17/08/08 - Valentino Rossi once again benefitted from Casey Stoner´s misfortune for a second consecutive MotoGP victory, crossing the finish line first at the Cardion ab Grand Prix Ceske republiky. The Fiat Yamaha rider´s win –coupled with an early crash from his title rival- increased his lead to 50 points in the standings and gave a crucial boost to his World Championship chances.

Stoner was caught by surprise on the sixth lap when out in front. He had over a second´s worth of advantage over Rossi after taking the holeshot, but slipped his front wheel out on the new Brno asphalt and was lowsided into the gravel. It was Stoner´s first DNF since his joining the Ducati Marlboro team for the 2007 season.

Ducati were, however, represented on the podium in the Czech Republic, courtesy of Alice Team rider Toni Elias. The Spaniard had experienced problems on the sighting lap –a sign that did not bode well for his race- but burst through the 800cc stars ahead of him from thirteenth on the grid. His second place marks the first podium for both he and his satellite team in 2008, and he became only the second satellite rider to step onto the rostrum this year.

Another podium first came from Loris Capirossi, as the veteran made his maiden appearance on the rostrum for Rizla Suzuki. The Italian had taken off from the end of the third row, but showed that there was still life in his MotoGP career by making Suzuki the fourth manufacturer with which he had taken a top three finish in the premier class.

Shinya Nakano paid back Honda for their decision to supply him with a factory spec RC212V for the remainder of the season, giving an immediate return with fourth place for San Carlo Honda Gresini. The Japanese rider was the highest placing rider for the manufacturer, with Michelin-shod factory man Dani Pedrosa way down in fifteenth place.

Riding for his future in MotoGP, Anthony West had the best result of his premier class career onboard the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR. The Australian came home fifth after a superb ride, holding off fellow countryman Chris Vermeulen.

Marco Melandri finished seventh in a race that will do much to aid his cause, whilst the top ten was completed by Alex de Angelis, Andrea Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo. The latter two were the only Michelin riders amongst the first ten past the line.

Valentino Rossi – Race Winner
"I knew today would be very difficult with Casey (Stoner) so strong, and his first lap was impressive. I lost a bit of time with John (Hopkins) in the first corner, because he overtook me. This time we had the pace with Stoner, and I was catching up with him. I knew my setting and tyres were working well. I think I could possibly have beaten him in a battle. Unfortunately he crashed, and then I was ahead with a 11 second lead. If he hadn´t crashed then things would have been tougher, for sure"

250cc

Alex Debon put on a late, late show to take the second victory of his 250cc career, using every ounce of his experience to slip past Marco Simoncelli on the final lap in Brno.

The Lotus Aprilia rider´s chance of victory looked to have fallen by the wayside with two laps to go, as poleman Simoncelli ducked inside him and established what seemed to be an unassailable gap. However, Debon was not in the mood to settle for second, and pinned his hopes on a final lap fightback that paid dividends for the Spaniard.

Fellow Spaniard Alvaro Bautista also took advantage of a Simoncelli slip-up, taking a hard-fought second place from tenth on the grid. The Bancaja Aspar rider had less than a tenth of a second ahead of his Italian rival as the twosome crossed the finish line, continuing his attempt to salvage something from a 2008 season blighted by misfortune.

Metis Gilera rider Simoncelli completed the podium at the track where he had first tested the RSA machine, and extended his advantage in the World Championship classification. The man with the points total closest to him – Red Bull KTM man Mika Kallio- came in fifth, behind Hector Barbera.

Yuki Takahashi, Mattia Pasini, Hector Faubel, Roberto Locatelli and Aleix Espargaro were the final riders in the top ten, whilst the only crashes of the race came from home rider Karel Abraham and Swiss star Thomas Luthi.

125cc

Starting from thirteenth on the grid at Brno, Stefan Bradl became the third 125cc rider to win a first Grand Prix in 2008 with an assured ride.

Ending a long drought for German riders in the World Championship, the Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing rider worked his way up to the frontrunners on the opening laps, before taking the lead definitively just before the midway stage. A series of fastest laps allowed Bradl to break free, putting enough of a gap between himself and the podium battle to avoid any late surprises.

The Czech Republic win was Bradl´s third career podium, coming off the back of his home runner-up spot at the recent German round of the 125cc series.

World Championship leader Mike di Meglio set himself the task of stalking Bradl on the final laps of the race, closing the gap down to under a second as the lap counter ticked down. The Ajo Motorsport rider was unable to catch the eventual winner, but extended his lead in the standings with a sixth podium of the 2008 season.

The large Hungarian following present at Brno to cheer on Gabor Talmacsi left without the chance to see their hero on the podium, as the Mapfre Aspar rider missed out on the podium in a final lap duel with Joan Olive. A last gasp attempt to draft the Spaniard was unsuccessful, and the reigning 125cc World Champion was eliminated from the rostrum by less than a tenth of a second.

Nico Terol and Bradley Smith were both involved in the early fight from the front row of the grid, but tailed off towards the end of the 19-lap race to finish fifth and sixth, respectively. Sandro Cortese, Pol Espargaro, Andrea Iannone and Simone Corsi concluded the top ten.