MotoGP news
End of the magic run for Rossi
01 June 2009 / Results / PhotosValentino Rossi's superb run of race victories at Mugello came to an end on Sunday as the Italian was beaten to the top step of the rostrum by both Casey Stoner and team-mate Jorge Lorenzo. Taking the final step of the podium, it was the first non-Rossi win in Italy since Alex Barros' success in 2001.
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"Of course I am disappointed not to win again at Mugello but seven times in a row is not so bad and the important thing is that I made it onto the podium," said Rossi, who has now fallen nine points behind the championship leader. "It's a very special moment to be on the podium at Mugello, with all the fans below, and I would have been very sad to have missed that! It was a very hard race today and, once again, the weather was a problem for us; we're very unlucky in these half-and-half races and I think this is my first podium in one."
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| Rossi was not dissatisfied with third position at Mugello |
If tradition is anything to go by, though, the next race in Catalonia is unlikely to feature changeable conditions in the month of June, for which Rossi is thankful. "In the wet we were very fast because we had found a great setting," he explained, "but then when we changed bikes and made a mistake by choosing a front tyre which was too hard, so it took me a long time to be able to put enough temperature into it and I lost a lot of time.
"At the end I was able to ride better and I knew that I had to make it onto the podium, so I am happy for that; of course, after Le Mans, this is a big improvement and these points are important because it's very close between the three of us." Casey Stoner now assumes the championship lead with 90 which narrowly edges out Lorenzo's 86 and Rossi's 81.
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