Daily Update MotoGP

Tech 3 Yamaha rider Colin Edwards has taken pole position for Sunday's Chinese MotoGP round at Shanghai with a late flying lap to beat Valentino Rossi's best effort.
The American had taken provisional pole around the 40 minute mark of the hour-long session, but was soon demoted by Ducati's Casey Stoner. Stoner lowered his best again in the final ten minutes before it was almost immediately beaten by Valentino Rossi.
Rossi went faster again after the chequered flag, but as the session was ending Edwards took four tenths off Rossi's earlier mark to take pole position with a 1:58.139. His former teammate Valentino Rossi will start alongside him on the front row, along with 2007 champion Casey Stoner who was unable to improve on his final lap.
Heading the second row of the grid is the remarkable Jorge Lorenzo, almost unable to walk when not on his bike, yet able to achieve impressive feats while on it, just over half a second slower than Edwards.
Fifth fastest was Dani Pedrosa, fast on his Repsol Honda early in qualifying but unable to find that little bit extra at the end, just edging out a strong performance by Loris Capirossi on his Rizla Suzuki.
James Toseland looked set for a top-five start with just a couple of minutes remaining, but the final flurry pushed him down to seventh, just ahead of Chris Vermeulen and Randy de Puniet.
Like teammate Pedrosa, Nicky Hayden looked set for a better result than his tenth-fastest time, two places ahead of Marco Melandri on the second factory Ducati.
Shinya Nakano's efforts in practice showed more promise than his eventual qualifying position of 13th, one place better than John Hopkins who had set the second-fastest time just after the 30 minute mark of the session.
Pos Rider Bike Tyre Time Gap
1. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) 1:58.139
2. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 1:58.494 +0.355
3. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 1:58.591 +0.452
4. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 1:58.711 +0.572
5. Daniel Pedrosa Honda (M) 1:58.855 +0.716
6. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 1:58.941 +0.802
7. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 1:59.254 +1.115
8. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 1:59.325 +1.186
9. Randy de Puniet Honda (M) 1:59.357 +1.218
10. Nicky Hayden Honda (M) 1:59.507 +1.368
11. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) 1:59.559 +1.420
12. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 1:59.678 +1.539
13. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 1:59.716 +1.577
14. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) 1:59.740 +1.601
15. Toni Elias Ducati (B) 1:59.933 +1.794
16. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) 2:00.316 +2.177
17. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) 2:00.760 +2.621
18. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 2:00.838 +2.699
ref[AS]

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May 1st, 2005. The heavens open in Shanghai, and the first ever MotoGP race in China is a wet affair. At the height of his form, Valentino Rossi shows his mastery of the 990cc Yamaha M1 to take a memorable victory from wildcard Olivier Jacque and continue his leadership of the MotoGP World Championship.
Jump forward three years, and things look very different for the Italian star. Rossi is now on his longest winless streak in the premier class since his maiden victory in 2000, and has seen rookie teammate Jorge Lorenzo outshine him thus far in the present season. The five-time MotoGP World Champion is, however, still a potent force as proved by his first Bridgestone-assisted podiums in Jerez and Estoril, and the Fiat Yamaha package is assumed by many to be favourable to the odds of victory in Shanghai.
One of those predicting a Rossi resurgence is the rider himself, who came close to taking the win last year in a jaw dropping battle with Casey Stoner. Another Bridgestone rider, John Hopkins, completed the rostrum.
`Last year in China we weren´t quite able to win, but this year our bike is working very well and, together with our tyre package, I think we should be fighting for the victory,´ proclaims Rossi. `The race in 2007 was very exciting I think, a long battle with Stoner; this year I hope for a similar battle with my rivals but with a different outcome!´

The 29 year-old´s decision to switch from Michelin rubber to his current associates brought him in for some flack, and the jury is still out over the success of the change as the French manufacturer post some impressive results in early 2008. Rossi, who experienced a freak front tyre problem in the 2006 Chinese visit, is hopeful that the critics can be silenced this weekend.
`After Estoril we had a test and the primary focus was tyre testing with Bridgestone, working on material for Shanghai. We found some good things and I hope that we´ll be starting in good shape. We´ve had three races together now and I think the last two podiums, especially in Estoril which isn´t such a good track for Bridgestone, have shown that we´re making good progress in our relationship,´ continues Rossi.
`I hope that Shanghai is going to be the place where it finally all comes together. We´re not in such a bad place in the championship and there is a very long way to go, but our rivals are very strong so we can't afford to make mistakes and we need to try to take as many points as possible from now on.
ref [motogp.com]
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Are you rossi and yamaha fans, you must have this cute wallpaper.

for download and full acces please visit: pixel-cute
will rossi have good result in GP China.

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World champion Casey Stoner says he is not dwelling on the past as he tries to fight back following two disappointing races in a row.
The Ducati rider, who last year won ten races on the way to the title, has endured a shaky start to the 2008 season despite having won the season opener in Qatar.
After that, Stoner finished 11th in Jerez and sixth in Estoril, dropping down to fourth place in the standings.
But ahead of this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix, the Australian says is ready to move on.
"After such a great start in Qatar the last two races in Spain and Portugal have been tough, and to be honest a little unlucky too, but we made a few set-up changes in the Estoril test that should prove helpful in China," said Stoner.
"At Shanghai we should also have some new tyres available from Bridgestone.
"Our package worked really well at this track last year but there's no point looking into the past - we have to look to get the most out of what we have available to us right now."
Teammate Marco Melandri is hopeful he will have a good race in China, despite his dismal start to the season.
The Italian is yet to finish higher than 11th in a race this year.
"Shanghai is a circuit I like a lot," he said. "The first time we went there I managed a podium and went really strong in the wet - in fact my overriding memory from that race is the rain, there was so much of it.
"Last year I finished fifth and that was a good result for me because I remember I was losing a lot of ground in the straights, on top speed. That shouldn't be the case this year and in general the track should be good for our bike so hopefully we can have a good race at last."
ref [AS]

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Jorge Lorenzo in action in Estoril (MotoGP)

ref [motogp.com]

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