MotoGP 800cc Round 1 – Ducati draws first blood

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Casey Stoner

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The race

Under sunny skies with an ambient temperature of 28 degrees and the track at 47 degrees the grid assembled for the first contest of an 18-race season. With new fuel regulations in place for 2007 – a 21-litre capacity reduced by one litre from 2006 – there were suggestions that some machines might be marginal on their ability to complete the race distance: 22 laps of this 5.4km circuit.

Rossi roared into the lead at turn one, but Stoner soon relieved the Italian of top spot with Pedrosa a close third on this opening lap. Stoner soon proved his intent setting an early fastest lap on the second tour with Toni Elias (Gresini Honda RC212V) and Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) fourth and fifth.

But Rossi was never content to merely follow the 21-year-old race leader and the Italian then set a fastest lap on lap three as he bested the pace of the Aussie tyro. The pair sized each other up with a series of passes and re-passes at the front while Suzuki runner John Hopkins took a turn at holding the fastest lap with a 1m 57.278s effort. This record would be reduced considerably as the race unfolded.

On lap five Rossi edged past Stoner, but on the main straight Stoner demonstrated the outright power and pace of the red machine by simply leaving the Yamaha in his wake into turn one where Rossi desperately closed up under braking. The pattern was set for the race.

Stoner’s Ducati team-mate Capirossi set a fastest lap on lap six before crashing out of the race on lap eight at turn seven. Then it was Stoner’s turn to show the way as he led Rossi, Dani and fourth-placed Hopkins. This foursome had by now left Melandri, Colin Edwards (Yamaha) and Elias way out of contention.

Pedrosa, in third, wasn’t looking likely to make any inroads into the leading duo. He was fastest man in the morning warm-up despite a crash, but this honour was meaningless as the leaders set a pace that no one else could match.

Hopkins temporarily moved past Pedrosa at mid-race distance but the American couldn’t hold the place and the pair would finish with Pedrosa ahead as the leaders approached the final laps with a the crowd wondering if Rossi had anything left to offer by way of a challenge.

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