes ago took a tumble on the track and down the rankings to 14th place.

Hayden is riding like he is back on a dirt track, hanging it out all around the lap, a spectacular looking style, but is it the quickest? One thing is for sure, there is no obvious advantage for either tyre company

Ben Spies, outshining the regular Suzuki riders, was 0.25 seconds up on pole at T2, but loses 0.5 seconds in traffic through T3 and T4. Hayden continues hanging it out and it seems to be working for him with a 1:41.2, beaten only by a determined Rossi, with a 1:41.0.

With 6 minutes to go, the front two rows are as follows: Rossi, Hayden, Lorenzo, de Puniet, Stoner, Toseland. Suzuki (aside from the stellar Spies), Kawasaki and Alice Ducati are struggling to be competitive.

Pedrosa, adapting admirably to his new rubber, jumped from the bottom of the order up to 10th place with a 1:42.2. All hell then broke loose over the last few minutes of the session with almost the entire field on the track at the end. The final front two rows are as follows:

1st Rossi 1:40.7
2nd Stoner 1:40.8
3rd Lorenzo 1:41.1
4th Hayden 1:41.2
5th Spies 1:41.4
6th de Puniet 1:41.4

Pedrosa, making rapid progress, came in 7th with a 1:41.7. Suzukis, Kawasakis, and satellite teams made up the rest of the places, with Melandri and West bringing up the rear.

With weather uncertain for tomorrow, and Hurricane Ike making a bee-line for the circuit, Eurosport reported that the organisers may being the start of the race forwards tomorrow to ensure the race completes before the rain arrives. This may even be at the cost of the 125cc and 250cc races, so keep your eye on the TV schedules tomorrow.

MotoGPBlog Pick of the Field: Ben Spies for his trouncing of the other Suzukis and an incredible 5th place.

With conditions torrentially wet at Indy, the smoothest riders rose to the top of the pile. Vermeulen, West and Rossi running at or near the top. Little could be discerned for the race though - unless similar conditions prevail.

Super-slow motion pictures of Rossi’s bike showed how low a pressure he was running in his Bridgestones, the side walls visibly flexing and almost bouncing around in T1 and T2, the pressures low to get the maximum amount of tread in contact with the tarmac.

Most interesting during the session was the speculation from Randy Mamola around riders and teams next year. Check this list out, all straight from Mamola/Ryder/Moody commentating on Eurosport:

Pedrosa has one more year to win the title before getting the boot from Repsol Honda. If he fails to win the 2009 title, he’ll be replaced by Kiyonari. That means Dovizioso/Kiyonari on Repsol Honda for 2010.

Elias moving from Alice to Gresini Honda. Guintoli leaving Alice also, and being replaced by Kallio from 250’s and Ducati test rider Canepa.

A possibility of a 5th Ducati run for none other than Sete Gibernau, but the money still needs to be found. And finally, Spies possibly to Scot Honda: Scot want it to happen but Honda need to provide another bike and it is not clear whether this will be forthcoming from Big H.

Finally, well worth checking out is the audio from the Thursday Indy press conference on the circuit site.

Join us tomorrow for further splashing about.