Reverend
July 1st, 2007, 18:46 PM
Valentino Rossi cut the gap on Casey Stoner at the top of the MotoGP riders' standings with an impressive win in Holland on Saturday.
Starting from 11th on the grid, Rossi showed tremendous speed to cut through the field and gradually increase the pressure on Stoner at the front.
Rossi was content to ride in Stoner's slipstream for lap after lap, but finally made his move with three to go.
Reigning champion Nicky Hayden held off Dani Pedrosa to take third place.
Rossi's third win of the season narrowed the gap at the top of the standings to 21 points.
The Italian took advantage of dry conditions on track, and his Yamaha simply had too much pace for his rivals.
Suzuki rider Chris Vermeulen started on pole, but he was soon passed by the leading riders and a crash ended his hopes for the race.
"It was the best race of the season for me because I had to start from the fourth row," Rossi told BBC Sport.
"I had great rhythm, the set-up was good and the tyres lasted well to the end. It was another great battle with Casey, but at the end of the race I was able to go a little bit quicker.
"It was an important victory for me."
Stoner was content with his second place, admitting he could not compete with the Yamaha's superior speed in the dry conditions.
"Considering the year we've had, we've got to be pretty happy with this result," he said.
"I was hitting the pace that we thought we could do and the bike felt good. Unfortunately it was really windy and I was getting blown wide on a lot of the corners and losing the front.
"I don't think I could have gone a lot quicker."
Dutch Grand Prix result:
1. Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha
2. Casey Stoner (Aus) Ducati
3. Nicky Hayden (US) Honda
4. Dani Pedrosa (Spain) Honda
5. John Hopkins (U.S.) Suzuki
6. Colin Edwards (US) Yamaha
7. Alex Barros (Brz) Ducati
8. Alex Hofmann (Ger) Ducati
Championship standings:
1. Casey Stoner (Aus) Ducati 185 pts
2. Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha 164
3. Dani Pedrosa (Spa) Honda 119
4. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki 94
5. Chris Vermeulen (Aus) Suzuki 88
6. Marco Melandri (Ita) Honda 87
7. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha 75
8. Alex Barros (Bra) Ducati 69
BBC Sport (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/motorbikes/6256994.stm)
Starting from 11th on the grid, Rossi showed tremendous speed to cut through the field and gradually increase the pressure on Stoner at the front.
Rossi was content to ride in Stoner's slipstream for lap after lap, but finally made his move with three to go.
Reigning champion Nicky Hayden held off Dani Pedrosa to take third place.
Rossi's third win of the season narrowed the gap at the top of the standings to 21 points.
The Italian took advantage of dry conditions on track, and his Yamaha simply had too much pace for his rivals.
Suzuki rider Chris Vermeulen started on pole, but he was soon passed by the leading riders and a crash ended his hopes for the race.
"It was the best race of the season for me because I had to start from the fourth row," Rossi told BBC Sport.
"I had great rhythm, the set-up was good and the tyres lasted well to the end. It was another great battle with Casey, but at the end of the race I was able to go a little bit quicker.
"It was an important victory for me."
Stoner was content with his second place, admitting he could not compete with the Yamaha's superior speed in the dry conditions.
"Considering the year we've had, we've got to be pretty happy with this result," he said.
"I was hitting the pace that we thought we could do and the bike felt good. Unfortunately it was really windy and I was getting blown wide on a lot of the corners and losing the front.
"I don't think I could have gone a lot quicker."
Dutch Grand Prix result:
1. Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha
2. Casey Stoner (Aus) Ducati
3. Nicky Hayden (US) Honda
4. Dani Pedrosa (Spain) Honda
5. John Hopkins (U.S.) Suzuki
6. Colin Edwards (US) Yamaha
7. Alex Barros (Brz) Ducati
8. Alex Hofmann (Ger) Ducati
Championship standings:
1. Casey Stoner (Aus) Ducati 185 pts
2. Valentino Rossi (Ita) Yamaha 164
3. Dani Pedrosa (Spa) Honda 119
4. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki 94
5. Chris Vermeulen (Aus) Suzuki 88
6. Marco Melandri (Ita) Honda 87
7. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha 75
8. Alex Barros (Bra) Ducati 69
BBC Sport (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/motorbikes/6256994.stm)