Alex Asigno

James Stewart successfully erased the painful memory of his DNF in Los Angeles last week and ruled the second round of seventeen in the 2009 AMA Supercross series (also an FIM World Championship) in Phoenix on Saturday.  The 23 year old gained the lead on his San Manuel LandM YZ450F Yamaha before the end of the opening lap after overtaking rookie winner and brand-mate Josh Grant, who had aced the holeshot at Chase Field. Stewart then worked hard to defend his advantage from reigning champion Chad Reed to obtain his first chequered flag in blue colours, watched by almost 47,000 spectators.  "My goal was to try to win the race and I was able to do that, so it was good," he said. "I just wanted to ride better than I did last week."  "It is nerve-wracking but at the same time, I just had to be composed and ride in my own head," he commented regarding his close duel with Reed. "That's the only way I can get it done. Obviously he was riding good; he had better parts than I did, and I had better parts than he did. The crowd was going wild and I knew when he would get close."  It was the third consecutive triumph for Stewart in Phoenix and the perfect response to his mishap seven days earlier in which he missed a gear exiting a corner and was involved in a collision with Reed.  "There is still a long way to go and a lot of work to do," he said. "If we just think about each weekend and I win races then eventually the points will come. The championship is definitely not going to be given to me and I know I have to work for it. After last weekend, having the bobble that I had, I don't think it was anybody's fault, but I do think I put myself in a small hole and I have to dig myself out."  Grant collected third position for his second podium result in a row and after just two race appearances in the Supercross class. The youngster leads the championship by three points over Reed, with Stewart now starting to make ground and stands seventh. "As long as my starts continue to be this good, I should be fine. I had fun racing with the guys up there, and I can't thank the guys at Joe Gibbs Racing Yamaha enough for what they've done for me," Grant said.  West Coast Lites champion Jason Lawrence had a crash in his qualifying Heat and could not make the cut to the main event.  Round three takes place next week and heads back to the Anaheim stadium in LA.   Race 1 - 20 Laps                Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  1, James Stewart, Yamaha, USA, 17'37.908 2, Chad Reed, Suzuki, AUS, 0'0.591 3, Josh Grant, Yamaha, USA, 0'28.232 4, Ivan Tedesco, Honda, USA, 0'35.193 5, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 0'41.241 6, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 0'55.127 7, Ryan Villopoto, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 8, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, -1 Laps 9, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 10, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 11, Mike Alessi, Suzuki, USA, -1 Laps 12, Charles Summey, KTM, USA, -1 Laps 13, Paul Carpenter, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 14, Travis Preston, KTM, USA, -1 Laps 15, Nicholas Wey, Yamaha, USA, -1 Laps 16, Robert Kiniry, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 17, Josh Hansen, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 18, Daniel Blair, Honda, USA, -2 Laps 19, Troy Adams, Honda, USA, -2 Laps 20, Matt Boni, Honda, USA, -8 Laps   Rider Standings 10/01/2009  Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Josh Grant, Yamaha, USA, 45 2, Chad Reed, Suzuki, AUS, 42 3, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 38 4, Ivan Tedesco, Honda, USA, 33 5, Ryan Villopoto, Kawasaki, USA, 30 6, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, 30 7, James Stewart, Yamaha, USA, 27 8, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 21 9, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, 20 10, Mike Alessi, Suzuki, USA, 20 11, Paul Carpenter, Kawasaki, USA, 19 12, Nicholas Wey, Yamaha, USA, 18 13, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, 18 14, Heath Voss, Honda, USA, 14 15, Benjamin Coisy, Honda, FRA, 13    Manufacturer Standings 10/01/2009  Pos., Manufacturer, Points  1, Yamaha, 50 2, Suzuki, 42 3, Honda, 40 4, Kawasaki, 32 5, KTM, 10

Yamaha continued their streak of victories in the AMA Supercross Championship (also an FIM World Championship) as Joe Gibbs RacingTeam's Josh Grant surprisingly took his YZ450F to first place at the opening round of seventeen in the 2009 campaign at Anaheim in Los Angeles last Saturday. 2008 champion Chad Reed clinched the last race of 2008 and Grant beat both the Australian, and pre-event favourite - and new Yamaha recruit - James Stewart to the chequered flag.  It was a dramatic first AMA outing for Stewart as part of the title-winning L and M San Manuel squad. In front of a bumper collective of 42,309 spectators, the 23 year old took the holeshot in the main event and pull away from the pack with Reed in pursuit. The pair swapped the lead before a collision caused both to hit the dirt. Stewart's bike was hit by the pursuing Kevin Windham and he was unable to restart, pulling out of the sprint after just six laps.  Grant was running in third position prior to the Stewart-Reed incident and fronted the pack for the rest of the race for a sensational debut result in his first meeting in the Supercross category since joining Yamaha during the winter.  "I just kept plugging away and I didn't even look at the board or the laptimes or how many laps were left. I just kept going and when it felt like halfway I looked up and it said '18 laps' and I was like, 'Thank God!' said the young Californian, who had to nurse his machine across the line after catching a trackside banner in his rear wheel with two laps remaining. 'I'm just so pumped, and I didn't want to take too many chances with the banner in the wheel, so I just kept riding and it came through.'  After winning the US Open in Las Vegas and then at Paris, Bercy, it was a disappointing night for Stewart who classified 19th after his retirement.  'I got the holeshot and uncharacteristically I let him (Reed) go by. I was making a few mistakes in the beginning and I wasn't really comfortable yet. He ended up getting by me and actually pulled away,' he said. 'I found my rhythm and came back up and he might have started fading a little bit - I don't know what he was doing - but I went past him pretty quick and then I came into that corner and I missed a shift. Once I clicked back in, all I know is - just like Toronto in 2006 - I was getting hit from the rear. He took me out and I was down and out, and couldn't start my bike again.'  In the Lites category reigning champion Jason Lawrence recovered from his involvement in a first lap pile-up to guide his YZ250F to 4th place.  Round two will take place next Saturday at Chase Field in Phoenix.   Race 1 - 20 Laps                Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  1, Josh Grant, Yamaha, USA, 22'4.768 2, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 0'6.718 3, Chad Reed, Suzuki, AUS, 0'10.433 4, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, 0'19.648 5, Ryan Villopoto, Kawasaki, USA, 0'22.814 6, Ivan Tedesco, Honda, USA, 0'26.118 7, Heath Voss, Honda, USA, 0'39.522 8, Benjamin Coisy, Honda, FRA, 0'43.099 9, Nicholas Wey, Yamaha, USA, 0'48.068 10, Paul Carpenter, Kawasaki, USA, 0'49.372 11, Mike Alessi, Suzuki, USA, 0'57.609 12, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, 0'58.348 13, Cole Siebler, Honda, USA, 1'13.225 14, Matt Boni, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 15, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, -1 Laps 16, Josh Hill, Yamaha, USA, -1 Laps 17, Steve Boniface, Honda, FRA, -1 Laps 18, Robert Kiniry, Kawasaki, USA, -1 Laps 19, James Stewart, Yamaha, USA, -14 Laps 20, Charles Summey, KTM, USA, -14 Laps   Rider Standings 03/01/2009  Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Josh Grant, Yamaha, USA, 25 2, Andrew Short, Honda, USA, 22 3, Chad Reed, Suzuki, AUS, 20 4, Tim Ferry, Kawasaki, USA, 18 5, Ryan Villopoto, Kawasaki, USA, 16 6, Ivan Tedesco, Honda, USA, 15 7, Heath Voss, Honda, USA, 14 8, Benjamin Coisy, Honda, FRA, 13 9, Nicholas Wey, Yamaha, USA, 12 10, Paul Carpenter, Kawasaki, USA, 11 11, Mike Alessi, Suzuki, USA, 10 12, David D Millsaps, Honda, USA, 9 13, Cole Siebler, Honda, USA, 8 14, Matt Boni, Honda, USA, 7 15, Kevin Windham, Honda, USA, 6 19, James Stewart, Yamaha, USA, 2    Manufacturer Standings 03/01/2009  Pos., Manufacturer, Points  1, Yamaha, 25 2, Honda, 22 3, Suzuki, 20 4, Kawasaki, 18 5, KTM, 1

2009 Yamaha Motor Italia Superbike riders Ben Spies and Tom Sykes have endured some serious heat on their three day test in Kyalami. The young riders have endured track temperatures approaching 50 degrees as they put the all-new-for-2009 Yamaha YZF-R1 through its paces on only its second outing on track.  Spies was second quickest on day one with an impressive best lap time of 1'41"599(46 laps) in the African sunshine. Team mate Tom Sykes was struck down with a mysterious bug, and he only managed to put in some laps prior to returning to the hotel.  Day two saw Spies fall in testing, so missing the final time on track, he still managed to improve on his day one times, finishing the day with a best lap of 1’41”049 (38 laps). Sykes managed to improve dramatically on day two with a best time of 1’42”933 (18 laps).  The final day saw Spies pull in his fastest time of the test, taking second fastest honours overall and only a mere 0.2s behind Michele Fabrizio and beating Noriyuki Haga to the second spot,making him one of only three riders to break the 1.40 barrier with a time of 1.39”978. Tom Sykes was getting back on form until an unfortunate crash curtailed his testing for the day, he again improved on his times in the limited laps run with a 1.41”562. The re-entered Aprilia squad took 8th and 9th and the new for 2009 BMW factory team finished 11th and 13th.  The new 998cc bike, featuring a high tech powerplant closely linked to the M1 MOTOGP bike, is currently at the very beginning of its development for the 2009 WSB season and is still relatively close to production specifications. The M1-derived crossplane crankshaft design and uneven firing interval, give very good traction to the bike and improved tyre life. The new chassis gives an unparallel feedback to the riders, improving stability and feeling out of corners. The WSB spec engine is being developed step by step, improving power output at each stage in the run up to the first race in 2009.  So far the team’s minor modifications to the standard bike include a modified cam-shaft, an enlarged radiator for extra cooling and the addition of an oil cooler. The new bike has no rear sub-frame but incorporates a strengthened frame. The exhaust is unique, and was developed in partnership with Akrapovic. The standard fuel tank has also been replaced with an aluminium tank with increased capacity. The bike features the latest Magneti Marelli electronic systems. The new swing arm is also developed purely for the WSB race bike based on knowledge taken from the 2008 racing season.  Since Portimao the team have changed the seating position slightly for both riders and taken the engine one step further in tuning.  Ben Spies “I’m really happy with the bike, the team and the progress we’re making,” Spies continued. “This was the first time we had the opportunity to go out and size ourselves up against everyone in a major test. We’re ahead of where we thought we’d be at this point. There are two more test sessions this winter and I expect the bike will continue to improve as we move towards the season opener at Phillip Island in March. The fan support here is pretty amazing. It was a good week to get to know some of the other riders too. I had a lot of them come up and shake my hand and welcome me to the series. Max Biaggi came up and talked with me for awhile. That was pretty awesome for me. I’ve been a fan of Max since I was a kid. In AMA there might be two or three guys in testing who get down to business from start to finish,” Spies admitted. “There’s no lollygagging here. No one’s going around doing wheelies the length of the straightaway. Everyone pushes hard here all the time. The competition is going to be good for sure.”  Tom Sykes - “It’s been a tough test! I missed one and half days through this bug I’ve had so was a long way behind with laps. When I got out I still managed to get some good laps in and the team were brilliant, they improved the bike massively every time I came in. I’ve got a very sore shoulder from falling today but it’s nothing serious.”  Massimo Meregalli Yamaha Motor Italia Team Manager - “In the end we tested almost everything while we were out here, tyres, different suspension set ups, different mappings and so on. We’ve found some good set ups to take forward to the next test. We’ve been waiting out for the evenings here for the temperature to drop so we could get back out on the track and try some new things.Both Tom and Ben have performed really well, it’s been really unfortunate that Tom has been held back by things out of his control. We’re still very much running in the new bike, this is only the second session since Portimao. All in all we are very satisfied, we know what our potential is and we are very happy.”  The Yamaha Motor Italia Team move on to their next test in Portimao on 23 to 25th January 2009.

Yamaha rider and one of the leading figures in Women’s World Championship motocross, Katherine Prumm, was given good cause for optimism after a seven hour operation to repair three broken vertebrae was successful earlier this week.  The 20 year old New Zealander is now facing a six month period of recuperation and rehabilitation.  Prumm damaged her T6, T9 and T12 in a practice crash last week and the subsequent surgical procedure involved reparation through her back and extensive work to fix the tendons surrounding the troublesome and most seriously affected area around the T12. Prumm has full feeling and use of her legs and can look ahead to recovery after being fitted with a custom-made brace for her torso that must be worn for three months.  After the shock of the accident and the aftermath – in which she briefly lost sensation in her limbs – the post-op news and perspective at last provided some much needed hope for the racer. ‘Somebody was watching over me, I was really lucky not to be paralysed and I am looking forward to getting fit and strong and to being back where I want to be,’ she said.

The Yamaha Gariboldi Racing Team will be making a credible push for the 2009 European Motocross Championship and therefore helping to strengthen the future of Yamaha’s off-road racing programme.  With the age limit of 23 years coming into force for the 2010 FIM MX2-GP Motocross World Championship, a shrewd view to the new generation of competitive talent has become a even higher priority for Yamaha and their aim in continuing a distinguished line of success at the top of the motocross ladder. The Italian Gariboldi set-up will be fielding a multi-national roster of four riders, all supported with YZ250F YRRD (Yamaha Rinaldi Research and Development, a partnership between Yamaha Motor Europe and the Rinaldi Group) kitted machinery and taking the advice and tutelage of Yamaha’s 2007 MX3 World Champion Yves Demaria.  Slovenian Klemen Gercar (18 years old and European Junior Champion in 2007) won a moto and finished second in two races during the 2008 campaign while Spaniard Jose Antonio Butron (17 years old and Spanish Junior champion in 2007) also took notable results by winning the Spanish round and taking a further four top three moto finishes. The duo will be joined by two new French riders for 2009 with Christophe Charlier (17, 2007 French Supercross champion) who was 8th overall in the ’08 European championship, racing alongside national junior champion Mathias Bellino (17 years old).  Charlier and Butron both qualified for world championship events in 2008 while Gercar actually scored an impressive 6 points for 15th position at Faenza in Italy for the final meeting of the series.  “We are delighted to have these 4 youngsters for 2009, we have big hopes for them and we believe they are quite special,” remarked Team Manager Giacomo Gariboldi. “They have been selected together with the co-operation of Yamaha Motor Europe and the Rinaldi group and for us it's really great to launch this new program with them and try to shape new champions starting from the European Championship, which is becoming more and more like a MX2-GP feeder class. The top six riders can easily take points in a GP; signifying how competitive it is right now.”  “With the age restriction coming into place it's very important to nurture young riders and have them ready in time to compete at top level in the world championship and this is the goal for the team,” he added.

Double Women’s World Cup winner Katherine Prumm will undergo surgery in the coming days after a practice crash in her native New Zealand left the 20 year old with several broken vertebrae.  The YZ250F rider, who led the 2008 FIM Women’s World Championship before her season was curtailed by a broken collarbone, over-jumped a triple step-down and in the ensuing tumble caused damage to her spine with the T6, T9 and T12 most affected.  Prumm who was training in preparation for attempts at the 2009 title as well as national success both in New Zealand and Australia was naturally shell-shocked with the injury set-back. Until the exact date and nature of surgery is known the duration and form of rehabilitation is difficult to determine.  A further update will be issued next week.

After eight intense hours around the impressive Losail circuit in the Qatari desert the YZF-R1 claimed all three podium spots in the final round of six in the Endurance FIM World Championship. Yamaha Austria Racing Team, represented by Igor Jerman, Steve Plater and Steve Martin finished ahead of Yamaha Folch Endurance and Maco Moto Racing.  For Jerman and Martin it was a case of sweet revenge after narrowly missing out on victory in Losail twelve months previously. Their triumph, together with Plater on this occasion, gave YART their first set of winner’s garlands in 2008 and confirmed their vice-champion standing in the ‘08 competition.  The team ended the meeting three laps ahead of Folch Endurance; the Spanish duo of Daniel Ribalta and Pedro Vallcaneras losing precious time to a rear wheel problem. The crew were nevertheless pleased to end their first season at world level with a decent third place overall in the championship.  Small problems impeded the progress of Maco Moto Racing but Jason Pridmore and Thomas Hinterreiter were joined by WSB runner Jakub Smrz for a final and memorable podium placing with the R1.  The Qatar event represented the third consecutive podium finish for YART as they took 2nd position at Oschersleben in August and 3rd spot at the Bol d'Or in France in September.

San Manuel Yamaha rider James Stewart continued a perfect start to his career in ‘blue’ by taking his YZ450F to a dominant streak of victories at the 26th Bercy Supercross in Paris. The 22 year old AMA Motocross Champion owned all three nights in the French capital to become ‘King of Bercy’ at his first attempt.  The prestigious European Supercross meeting saw a Yamaha upon the top step of the podium for the second year in succession as Stewart followed in the footsteps of Chad Reed and swept away from the pack in every race that he started. Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings all belonged to the American in what was just his second meeting on the YZ450F after ruling the lucrative US Open in Las Vegas last month.  “That was an awesome experience, it was like the Motocross of Nations but louder!” he said. “I was a bit shocked to see my times in practice so I knew I had good speed. The track is pretty simple but quite good. There are only a couple of places where you can make time and I took advantage of that.”  “We did another week of testing after US Open and I feel good and the team is working well,” he continued. “I think we will make some improvements but I have to say that although the bike is different to what I had before it is way better. I feel really good on the turns and very relaxed; my corner speed has got faster on the Yamaha. It is an exciting time.”  “I feel really comfortable around the team,” he added. “They want the same as me; to win. This is the first year I have been able to do this race and it was because we all wanted to come. Now we head back to the US. The SX championship is my goal for 2009 and I believe we can do it.”  It has been a busy time for Stewart who helped Team USA to triumph in the 62nd Motocross of Nations in the UK before travelling home and launching his new team and then winning his maiden Yamaha appearance in Vegas. Stewart revealed that he is planning yet more transatlantic trips after the 18 race AMA and FIM World Championship SX series has ended on May 2nd in Nevada. His next event will be the opening race at Anaheim in Los Angeles on January 3rd.  “I plan to be back in Europe before the Nations, maybe some GPs, I don’t know. If I keep on getting police escorts from the airport then I will be back all the time!” he commented, referring to his VIP treatment from organisers in Paris.  In other news Yamaha Red Bull De Carli rider Matteo Bonini scored another podium result with his YZ250F in the European SX Championship in Milan. The Italian is now up to third in the competition and 15 points behind leader Benjamin Coisy with just one round remaining, in Genoa on November 22nd.  "I had to miss the first two rounds of this championship because of commitments to the European Motocross of Nations and it is a bit of a shame because I really would have been pushing for the title,” he said. “However we go to Genoa next and I would love to win there. I had some good speed in Milan but the race was totally determined by the start and I did not get the best launches.”

There was an extra guest amongst the media journalists present for the 2008 Factory Media Test at the Parkalgar circuit in Portimao last Monday. Former Formula One star and seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher was invited to put on his leathers and join the invited journalists testing out the 2008 Yamaha WSB YZF-R1 machines of Noriyuki Haga and Troy Corser at the all new Portugese circuit.  Schumacher is no stranger to superbikes having completed his first year in the German Superbike Championship (IDM). He spent the morning lapping the circuit on Haga’s bike before switching to Corser’s for a comparison run. Whilst the session’s where not timed it was clear the F1 driving instincts had transferred well to bikes as he showed respectable pace and clean racing lines through the complicated and technical track.  The Yamaha Motor Italia Team were very impressed with his technical communication as he came in to debrief. His ability to communicate the feedback from the bike to help modify his personal set up was reported to be excellent. He also showed a keen understanding of the individual bike components and their effects on the ride. He was then able to make small changes with the crew to develop and improve his feel for the bikes through the session . The team were delighted to have him ride withthem.

2009 Yamaha WSB riders Ben Spies and Tom Sykes enjoyed a successful two day test at Portimao with their new team. The riders used the time to develop both their relationships with their new team and also to make a start on the development of the all-new 2009 Yamaha YZF-R1 race bike. Day one of testing was spent mostly riding the 2008 WSB machines, giving both riders the opportunity to learn the highly technical Portimao circuit which opened for the first time last weekend for the last round of the 2008 World Superbike Championship. Day two saw the riders lapping on the all-new for 2009 Yamaha WSB R1. The new 998cc bike, featuring a high tech powerplant closely linked to the M1 MOTOGP bike, is currently at the very beginning of its development for the 2009 WSB season and is still relatively close to production specifications. However with the 2009 production R1 crossplane crankshaft engine and a unique uneven firing order giving linear torque and greater traction rider Ben Spies was able to come within two tenths of the race lap record set by Troy Bayliss during the inaugural race weekend two days previously.In a validation of the team’s belief in the potential of the new bike both riders put in fast lap times, Ben Spies lapping consistently in the low 1.44s on the second day. The Yamaha WSB team now move on to South Africa for the second test to take the next steps in the development of the bike. So far the team’s minor modifications to the standard bike include a modified cam-shaft, an enlarged radiator for extra cooling and the addition of an oil cooler. The new bike has no rear sub-frame but incorporates a strengthened frame. The exhaust is unique, and was developed in partnership with Akrapovic. The standard fuel tank has also been replaced with an aluminium tank with increased capacity. The bike features the latest Magneti Marelli electronic systems. The new swing arm is also developed purely for the WSB race bike based on knowledge taken from the 2008 racing season. Ben Spies (1’43.9) “The whole Superbike weekend has been great for me.Having my own crew chief here from the US joining the teamis good, he really understands me and it’s great to see him working well with the Yamaha Motor Italia Technical Chief Silvano Galbusera. Getting out on Nori’s bike we made a couple of changes and got going, it answered a lot of questions for me on the different tyre manufacturer and riding new circuits.The 2009 bike is at the beginning of its development, but for where it’s at now compared to where we will be when we line up at Philip Island it’s hugely exciting. The team worked really hard on the bike this weekend and it’s just going to get better and better. I’m really looking forward to next year.” Tom Sykes (1’44.5) “For me it’s been a very good test. Having done two days I now feel fully part of the team. It was quite difficult arriving on Tuesday morning for the 1st day of the test, facing a new bike, a new circuit, and a new team. It was important to me to get it right from the start. We are developing well together and we have a good understanding. I was very happy with my time on the 2008 bike, and happy with a good race pace.For the 2009 bike, considering it’s at a very early stage of development, I think it’s a fantastic package.The feeling coming out of the corner is unbelievably smooth, the power is so controllable, the whole bike remains incredibly stable. There is still lots to be done but the outcome is already very good. All in all it was a great weekend for me, I was really happy to get started and learning, getting on with the new team and feeling part of it.” Yamaha Motor Italia Team Manager Massimo Meregalli said, “As a first test, I think it went very well. We didn’t have any problems and both riders did a very good job. The test gave us a very good feeling because the bike is very good now and we know how we can improve it even more, there is still a big gap to where we can get to, so we are just very happy. Everything went very well with the riders and the team, there’s no better way to end a test for us, we are very excited about the next stage.”

blank_page2008 Grand Prix of Ireland winner Tanel Leok will line-up alongside former double MX2 World Champion Antonio Cairoli as the Yamaha Red Bull De Carli team switch their emphasis to the premier MX1-GP world championship for 2009. The 23 year old Estonian has been drafted into the formidable Italian set-up and will have his first taste of the ’08 title-winning machine the YZ450F during winter tests. Leok first came to prominence at the start of the century by winning Junior World Championships with 80cc and 125cc machinery. He was then fast-tracked into Grand Prix racing during 2002 and 2003. He suffered with injury during his apprenticeship but upon moving to the MX1-GP division in 2004 on a privateer 250cc two-stroke he began to shine, taking a handful of top ten and top five positions against factory opposition. His aggressive and relentless style forged a speed that was never far from placing him among the protagonists in the following seasons as he developed four-stroke technology as a works rider, gaining his first podiums in 2006. Renowned for his pace in qualification (he obtained the most pole positions in 2007) Leok was a protagonist in 2008 and dazzled his rivals in Dublin to earn his maiden GP victory. He now steps onto a Yamaha for the first time in his grand prix career.  “This is a great opportunity for me, the team looks really impressive and I am looking forward to getting started,” said Leok, who became a new father earlier this year. “They have a workshop in Belgium which means I can still be based there but doing things like the Italian championship and testing in southern Europe will be a new adventure.” On the prospect of linking up with Cairoli: “He is a really good rider and it is positive to be able to work with someone like that,” “The YZ450F will be a new experience but the record of the motorcycle speaks for itself,” Leok, who will contest the MX1 Italian championship won this year by Cairoli, added. “There will be new surroundings for me but I still want to be top five in the championship and hopefully top three; that is what I am working for and I know I have the speed.” “I have been following the professional career of Tanel for many years, although he’s still so young!” commented Team Principal Claudio De Carli. “I have always appreciated his speed, his talent, and also is character, so quiet and positive. Thanks to the great support from Red Bull, Yamaha, and all the other sponsors; my team is entering in the MX1 class with the best effort to be competitive.” “With Tanel joining Tony and together with our factory team Yamaha will have a very strong presence in the 2009 MX1-GP world championship,” remarked Yamaha Motor Europe’s Racing Division Manager Laurens Klein Koerkamp. “This year we were delighted to win the world championship and reclaim our crown and you only have to look at the talent we have for next season with David, Josh, Tony moving up and now Tanel to realise that we are firmly aiming to be protagonists once again. Full credit to Claudio, he has a very talented and determined pair of riders to enter the class next year and we look forward to seeing what they can do.”

Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd and Fiat Automobiles Spa have concluded an agreement to continue their partnership for a further two years.  The agreement will see Fiat continue as the title sponsor of Yamaha’s Factory MotoGP Team, which will continue to be known as the Fiat Yamaha Team, for 2009 and 2010.  Fiat joined Yamaha at the start of 2007 and their partnership has been a successful one with 14 grand prix wins to date, culminating in the capture of the 2008 Rider, Team and Manufacturer titles. 2009 will see the same team with Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo contesting the championship for the Fiat Yamaha Team.  “I heartily welcome the extension of the agreement with Fiat as title sponsor of our MotoGP Factory Team for another two years” said Masao Furusawa, Executive Officer Engineering Operations of Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. “We will be working to continue the great partnership that resulted in the Fiat Yamaha Team winning the triple crown in 2008”.  Lin Jarvis, Managing Director of Yamaha Motor Racing Srl, commented, “We are delighted to be continuing our partnership with Fiat for a further two years. It remains a very interesting mix for an Italian car manufacturer to be partner of a Japanese motorcycle manufacturer in the world’s premier motorcycle racing series.  "After a tough first season in 2007 we were really happy to win the triple crown titles this year for Yamaha and for Fiat.  "Fiat’s decision to continue for a further two years is a sign of confidence in our activities and a strong confirmation of the value of being involved in the MotoGP championship. Our target for the future is clear: we want to continue with our winning ways and provide even more excitement for the fans of the Fiat Yamaha Team”.

Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) finished the 2008 WSB season second in the championship standings after securing a podium finish in the first race at Portimao, then following that up with a safe sixth in race two.  The all Yamaha battle for the runner-up spot behind champion Troy Bayliss saw Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) drop out of contention after serving a ride-through penalty for jump-starting in race two, having already been forced out of race one. Both races were won by three-time champion, Troy Bayliss.  In the first 22-lap race Corser was in the leading mix from the start and rode aggressively in the messy early laps to stay in contention, but could not quite get back on terms with second place rider Carlos Checa towards the end. Haga was also looking good for a podium finish until he was forced out on lap 18, having started to slow on lap 16.  Race two put Corser in with the leaders again for some time but he eased up when he realised that overall second place was safe, particularly in a race filled with determined wild cards. Each race was run in the dry, but on a relatively slippery track surface, which was still recovering from a largely wet first two days of action.  Haga was looking good for a strong result in race two until he had to pull in for his penalty, but he recovered to post a 14th place finish and score two championship points. He was thus 15 points behind Corser after 28 individual races, and third overall.  Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) went 13th in race one, but 17th in race two. He ended his last WSB season 19th, top Yamaha rider behind Corser and Haga.  David Checa (Yamaha GMT94) and Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha GMT94) finished the season on 12 points apiece, as neither scored at Portimao.  Troy Corser (3rd and 6th - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "All I had to do in race two was finish near Nori and that was all I was doing. Once he went out, all I had to do was stay consistent and not crash. We all worked so hard to get to second this season I was not prepared to take too many risks. The bike was actually better in race one than the second, as we had good front grip then. We changed the bike and had less grip in the rear, so I had to modify the way I was riding completely. Finishing second in the points means more than trying to finish on the podium in race two and risk crashing. Second is better than third and both of those finishes are better than nothing. The action was scary sometimes today and it can be like that when the tracks have a lot of undulations. The asphalt was pretty slippery in some places because of all the rain and mud washed on it during practice."  Noriyuki Haga (DNF and 14th - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "In race two they said I jump started and for sure I moved a bit, but before the lights changed I stopped again. Overall, in the first race we had a problem and I had to pull out. But I had the chance to do a bit of work on the suspension setting for race two, and we went one step harder on the rear tyre too. It worked better but we still had some chatter. We lost a lot of practice time, unfortunately, because of the rain. Our pace in race two was much better. I have to say thank you very much to all the Yamaha staff for the past four years, it has been very enjoyable and we have had many great days. I wanted to get a victory for them but that was the most I could do today." Massimo Meregalli (Team Manager, Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "Today's overall results are so-so but in the championship we finished second and third and most importantly, we had the top four-cylinder riders. We had some good and some not so good results this year but still very positive, because nobody else made the same. We had seven wins, a lot of podiums from both riders, sometimes in the same race. As a team we did a really good job. Thanks to everyone in the squad for this year, to Yamaha and for all the support from our sponsors and fans."  Shinichi Nakatomi (13th and 17th - Team YZF Yamaha) "In the first race I lost some grip from the rear tyre and in the second race I got a bad start but tried to progress. Thanks to the team for three years of competition in WSB."   Race 1                Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 38'48.373 2, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 0'2.207 3, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0'6.972 4, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 0'15.228 5, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 0'16.126 6, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 0'18.152 7, Leon Haslam, Honda, GBR, 0'18.939 8, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, JPN, 0'20.942 9, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 0'32.018 10, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'32.871 11, Ayrton Badovini, Kawasaki, ITA, 0'36.778 12, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0'36.848 13, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0'41.667 14, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0'41.806 15, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 0'48.337 16, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 0'50.295 17, Chris Walker, Honda, GBR, 0'50.840 18, Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, JPN, 1'5.928 19, Makoto Tamada, Kawasaki, JPN, 1'6.813 20, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 1'7.007 21, Luis Carreira, Suzuki, POR, 1'48.681  Race 2                Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 38'26.125 2, Michel Fabrizio, Ducati, ITA, 0'3.638 3, Leon Haslam, Honda, GBR, 0'4.356 4, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 0'4.983 5, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 0'6.775 6, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0'7.403 7, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 0'7.578 8, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 0'16.113 9, Cal Crutchlow, Honda, GBR, 0'16.284 10, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'16.446 11, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, JPN, 0'21.633 12, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 0'22.098 13, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 0'24.089 14, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 0'24.117 15, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 0'31.003 16, Ayrton Badovini, Kawasaki, ITA, 0'31.136 17, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0'31.330 18, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0'32.272 19, Chris Walker, Honda, GBR, 0'34.049 20, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 0'35.028 21, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0'41.669 22, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 0'44.889 23, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 0'47.366 24, Makoto Tamada, Kawasaki, JPN, 0'48.733 25, Thomas Bridewell, Suzuki, GBR, 1'7.702 26, Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, JPN, 1'14.242 27, Luca Scassa, Honda, ITA, 1'34.781   Best Lap  Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 1'43.340  Rider Standings 02/11/2008  Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 460 2, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 342 3, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 327 4, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 313 5, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 311 6, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 256 7, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 238 8, Michel Fabrizio, Ducati, ITA, 223 9, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, JPN, 206 10, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 178 11, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 154 12, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 135 13, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 117 14, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 109 15, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 77 19, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 51 28, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 12 29, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 12    Manufacturer Standings 02/11/2008  Pos., Manufacturer, Points  1, Ducati, 570 2, Yamaha, 487 3, Honda, 415 4, Suzuki, 408 5, Kawasaki, 94 ---------- RACE REPORT - 02/11/2008  Parkes fifth after tough fight at new circuit  After running in the leading pack for some of the 20-lap race at Portimao Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport Team) could not stay in contention for the podium and finished fifth.  The Australian rider had been slowed by a crash which happened right in front of him and after that he was unable to catch the leading group again and slowly dropped back as his tyres lost optimum grip. He held off a late challenge to finish in the top five and end his season fourth overall, on 150 points, with one win to his credit.  Fabien Foret (Yamaha World Supersport Team) could not get into contention after starting 16th on the grid and despite finishing tenth, he was disappointed by his final raceday of the 2008 season. He also scored a single win in the championship chase this year, and despite missing four races through injury, he was sixth overall, on 111 points.  Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) crashed out of contention on lap five, remounted, but eventually retired in the pits, ending his season in overall 12th place. David Salom (Yamaha Spain World Supersport) only just missed out on a point for 16th place today.  Broc Parkes (5th - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "I really wanted to win the last one for Yamaha and I tried my best. I got caught up with the crash of Veneman and got separated from the front bunch. Once I had lost them, I basically had to keep my position. At the end I was losing some time when I started losing rear grip, and I had to work hard to keep Nannelli behind me, but I beat him to the line. I gave it my best."  Fabien Foret (10th - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "The track was very challenging in the dry over the full race and to be honest I was not expecting a great result after qualifying. I wanted to ride, find some feeling from the bike and have fun but it was not so easy. I am not happy with how the set-up was. I am just happy that this season is now over and I can start working to 2009 now."  Wilco Zeelenberg (Team Manager, Yamaha World Supersport Team) "A very disappointing race of course for us, rear tyre grip dropped quite dramatically and Broc couldn't do anything to keep up with the first three. It was the same story for Fabien, we saw that the rear tyre is really bad at the moment, for our bike especially. Qualifying was ok, but after eight or nine laps the tyre went off very hard, we've not had that so bad this year."  Massimo Roccoli (DNF - Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) "It was very disappointing not to finish and it has not been the happiest experience this weekend, especially at this new circuit. I lost the front end and tried to continue after but it was not possible. The gear linkage was too badly broken and I would have got no points."   Race 1                Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  1, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 35'39.851 2, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 0'3.844 3, Joan Lascorz, Honda, ESP, 0'7.403 4, Josh Hayes, Honda, USA, 0'7.445 5, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 0'17.271 6, Gianluca Nannelli, Honda, ITA, 0'17.297 7, Simone Sanna, Honda, ITA, 0'25.803 8, Gianluca Vizziello, Honda, ITA, 0'29.749 9, Mark Aitchison, Triumph, AUS, 0'29.960 10, Fabien Foret, Yamaha, FRA, 0'30.155 11, Joshua Brookes, Honda, AUS, 0'30.697 12, Miguel Praia, Honda, POR, 0'30.719 13, Garry McCoy, Triumph, AUS, 0'40.033 14, Russell Holland, Honda, AUS, 0'40.839 15, Didier Van Keymeulen, Suzuki, BEL, 0'44.266 16, David Salom, Yamaha, ESP, 0'45.672 17, Jesco Gunther, Triumph, GER, 0'46.765 19, Balazs Nemeth, Honda, HUN, 0'51.626 20, Patrick Vostarek, Honda, ITA, 0'57.092 21, Ivan Clementi, Triumph, ITA, 0'57.584 22, Katsuaki Fujiwara, Kawasaki, JPN, 1'4.848 23, Santiago Barragan, Honda, ESP, 1'26.940 24, Chris Martin, Kawasaki, GBR, 1'27.010   Best Lap  Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 1'45.156  Rider Standings 02/11/2008  Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 214 2, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 164 3, Joshua Brookes, Honda, AUS, 162 4, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 150 5, Joan Lascorz, Honda, ESP, 121 6, Fabien Foret, Yamaha, FRA, 111 7, Craig Jones, Honda, GBR, 100 8, Barry Veneman, Suzuki, NED, 92 9, Gianluca Nannelli, Honda, ITA, 79 10, Robbin Harms, Honda, DNK, 71 11, Gianluca Vizziello, Honda, ITA, 60 12, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 58 13, Matthieu Lagrive, Honda, FRA, 56 14, Didier Van Keymeulen, Suzuki, BEL, 39 15, Chris Walker, Kawasaki, GBR, 36 30, David Salom, Yamaha, ESP, 9    Manufacturer Standings 02/11/2008  Pos., Manufacturer, Points  1, Honda, 315 2, Yamaha, 203 3, Suzuki, 102 4, Triumph, 77 5, Kawasaki, 46 ---------- RACE REPORT - 02/11/2008  Pirro fourth in Portugal and fifth overall  Michele Pirro (Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni) rode to within less than a second of a podium position at Portimao and in earning 13 points he finished fifth in the championship rankings, the top YZF-R1 rider on show. Pirro also set the new best lap in practice, a 1'48.466.  Claudio Corti (Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team) was eighth today, having started on the sixth row, and battling through the pack for the after a couple of early problems.  In the final rankings, Brendan Roberts was champion on 147, Maxime Berger second on 140 and Alessandro Polita third with 137.  Michelle Pirro (4th - Yamaha Motor Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) "I started the race with dry tyres and early on that was a bit of a problem because there was still some water around and I was sliding in some places. But it improved as the race went on and I made a good finish."  Claudio Corti (8th - Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team) "I went straight on under braking a couple of times but I rode very aggressively to recover and really enjoyed it today. I made up a lot of places and I think it was the best I could do today."  Baz and Rea battle it out as the Superstock finale sees a Yamaha 1-2-3 podium Gino Rea (Stonebaker Yamaha) and Loris Baz (Yamaha France Junior Team) ended up battling for the win in the ten lap Superstock 600 contest, and after a seriously combative final lap the English rider took the win, by a mere 0.060 seconds.  In third place, Marco Bussolotti (Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team) was also on a YZF-R6, three seconds off the win. In the final rankings, Baz has 186 points, Bussolotti 134 and Rea 132.  Loris Baz: "It was a very hard race and I ran off on the last lap and had to work really hard to bet back to Gino. I won the championship last time out and I wanted to win here to finish the season in the perfect way."   Race 1                Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  1, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 22'23.040 2, Chris Seaton, Suzuki, AUS, 0'2.995 3, Maxime Berger, Honda, FRA, 0'3.938 4, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 0'4.773 5, Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 0'17.166 6, Alessandro Polita, Ducati, ITA, 0'17.482 7, Sylvain Barrier, Yamaha, FRA, 0'19.452 8, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 0'19.878 9, Freddy Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 0'22.892 10, Barry Burrell, Honda, GBR, 0'23.050 11, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 0'31.698 13, Franck Millet, MV Agusta, ITA, 0'35.502 14, Filip Backlund, Suzuki, SWE, 0'37.798 15, Sheridan Morais, Kawasaki, RSA, 0'42.098 16, Kenny Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 0'45.953 17, Rene Mahr, KTM, GER, 1'0.432 18, Ondrej Jezek, Honda, CZE, 1'0.595 19, Marko Jerman, Yamaha, SVK, 1'2.708 20, Danny De Boer, Suzuki, NED, 1'4.134 21, Brank Srdanov, Yamaha, NED, 1'5.601 22, Gareth Jones, Suzuki, AUS, 1'12.642 23, Matt Bond, Suzuki, GBR, 1'12.690 24, Michael Savary, Suzuki, CHE, 1'12.821 25, Niccolo Rosso, Honda, ITA, 1'18.918 27, Michal Drobny, Honda, CZE, 1'24.144 28, Jure Stibilj, Honda, SVN, 1'26.189 29, Roy Ten Napel, Suzuki, NED, 1'28.272 30, Pauli Pekkanen, KTM, FIN, 1'28.903 31, Gregory Junod, Yamaha, CHE, 1'28.989 32, Tommaso Lorenzetti, Suzuki, ITA, 1'32.965   Best Lap  Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time  Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 1'48.466  Rider Standings 02/11/2008  Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 147 2, Maxime Berger, Honda, FRA, 140 3, Alessandro Polita, Ducati, ITA, 137 4, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 136 5, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 102 6, Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 84 7, Davide Giugliano, Suzuki, ITA, 72 8, Freddy Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 62 9, Chris Seaton, Suzuki, AUS, 60 10, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 57 11, Andrea Antonelli, Honda, ITA, 57 12, Barry Burrell, Honda, GBR, 39 13, Kenny Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 32 14, Michele Magnoni, Yamaha, ITA, 30 15, Domenico Colucci, Ducati, ITA, 26 16, Sylvain Barrier, Yamaha, FRA, 22    Manufacturer Standings 02/11/2008  Pos., Manufacturer, Points  1, Ducati, 195 2, Honda, 182 3, Suzuki, 166 4, Yamaha, 139 5, Kawasaki, 50 6, MV Agusta, 13 7, KTM, 2

Valentino Rossi brought the curtain down on a spectacular season with a third place in Valencia today, his 16th podium from 18 races in a year which saw him win his eighth world title. The 29-year-old Italian has taken nine wins, five seconds and two thirds this year, surpassing the all-time premier class win record and the record for the most points in a season in the process. His outstanding performances this season also helped the Fiat Yamaha Team to secure the Teams' title and Yamaha the Manufacturers' title. Rossi had struggled to find a good set-up for his M1 during yesterday's qualifying and he started from 10th on the grid. However some last-minute changes paid dividends and he was able to get a good start, climbing to seventh in the first lap and then making a characteristic charge through the field to move into third on lap six. Unfortunately from then on he was unable to make a dent in the gap to second-placed Dani Pedrosa and he had to settle for the final podium position, 12 seconds off winner Casey Stoner. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo secured the Rookie of the Year title with eighth place today, rounding off an eventful but impressive season for the 21-year-old. Both riders will be in action tomorrow as work for the 2009 season gets underway immediately with a two-day test at Valencia. Valentino Rossi - Position: 3rdTime: +12.194 "I don't think that was so bad today! Unfortunately we had some problems yesterday and that meant we had to start from the fourth row, which left us with a very difficult task. As always though we found a way and my team gave me a good bike, which meant I was able to get a great start and then have some fun passing people. Once I got to third there was no way to catch Dani and so it wasn't such an exciting race from then on. This has been an amazing season for us and to finish with another podium, the 16th, is great and we cannot complain. I am so happy with what we have done this year, as I said it's definitely one of my greatest championships and I want to thank everyone once again - Yamaha, my team, the engineers, Bridgestone and everyone who helped us to get this result. Tomorrow we will try the new bike which means we can't have as big a party as we would like, but it is important to try to find a base for it so I am looking forward to it." Davide Brivio - Team Manager "I think it would have been difficult to have done more than this today, because we were starting from the fourth row and the setting still wasn't perfect. Anyway it was a great end to the season and we scored another podium, making 16 in total, nine of the them wins. We have the triple crown and this all makes it a fantastic season. Thank you very much to Valentino first of all and then all the engineers in Japan, who have worked so hard, and to all the team members for this huge effort. Luckily we had a big party in Japan because tomorrow we start to think about 2009 and start to test, and it's going to be important to make the most of it and to give good information to the engineers about the new bike. But we will still have some celebrations tonight so let's all enjoy ourselves! Thanks again to everybody, it's been a wonderful season." Lorenzo secures Rookie Of The Year at season finale Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo took a deserved Rookie of the Year title by finishing eighth at Valencia today, his fourth position in the championship the highest finish for a premier-class newcomer since the advent of four-stroke MotoGP. The Spaniard's first season in MotoGP has seen him win a race and take a further five podiums and four pole positions, helping Yamaha to secure the Team and Manufacturers' titles to add to his team-mate Valentino Rossi's World Championship. After struggling for grip yesterday Lorenzo started from seventh on the grid and things got worse as the race got underway. He was unable to find a rhythm and slipped to11th until mid-race distance. From then on he began to improve and he was able to make up three places, finishing strongly to set the fastest lap of the race on the final lap. The team gets straight back to work tomorrow with the very first test of the 2009 season, during which Lorenzo will have his first chance to try the new prototype 2009 YZR-M1. Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 8thTime: +35.661 "I feel a bit disappointed with this result today because I really wanted to finish the season with a podium, but in the end we couldn't manage it here. We had some problems though so I have to be happy that I was able to finish the race strongly, passing people and doing my best lap of the race on the last lap, especially when you consider that yesterday in qualifying I was the slowest on race tyres! The best thing about today is that I am the leading rookie, so I get a trophy all the same and this makes me very proud of my first season in MotoGP with Yamaha. I want to thank all of my team, engineers and everyone who has helped us. I also have to say a special thank you to Michelin for their work this season because this is our last race with them. I am very proud that I was able to win my first MotoGP race with them. Tomorrow we begin straight away to work on the 2009 bike and I am very excited to try it." Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager "We expected to finish in a better position for this last race, but unfortunately the problem we had in qualifying persisted, although we were able to improve it somewhat from yesterday. Jorge was able to keep a good pace during the second half of the race and he was able to finish strongly and make his best lap on the very last lap. This has been a fantastic year for us because we were able to make four pole positions, win a race and take five more podiums, helping Yamaha to win the triple crown, and Jorge is the year's leading rookie. I want to thank Yamaha very much for the huge effort they made in order to give us such a competitive machine, and I also want to thank Michelin for their support - we wish them all the best for the future. Finally thanks to everyone in our team for doing a fantastic job all year and we look forward to coming back even stronger next year." Fantastic finale for Tech 3 Yamaha in Valencia claimed a superb fourth place in the Team World Championship standings in today's Valencia MotoGP race. The 15-point haul collected by Edwards and Toseland in today's 30-lap battle saw the Tech 3 squad seize fourth position by a single point from Suzuki's official factory team, ending the 18-round campaign as the highest placed independent team. American Edwards played a starring role in the success, his superb start from the second row of the grid giving him the perfect platform to mount a bid for his first top six finish since he took third in Assen back in June. Edwards quickly claimed third from Nicky Hayden on the first lap to settle in behind Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa. But with minimal dry set-up time after another weather-hit weekend, Edwards quickly encountered some rear grip issues to find himself back in sixth on lap six. He quickly adapted to the decreasing grip and crucially began to pull away from Suzuki's Loris Capirossi, maintaining a constant pace to the end. Toseland also played a critical role in today's fantastic finale as he closed his rookie campaign with a hard fought 11th position. The British rider shadowed fellow Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo for the opening fifteen laps in a close dice for 11th place, twice passing the Spaniard momentarily. Toseland also ran into grip issues in the closing stages, but he rode a brilliant final three laps to fend off Sylvain Guintoli, John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen. Colin Edwards - Position: 6thTime: +32.209 "It has been a while since I finished in the top six and for this result to help the team finish fourth in the Team World Championship makes it extra rewarding. I'm pleased for Herve Poncharal and the team because they deserve it. We had a couple of races where we gave a lot of points away, but for an independent team we have done a fantastic job together and it was a year to remember. I got a great start and rode around the outside of Nicky at the first corner to slot in behind Casey and Dani. I actually felt pretty comfortable at that point. Nicky passed me though down the front straight and I started to spin the rear tyre a bit just as the other guys started to get into the groove. The next thing I know, everybody was disappearing up the road and there was nothing I could do. With so little dry track time we gambled with the setting and I ran a softer tyre and at the end I was having a few problems. My bike felt great but I just didn't have a lot of grip and this isn't the best track for Yamaha. We don't have the initial raw grunt that you need on a tight and twisty track like this with a lot of low speed acceleration points. I'd like to thank all my guys for their hard work throughout the season and to Yamaha for their continued support. Finally I'd like to say a big thanks to Michelin. I had the greatest moments of my career with them and I've enjoyed our time together. I'm looking forward to a bit of a break now before coming back in Jerez next month to begin working as hard as ever for 2009." James Toseland - Position: 11thTime: +52.107 "It was a hard race to finish a pretty hard season and while it wasn't how I wanted to finish on a personal note, it was great that I contributed to the team getting fourth by a point. I'm glad I managed to hang on at the end there because I was coming under a lot of pressure. In the first half of the race I was probably a bit quicker than Jorge but I just couldn't make a pass on him stick. I got him a couple of times but I made mistakes and let him back through. One time I put my hand in the air to apologise for a close move going into the first corner, and as I put my hand back for the second corner I missed my braking marker. So I'm annoyed with myself about that. I was in a real fight at the end and I was just struggling for a bit of grip. We tried quite a big change on the set-up and it worked well for the first half of the race, but towards the end I had to ride a bit defensive and make sure I didn't lose too many places. The team deserve to be fourth in the championship this year and I was determined to help them achieve it. Tech 3 and Yamaha have given me unbelievable support in my rookie year and I was pleased to battle right to the last lap to get that result for them. I have learned a lot in 2008, and I'm looking forward to working hard in the winter and making a big impression next season." Herve Poncharal - Team Manager "It was a fantastic way for us to end the season and I really want to thank Colin and James for their effort. It was a tough weekend with the weather conditions but it was very important to end on a positive note and we were reasonably confident when both of them qualified on the second row. Colin made a great start and he did a good race, keeping a really good rhythm. In the first half of the race, James looked even a little bit quicker than Jorge but he couldn't quite pass him. He pushed really hard throughout even though he didn't have 100 per cent confidence, but it was a strong result and by hanging on at the end under a lot of pressure he helped us get fourth in the Team Championship and we beat two full factory teams. That was our target before this weekend and we achieved it. I'd like to congratulate Yamaha again for an incredible season. They gave us a great bike in 2008 and I'd also like to say a big thanks to Michelin for their support. Thanks to them and Yamaha we had one pole position and two podium finishes. We will miss Michelin but we now must look forward to a new era. Everyone at Tech 3 is now looking forward to a quick break and we will be back raring to start our 2009 preparations in Jerez at the end of November." Race 1 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 46'46.141 2, Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, ESP, 0'3.390 3, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 0'12.194 4, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 0'24.159 5, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 0'26.232 6, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 0'32.209 7, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 0'34.571 8, Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha, ESP, 0'35.661 9, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 0'38.228 10, Alex De Angelis, Honda, SMR, 0'47.583 11, James Toseland, Yamaha, GBR, 0'52.107 12, Sylvain Guintoli, Ducati, FRA, 0'52.350 13, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 0'52.833 14, John Hopkins, Kawasaki, USA, 0'53.227 15, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 0'53.411 16, Marco Melandri, Ducati, ITA, 1'8.387 17, Anthony West, Kawasaki, AUS, 1'11.181 18, Toni Elias, Ducati, ESP, 1'37.055 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 1'32.582 Rider Standings 26/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 373 2, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 280 3, Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, ESP, 249 4, Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha, ESP, 190 5, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 174 6, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 155 7, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 144 8, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 128 9, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 126 10, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 118 11, James Toseland, Yamaha, GBR, 105 12, Toni Elias, Ducati, ESP, 92 13, Sylvain Guintoli, Ducati, FRA, 67 14, Alex De Angelis, Honda, SMR, 63 15, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 61 Team Standings 26/10/2008 Pos., Team, Points 1, FIAT Yamaha Team, 563 2, Repsol Honda Team, 404 3, Ducati Marlboro Team, 331 4, Tech3 Yamaha, 249 5, Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 248 6, Honda Gresini, 189 7, JIR Scot Team, 174 8, Team Alice, 159 9, Kawasaki Racing Team, 107 10, Honda LCR, 61 Manufacturer Standings 26/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Yamaha, 402 2, Ducati, 321 3, Honda, 315 4, Suzuki, 181 5, Kawasaki, 88

2008 AMA Motocross Champion, Motocross of Nations winner and undoubtedly one of the main stars of American motocross and supercross, James Stewart, will make his first European appearance on his new Yamaha YZ450F at the Bercy SX in Paris, France, in just over two weeks time. The 22 year old from Florida only recently joined up with his San Manuel Band of Mission Indians/Land M Racing Supercross team and displayed that his combination with the 2008 AMA Supercross title-winning YZ450F will be a forceful one by winning both nights of the lucrative US Open indoor event in Las Vegas, beating reigning AMA champion Chad Reed. “You always want to do good for the first time; to be fast on this track, and to be winning, it’s a good step. I had four days on the bike, and I’m stoked. I think we’re going to be really good going into the future,” said six-time champion Stewart who completed a perfect 2008 outdoor motocross campaign by winning every single moto (24) of the 12 rounds. “We’ve still got a lot of work to do,” he added. “I’ve got a lot of time to figure this thing out though, and everybody from Yamaha and San Manuel, helped me out and they made it really easy to get on.” “Seeing James Stewart start out on a winning note with the Yamaha YZ450F was a real high point,” said Supercross team manager Jim Perry afterwards. “With his brilliant speed and his charisma, he’s a true champion and I’m glad to have him on our team.” Stewart joined Yamaha several weeks ago in a Hollywood presentation that also saw fellow Florida native, Kyle Chisholm, introduced as his team-mate. The tall former amateur winner will make his professional debut in the senior class in 2009. “I know I face a tough challenge, but I’m really excited about riding a YZ450F and proving myself in the AMA Supercross class,” he said. “I am excited by the change. It is a new beginning for me but it is a strong team,” Stewart said at the unveiling of his famous number ‘7’ in blue, where he confirmed he will be contesting both AMA Motocross and Supercross series’ as well as the X-Games and being available for the ’09 Motocross of Nations. “Larry Brooks (team owner) has just come out of a supercross championship and I have just won a motocross championship so hopefully with both of us together we will be able to win again. I know I have the ability to win and I know this bike is more than capable of it. I will still be the same old James, and now it will be even more fun so I hope the fans like it.” “Our relationship with the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians/L and M Team has been great,” said Racing Division Manager Keith McCarty. “With a supercross championship in 2008 and the addition of James and Kyle for 2009, we’re sure it will be an exciting season”. The 26th Bercy SX, the most prestigious supercross event in Europe with a glittering list of former winners, will see Stewart again go head-to-head with Reed – the defending ‘King’ of the French spectacle. It will be Stewart’s second trip over the Atlantic this season after he helped Team USA in a successful defence of their Motocross of Nations title in the UK at the end of September.

2008 World Champion Valentino Rossi rode an inch-perfect race in energy-sapping conditions at Sepang today to take his ninth win of the season and his 150th career podium. He is only the second rider in the history of the sport to pass this milestone, the other being Giacomo Agostini, whose all-time win record Rossi has already broken this season. Rossi's Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo meanwhile had a disappointing day, with his challenge ending in the gravel trap on lap 12. With temperatures in excess of 40 degrees as the riders lined up on the grid, today's race was clearly going to be a test of endurance, both for riders and tyres. Rossi, starting from second, crossed the line for the first time in third but was able to pass Andrea Dovizioso on the next lap, setting the fastest lap of the race in the process, and set off on the heels of Dani Pedrosa. The pair gradually began to open out clear air from the chasing pack but the gap between them remained at just a few tenths of a second for next eight laps. Rossi eventually made his move at mid-race distance, was able to pass Pedrosa on the brakes into the hairpin at turn nine and was then unchallenged to the chequered flag, crossing the line 4.008 seconds ahead of the Spaniard with Dovizioso in third. The paddock now heads straight to Valencia in Spain for the 18th and final round of the season, with Rossi looking to avenge two bad years at the track and Lorenzo determined to secure the title of Leading Rookie with a positive performance to make up for today's disappointment. Valentino Rossi - Position: 1st Time: 43'06.007 "I am so happy with this win today because all of the toughest championship of my career, including with Yamaha in 2004, have been won with nine victories. Of course that doesn't mean I don't want to win again next week, but for now I like this number! Today was incredibly hard because it was so hot. Once I got behind Dani I tried to pass many times but he was very fast and very consistent and I had a good battle to get by him. Lap-by-lap I understood better where it was possible and eventually I could make my move and go away from him. Everything worked very well today in such conditions, my M1 and my Bridgestone tyres and I want to thank everyone for making me so fast all weekend. I love winning here because it's such a great track but today was really a test, especially the last five laps when I really had to make an effort to keep my concentration in such incredible heat. Anyway, it was important to win here because when we came here in the winter I did a very fast race simulation and I promised my new Bridgestone tyre technician, Peter, that we would win the race! I took a gamble in February so I had to win today! Finally I want to congratulate my friend Marco Simoncelli for winning the 250cc World Championship today. I know how hard he has worked to get here and he really deserves it - I am very happy for him." Davide Brivio - Team manager "Nine wins sounds good! Now that we've won the world championship it's great to race for fun and to think only of winning and today was just like that. Valentino rode a perfect race; he started well, followed Dani for some time then passed him and escaped and he did a good job to keep his concentration and rhythm in such hot conditions. This has been another great day in a fantastic season for us and now we're looking forward to one more in Valencia." Disappointing day for Lorenzo as he slides out of Malaysian GP Jorge Lorenzo's high hopes for a podium in the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang today ended in the gravel trap on lap 12, when the Fiat Yamaha rookie slid out of sixth position. His team-mate and 2008 world champion Valentino Rossi meanwhile led from the middle of the race to take his ninth win of the season. After being fast all weekend and qualifying on the front row for the fifth race in succession, Lorenzo was determined to make a return to the podium after just missing out at the last two rounds. He got a poor start however, which left him in seventh, and he lacked the grip he'd had all weekend which meant he was unable to replicate the fast race pace he had shown in the practice sessions. By mid-race distance the Michelin-shod rider had begun to improve his rhythm somewhat and he was able to pass Shinya Nakano to move into sixth, but at turn one on lap 12 he lost the front and slid out. Lorenzo remains fourth in the championship and still leads the Rookie of the Year standings with one round remaining. The final race of the season takes place in Valencia, Spain in just one week's time. Jorge Lorenzo - Position: DNF "I didn't feel good today and I was riding much worse than yesterday. I was having some problems in braking and acceleration and this is really a pity because I thought I had the chance to be on the podium today. I had many problems with my tyres in the first few laps and in fact I had a lot of warnings about the crash, but in the end I just couldn't avoid it. I got a bad start and it seems this part of the race is getting more difficult every time. If I had a better start I could have tried to go with Valentino and Pedrosa but today was terrible. We have to change something here because at the moment it's quite difficult. Apart from these problems I know I didn't have the same feeling in myself as I had yesterday, so it really wasn't a good day! It's a little sad now that we can only be fourth in the championship, but I can still be rookie of the year so I will focus on this because it's important for all of my team. Congratulations to Valentino for another triumph and now let's look onwards to Valencia." Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager "We're quite disappointed with this result because we thought we had a good chance to be on the podium today. Unfortunately Jorge lacked grip compared to yesterday, especially in the front, and he wasn't able to ride in the same rhythm. He didn't get a good start and then lost a lot of places at turn one, so this also didn't help. He had finally begun to improve his pace and start to catch up when he crashed at turn one, so this was a great pity. Luckily he's not hurt however and now we're just focusing on Valencia and finishing the season on a high." Edwards claims top ten, Toseland crashes in scorching Sepang Colin Edwards rode his Tech 3 Yamaha YZR-M1 machine to his best ever Malaysian MotoGP result today, the American finishing a scorching hot 21-lap encounter in eighth position. With air temperatures nudging an energy sapping 40 degrees, Edwards lost four places in a frantic jostle for positions at the first corner, but quickly found the pace that saw him top the timesheets on the opening day of free practice. The 33-year-old immediately dropped his lap times into the 2.02 bracket and seized eighth place from Loris Capirossi with a clinical move at the second corner on lap four. That move left Edwards glued to the back wheel of fellow Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo as an exciting six-rider dice from third to eighth unfolded in front of 38,500 fans. Edwards was promoted to seventh when Lorenzo was unlucky to tumble out on lap 11 at the first corner, but he slipped back down to eighth on lap 15 when Capirossi pounced. With track temperatures hitting 42 degrees, Edwards began to encounter small grip issues and was unable to mount a counter attack. He kept a consistent pace in the extreme heat for the final few laps, but despite a determined ride, he couldn't close back in on the group in front. James Toseland was unable to capitalise on significant steps he made with the set-up of his Tech 3 Yamaha YZR-M1 in this morning's warm-up session. He improved front-end braking stability, but the 28-year-old slipped down to 16th after a hectic opening two laps while he tried to get the better of Anthony West and Randy de Puniet. Pushing hard to move back into the points, Toseland crashed out when he lost the front-end at turn six on lap three. He emerged unscathed from the spill, and will be looking to end his rookie season in style in next weekend's final round in Valencia. There is still plenty to fight for the Tech 3 Yamaha team in Spain next Sunday, with Edwards still pursuing a top six World Championship finish, and Toseland a top ten overall placing. Tech 3 Yamaha is also still firmly in the hunt for fourth place in the Team World Championship. Colin Edwards - Position: 8th Time: +0'18.802 "I thought I'd got a good start and I must have done because I nearly tangled with Jorge off the line and he was on the front row. It was pretty close but luckily we didn't touch. But at the first corner people started coming around me and there was a bit of bumping and barging and I lost a couple more places. Nakano and Capirossi came by but in the first eight laps I felt pretty good and I got into the high 2.02s. I was right on the back of the bunch but I felt like I was losing a bit on acceleration. As much as I'd close up on the brakes, I'd lose coming onto the back straight and the front straight. It was so hot and the track temperature was so high that the balance of the bike changed around the halfway point. Once the rear grip goes down a bit, it stops transferring weight on the front. When Jorge crashed I almost went down in the exact same circumstances going into the first corner because the rear tyre wasn't holding as well as it did at the start of the race and it wasn't driving the front tyre into the track. And when that happens it is hard to turn the bike. That was my issue and after that it was difficult. I kept my head down and tried to push because I could still see the group in front. But I couldn't get any pace going coming out of the corners and I made a couple of little mistakes. I'm really disappointed even though it is my best result ever at this race. But eighth is well below where I want to be. I leave here knowing I did the best I could do and I hope I can give the team and Yamaha a strong finish in Valencia next week before we starting looking to 2009." James Toseland - Position: DNF "Things never clicked from the start of the weekend, although this morning we found a bit of light at the end of the tunnel. But getting it nearly right on Sunday morning means you don't have time to get a proper feeling with the setting and we made a big change with the front. We raised the front and got it to steer better because that was the main issue we had. It was causing me a problem on the brakes and entry and that was messing me up for the rest of the corner. I could brake better and it made the bike more balanced for the entry and exit. Qualifying 12th though makes it tough, especially here and I got boxed in a bit at the first corner. I braked after everybody else and made a couple of places up but ran wide and then it was a real dogfight. I was having a close battle with de Puniet and West but then when I picked up my pace I went down. I had to run a harder front tyre to make the race distance and I think it just needed another lap to get the temperature in it. I just pushed it too hard and lost the front at turn six. I paid for pushing too hard trying to make up the time I'd lost. I was confident after this morning when I was eighth and we'd make progress with the bike, so it is a bit disappointing. But I'll be going all out to make amends in Valencia and finish on a high." Herve Poncharal - Team Manager "Honestly it is a bit of a disappointing outcome because we started the weekend very well. Colin was very competitive on race tyres from Friday and he performed very well in qualifying to get on the second row. We were pretty confident that he could make a good challenge in a dry race and possibly fight for the top five. Colin didn't get a great start but he always looked in contention behind the group. He rode hard but he just couldn't get close enough to mount an attack. With James we also thought we might have got both of them in the top ten, because James was confident after the warm-up this morning that the changes he made with his crew were a big step in the right direction. Unfortunately it didn't happen for him. James didn't get the start he wanted and he was pushing hard and crashed. But if you don't try then you only follow everybody, so while it was a disappointing for him, at least he was fighting. It has been a difficult race but will try and finish the season in Valencia on a high note. Fourth in the Team World Championship is still a possibility and everyone at Tech 3 will be giving their maximum effort as always next weekend." Race 1 - 21 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 43'6.007 2, Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, ESP, 0'4.008 3, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 0'8.536 4, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 0'8.858 5, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 0'10.538 6, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 0'13.640 7, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 0'15.936 8, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 0'18.802 9, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 0'23.174 10, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 0'25.516 11, John Hopkins, Kawasaki, USA, 0'27.609 12, Anthony West, Kawasaki, AUS, 0'41.399 13, Sylvain Guintoli, Ducati, FRA, 0'45.617 14, Alex De Angelis, Honda, SMR, 0'49.003 15, Toni Elias, Ducati, ESP, 0'59.139 16, Marco Melandri, Ducati, ITA, 1'3.328 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 2'2.249 Rider Standings 19/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 357 2, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 255 3, Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, ESP, 229 4, Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha, ESP, 182 5, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 161 6, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 144 7, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 134 8, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 125 9, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 117 10, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 111 11, James Toseland, Yamaha, GBR, 100 12, Toni Elias, Ducati, ESP, 92 13, Sylvain Guintoli, Ducati, FRA, 63 14, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 60 15, Alex De Angelis, Honda, SMR, 57 Team Standings 19/10/2008 Pos., Team, Points 1, FIAT Yamaha Team, 539 2, Repsol Honda Team, 373 3, Ducati Marlboro Team, 306 4, Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 238 5, Tech3 Yamaha, 234 6, Honda Gresini, 174 7, JIR Scot Team, 161 8, Team Alice, 155 9, Kawasaki Racing Team, 105 10, Honda LCR, 60 Manufacturer Standings 19/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Yamaha, 386 2, Ducati, 296 3, Honda, 295 4, Suzuki, 174 5, Kawasaki, 86

Yamaha dominated in style at the finale of the UEM Road Racing European Championship last weekend.The formidable YZF-R1 and YZF-R6 have proved again this year to be the ultimate track weapons for racing success. The top four riders in the Superstock 1000 class where all riding Yamaha YZF-R1 machines. Carmelo Morales and Javier Del Amor (Team L’Oreal Men Expert LGS) took first and third respectively on their Yamaha machines whilst Bernat Martinez (Team Bernat) took a well deserved second on his YZF-R1. Fourth place went to Yamaha Motor Germany’s top rider, Jörg Teuchert. For the Supersport race it was rider Angel Rodriguez (Team L’Oreal Men Expert LGS) aboard a Yamaha YZF-R6 that took the chequered flag. The next placed Yamaha rider was fourth position David Salom (Team Yamaha Spain). In a field of 36 riders there were no less than 24 Yamaha YZF-R6 Supersport machines competing, six of which made the top ten at the finish. Loris Baz proved the competitiveness of the R6 earlier this month, winning the European Superstock 600 Championship in Magny-Cours on 5th October, the final race seeing all podium finishers riding the unbeatable Yamaha. The World Superbike Championship heads towards its final round in Portugal next month. In the hands of riders Noriyuki Haga and Troy Corser the R1 sits in second and third place respectively, making it the top performing 4cyl 1000cc bike in racing. The 2008 Women’s Road Racing European Champion Nina Prinz led her class all year, taking the championship comfortably aboard her Yamaha YZF-R1 with strong support from Yamaha Motor Germany. “It’s an unrivalled accomplishment,” said Laurens Klein Koerkamp (Yamaha Motor Europe Racing Division Manager). “The results across the board clearly show the Yamaha Superbike and Supersport machines are designed to win on track. We’ve shown not just at the European level but also in MOTOGP, WSB and World MX and AMA-SX that our machinery is at the top spot throughout. We’re confident that we are going into 2009 with strong teams at all levels of racing to repeat more of the winning success we’ve shown in 2008.”

After dominating for the entire 2008 season, German Yamaha rider Nina Prinz has takenthe title on her YZF-R1, her second consecutive championship win, at the third and final round of the Women’s European Championship at Albacete (Spain) on Sunday. The reigning European champion from Mannheim / Leutkirch was in predictably consistent form all weekend, despite the atrocious qualifying and racing conditions. Nina went into the final round leading the championship with 50 points, followed by second ranked Lara Cordioli on 33 points. Nina finished the race a respectable 5th position, but first in her class, in less than perfect race conditions, with unpredictable weather affecting the weekend’s track action. The position gave her 11 points, giving her a 61 point total for the 2008 championship and a much deserved Championship title victory. Nina dominated the Saturday qualifying session, another day of difficult weather conditions, with storms and heavy rain hampering the riders. Nonetheless she managed an excellent pole position, qualifying with a time of 1’33.345 on her Yamaha machine, a full three seconds clear of second place Spanish Honda rider Elena Rosell. Nina Prinz – “The second race of the championship was easy compared to Spain this weekend, the weather was much better! This last race however was not my best but I didn’t make any mistakes. The only issue I had was running a dry rear tyre and a rain tyre on the front, not a good combination! The race was ok I finished 5th but in the 1000c class I was 1st so it was ok for me. It’s a great win for the team and for Yamaha and now I have won the European Championship for the second time so it’s really great for me. I’m now going home to relax for a few days!” Michael Galinski (Team Manager – Yamaha Motor Germany Team) – “The weather conditions were very difficult so we are very happy with the end results. Nina was riding with a difficult tyre set up which was far from perfect in hindsight! For the previous races there wasn’t so much pressure but this weekend there was so we are very happy to have won the title! She has proved she is the fastest woman in the championship again!” Laurens Klein Koerkamp (Yamaha Motor Europe Racing Division Manager) – “This is a well earned victory for Nina Prinz and the Yamaha Motor Germany Team. Yamaha’s support of her racing career is a great example of the importance we place on having women involved in motorcycling. We will continue to reach out to this sector of the market and nurture its development.”

The final round of the '08 World Enduro Championship, staged in Mende, France, proved to be a challenging one for UFO Corse Yamaha team riders Simone Albergoni and Maurizio Micheluz as both were unable to secure podium finishes at the GP of Europe. However Yamaha France rider Marc Germain performed well finishing in a strong runner-up position on Day1 and 3rd on Day2. With the French event bringing the '08 WEC series to a close, Albergoni, Germain and Micheluz, as well as injured UFO Corse Yamaha rider Cristobal Guerrero, officially claimed 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place positions respectively in the Enduro 1 world championship. For Albergoni hopes that the final event of the season would bring with it rewarding end-of-season results failed to materialise as Italy's number one enduro rider was unable to finish in the top three. Despite performing well throughout the opening day's competition, including a test win early on, Albergoni finished 4th. On day two Albergoni dropped one position to 5th despite riding consistently during the day. Having set his sights on claiming his first enduro world championship title this season, and having started the year with impressive results at the first three rounds of the series, Albergoni's disappointment was clear after the event. Improving on his '07 world championship position of 7th, Maurizio Micheluz' outing in France were typical of several of those he endured during 2008 as he spent much of both days battling for the fourth place before he ended up finishing 7th on both days. Although disappointed at having not finished higher, Maurizio was pleased to have ended the year 5th in the competitive Enduro 1 world championship standings. Simone Albergoni (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 1 class - Day 1: 4th, Day 2: 5th "From the mid-way point of the season I've found it hard to ride at my best. I've not really enjoyed a single corner of any special test since the middle of the season. I don't know why. I have just struggled and it's a mystery. My season started in a good way but after Poland my motivation went downhill and although I finished third in the championship I'm just not happy with things. When your target is to win it's hard when you realise that's not going to happen." Maurizio Micheluz (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 1 class - Day 1: 7th, Day 2: 7th "I finished seventh on both days but I was also fighting for fourth and fifth position on both days. I crashed three times on the enduro test on the first day, as well as twice on day two. I lost everything in the enduro test. On both days fourth position wasn't too far away. It's just disappointing that I didn't finish higher. The beginning of the year things didn't go so well but the end of the year things have gone better." Race 1Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Mika Ahola, Honda, FIN, 52'16.390 2, Marc Germain, Yamaha, FRA, 0'20.430 3, Ivan Cervantes, KTM, ESP, 0'21.400 4, Simone Albergoni, Yamaha, ITA, 1'16.090 5, Eero Remes, KTM, FIN, 1'17.170 6, Bartosz Oblucki, Husqvarna, POL, 1'23.460 7, Maurizio Micheluz, Yamaha, ITA, 1'40.710 8, Jari Juha Mattila, Honda, FIN, 2'25.540 9, Julien Gauthier, Honda, FRA, 2'31.020 10, Tom Sagar, KTM, GBR, 2'36.210 11, Damien Miquel, Yamaha, FRA, 3'42.840 12, Raphael Andre, Kawasaki, FRA, 3'59.180 13, Jakub Horak, KTM, CZE, 8'11.740 14, Charles Feyrit, Honda, FRA, 9'14.630 Race 2Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Mika Ahola, Honda, FIN, 51'11.530 2, Ivan Cervantes, KTM, ESP, 0'2.500 3, Marc Germain, Yamaha, FRA, 1'5.130 4, Eero Remes, KTM, FIN, 2'5.330 5, Simone Albergoni, Yamaha, ITA, 2'15.470 6, Bartosz Oblucki, Husqvarna, POL, 2'21.370 7, Maurizio Micheluz, Yamaha, ITA, 2'35.560 8, Julien Gauthier, Honda, FRA, 2'41.350 9, Tom Sagar, KTM, GBR, 2'50.080 10, Thomas Oldrati, KTM, ITA, 2'50.640 11, Jari Juha Mattila, Honda, FIN, 3'6.280 12, Mike Hartmann, KTM, GER, 3'31.340 13, Damien Miquel, Yamaha, FRA, 4'40.790 14, Jakub Horak, KTM, CZE, 7'20.300 15, Charles Feyrit, Honda, FRA, 9'31.020 Rider Standings 11/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Mika Ahola, Honda, FIN, 375 2, Ivan Cervantes, KTM, ESP, 364 3, Simone Albergoni, Yamaha, ITA, 301 4, Marc Germain, Yamaha, FRA, 284 5, Maurizio Micheluz, Yamaha, ITA, 224 6, Cristobal Guerrero, Yamaha, ESP, 185 7, Eero Remes, KTM, FIN, 171 8, Tom Sagar, KTM, GBR, 163 9, Mike Hartmann, KTM, GER, 154 10, Jordan Curvalle, Suzuki, FRA, 140 11, Bartosz Oblucki, Husqvarna, POL, 139 12, Luca Cherubini, TM, ITA, 102 13, Jakub Horak, KTM, CZE, 97 14, Damien Miquel, Yamaha, FRA, 62 15, Daryl Bolter, Husqvarna, GBR, 58 Manufacturer Standings 11/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Honda, 375 2, KTM, 351 3, Yamaha, 338 4, Husqvarna, 197 5, Suzuki, 153 6, TM, 102 7, Kawasaki, 56 8, Sherco, 12 ---------- RACE REPORT - 12/10/2008 Aubert wins world championship UFO Corse Yamaha rider Johnny Aubert is the 2008 Enduro 2 World Champion. Having held the lead in the E2 series on his WR250F from the third round the former French motocross racer has now lifted his first ever world title, continuing an excellent season of racing for Yamaha after MotoGP and MX1 Motocross world championship success. Competing against Juha Salminen, the rider widely regarded as the best enduro racer of all time, Aubert put the finishing touches to what has been a near faultless season finishing 2nd on Day1 in Mende, France and then 3rd on Day2. Starting the final round of the '08 WEC campaign with a commanding lead in the E2 class Aubert realistically needed just a handful of points from both days of competition to secure the coveted E2 title. Competing in front of a hugely enthusiastic home crowd, Aubert pushed hard on day one but was clearly riding well within his limits as he opted not to challenge for the class win. Finishing over one-minute behind winner Salminen, Aubert ensured that on day two he needed to collect only the required points in order to take the crown. By finishing 4th, and earning his 16th podium finish of the year, Aubert did exactly what he needed to do and joined Finns Mika Ahola and Samuli Aro as a '08 World Enduro Champion. Not having such a good weekend was Italian rider Fabrizio Dini. Although scoring 7th in the final Enduro 2 world championship ranking Fabrizio found the French event's enduro test extremely challenging and saw several mistakes prevent him from finishing closer to the podium. Johnny Aubert (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 2 class - Day 1: 2nd, Day 2: 3rd "It's amazing to be able to say that I'm world champion. It hasn't sunk in yet but I know in a few days I will be so, so happy when I realise what I've achieved. It's been a long, hard year. I was nervous on day one, but on day two it wasn't so bad. I put in some good tests but I was really only thinking about the championship. I have to thanks the team for doing a great job this year. They have helped me do what I have always dreamed of, becoming world champion." Fabrizio Dini (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 2 class - Day 1: 9th, Day 2: 8th: "It's been a nice race but not a good one for me. I didn't like the enduro test. It was really slippery and hard to understand. I felt like I was the slowest rider in the event on that test. I crashed many times on day one, which gave me a pretty bad result. I stalled my bike on the enduro test on day two and I lost 40 or 50 seconds. After that things went ok because I was fast on the extreme and motocross tests. I finished seventh in the world championship, which is the same as last year. I'm not overly happy with my final position but I've enjoyed the year." Race 1Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Juha Salminen, KTM, FIN, 51'7.800 2, Johnny Aubert, Yamaha, FRA, 1'19.620 3, Antoine Meo, Husqvarna, FRA, 1'43.150 4, Alessandro Belometti, KTM, ITA, 2'15.150 5, Joakim Ljunggren, HusaBerg, SWE, 2'25.540 6, Nicolas Paganon, Aprilia, FRA, 2'51.170 7, Rodrig Thain, TM, FRA, 3'0.330 8, Nicolas Deparrois, GasGas, FRA, 3'17.140 9, Fabrizio Dini, Yamaha, ITA, 3'24.320 10, Jean Francois Goblet, BMW, BEL, 3'51.570 11, Mickael Metge, HusaBerg, FRA, 5'1.490 12, Rudy Cotton, Beta, FRA, 5'9.440 13, Valtteri Salonen, HusaBerg, FIN, 5'18.180 14, Fabio Mossini, Honda, ITA, 5'54.250 15, Christophe Robert, KTM, CHE, 6'28.700 16, Hans Vogel, KTM, NED, 7'30.100 17, Nicolas Joye, HusaBerg, CHE, 8'38.650 Race 2Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Juha Salminen, KTM, FIN, 50'31.820 2, Antoine Meo, Husqvarna, FRA, 0'51.600 3, Johnny Aubert, Yamaha, FRA, 1'1.540 4, Alessandro Belometti, KTM, ITA, 2'3.620 5, Rodrig Thain, TM, FRA, 2'14.720 6, Nicolas Paganon, Aprilia, FRA, 2'16.930 7, Fabio Mossini, Honda, ITA, 2'43.270 8, Fabrizio Dini, Yamaha, ITA, 3'12.030 9, Joakim Ljunggren, HusaBerg, SWE, 3'12.930 10, Jean Francois Goblet, BMW, BEL, 4'28.110 11, Nicolas Deparrois, GasGas, FRA, 4'34.760 12, Mickael Metge, HusaBerg, FRA, 4'39.990 13, Rudy Cotton, Beta, FRA, 6'3.770 14, Hans Vogel, KTM, NED, 6'17.650 15, Christophe Robert, KTM, CHE, 6'49.930 16, Nicolas Joye, HusaBerg, CHE, 9'47.790 Rider Standings 11/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Johnny Aubert, Yamaha, FRA, 361 2, Juha Salminen, KTM, FIN, 353 3, Alessandro Belometti, KTM, ITA, 259 4, Rodrig Thain, TM, FRA, 226 5, Antoine Meo, Husqvarna, FRA, 222 6, Joakim Ljunggren, HusaBerg, SWE, 217 7, Fabrizio Dini, Yamaha, ITA, 196 8, Nicolas Paganon, Aprilia, FRA, 173 9, Fabio Mossini, Honda, ITA, 147 10, Simo Kirssi, BMW, FIN, 139 11, Valtteri Salonen, HusaBerg, FIN, 134 12, Nicolas Deparrois, GasGas, FRA, 134 13, Jari Juha Mattila, Honda, FIN, 110 14, Alessandro Zanni, Honda, ITA, 78 15, Jean Francois Goblet, BMW, BEL, 70 Manufacturer Standings 11/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, KTM, 378 2, Yamaha, 361 3, Husqvarna, 248 4, HusaBerg, 243 5, TM, 226 6, Honda, 221 7, BMW, 191 8, Aprilia, 173 9, GasGas, 134 10, Beta, 66 11, Suzuki, 26

Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) took a race win and a second place at the Magny-Cours races to go second in the championship with one round remaining. Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) recovered from sixth in race one to finish third in race two and now sits third overall, nine points behind his team-mate Haga. Haga was imperious in race one after his strong qualifying performances and Superpole win, taking the lead from fast-starting Troy Bayliss before blasting away to record a margin of victory of six seconds. Fonsi Nieto was second, with Bayliss third. Corser was sixth after crash in Superpole saw him start 12th on the grid. In race two, Haga led for most of the 23-laps, but could not hold onto the fleeing Bayliss in the last sector, and had to settle for second, one place up on a resurgent and determined Corser. Bayliss had already won the championship outright after his first race podium, leaving Haga and Corser to fight out the overall second place in the championship rankings at the final round in one month's time. Bayliss now has 410 points, Haga 325, and Corser 316. Sebastien Gimbert (Yamaha GMT94) went 13th in the opening race at his home circuit, but retired in the pits in race two. David Checa (Yamaha GMT94) did not finish either race, retiring in race one and crashing out of race two. Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) went 14th and scored two points in race one, but just missed out on a points scoring finish in race two, by one place and less than one second. Noriyuki Haga (1st and 2nd - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "The weather conditions have been not so good this weekend but the team gave me a good bike and I could compete well all weekend. I was riding comfortably at the front in race one to win so thanks to Yamaha and congratulations to Troy Bayliss, the champion of the world. Thanks to all in the team for all the hard work, and for the support from the fans. The last five laps of the second race I could not open the gas the way I wanted but Bayliss and I had a great fight for the win." Troy Corser (6th and 3rd - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "Starting from the third row was always going to be tough for these races. I got a good start in race two and got though quickly but I had a little bit of a tussle with Rolfo and Checa. When the rain started to come I could see the guys in front had started to slow down, and I knew I had a chance to make up some time. I really didn't care if I crashed or not I just went as hard as I could. I caught those guys but once I had I really couldn't go much further. The lap times came down again to mid 1'40s. The bike was pretty consistent but I just couldn't push any harder on the front tyre because the right-hand side was almost finished. I nearly took Troy out down the hill at one time so I had to let the brake off or I would have taken both of us out. Lucky enough there was enough room to get through. But race two was good and we go to the next race to see if I can win one there." Massimo Meregalli (Team Manager, Yamaha Motor Italia WSB Team) "We won the first race and were nearly there in race two. It was a really good race for both riders in the second race. In the last few laps our tyres started to drop off and it was impossible for our guys to get back to Tory at the end. Over the weekend as a whole we got pole, a win in race one and then two podiums in race two, so it's been positive. The next race will be a challenge for everyone on a new circuit. Today's results are thanks to a lot of hard work from the team so a thank you to them as well." Shinichi Nakatomi (14th and 16th - Team YZF Yamaha "In race 1, I had some chattering problem after 10 laps. It was difficult to push. For race 2, we changed the set up but the chattering problem came back. I crossed the front a few times. It was a difficult race. Magny-Cours was not so good, Portimao will be better." Race 1 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 38'33.367 2, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 0'6.223 3, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 0'6.875 4, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 0'7.237 5, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 0'8.925 6, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0'10.714 7, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 0'16.176 8, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 0'22.661 9, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 0'27.224 10, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 0'31.300 11, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 0'35.558 12, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 0'35.774 13, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 0'36.078 14, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0'36.289 15, Chris Walker, Honda, GBR, 0'40.472 16, Ayrton Badovini, Kawasaki, ITA, 0'40.497 17, Martin Bauer, Honda, AUT, 0'43.350 18, Makoto Tamada, Kawasaki, JPN, 0'54.263 19, Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, JPN, 0'54.382 20, Ivan Silva, Honda, ESP, 0'54.513 Race 2 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 38'33.579 2, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 0'0.909 3, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 0'2.966 4, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 0'2.966 5, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 0'12.822 6, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 0'13.004 7, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 0'18.876 8, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 0'19.512 9, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 0'19.627 10, Roberto Rolfo, Honda, ITA, 0'21.425 11, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 0'25.133 12, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 0'30.538 13, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 0'35.334 14, Michel Fabrizio, Ducati, ITA, 0'38.453 15, Chris Walker, Honda, GBR, 0'40.008 16, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 0'40.802 17, Ayrton Badovini, Kawasaki, ITA, 0'46.941 18, Makoto Tamada, Kawasaki, JPN, 0'50.172 19, Kenan Sofuoglu, Honda, TUR, 0'58.616 20, Regis Laconi, Kawasaki, FRA, 1'0.422 21, Ivan Silva, Honda, ESP, 1'2.852 22, Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, JPN, 1'21.378 23, Vittorio Iannuzzo, Kawasaki, ITA, 1'32.289 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 1'38.444 Rider Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Troy Bayliss, Ducati, AUS, 410 2, Noriyuki Haga, Yamaha, JPN, 325 3, Troy Corser, Yamaha, AUS, 316 4, Max Neukirchner, Suzuki, GER, 298 5, Carlos Checa, Honda, ESP, 284 6, Max Biaggi, Ducati, ITA, 235 7, Fonsi Nieto, Suzuki, ESP, 234 8, Michel Fabrizio, Ducati, ITA, 203 9, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, JPN, 193 10, Ruben Xaus, Ducati, ESP, 171 11, Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, JPN, 153 12, Gregorio Lavilla, Honda, ESP, 117 13, Jakub Smrz, Ducati, CZE, 113 14, Lorenzo Lanzi, Ducati, ITA, 109 15, Karl Muggeridge, Honda, AUS, 75 19, Shinichi Nakatomi, Yamaha, JPN, 48 26, David Checa, Yamaha, ESP, 12 27, Sebastien Gimbert, Yamaha, FRA, 12 Manufacturer Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Ducati, 520 2, Yamaha, 461 3, Suzuki, 384 4, Honda, 379 5, Kawasaki, 82 ---------- RACE REPORT - 05/10/2008 Foret takes an impressive eighth place on his return to World Supersport Fabien Foret (Yamaha World Supersport Team) made a great return to World Supersport competition at his home race, finishing eighth after ending the first lap down in 15th place. Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport Team) was running with the leading group until he was knocked off by a crash between two other riders on lap ten. Parkes returned to the pits but his machine was too damaged to continue with any chance of scoring a point, and he retired from the race, losing his last chance of taking the world title this season. Andrew Pitt won the title today, by winning the 22-lap race. Foret's result was remarkable on many levels, and even through he finished the race exhausted by his intense race experience, he finished higher in the order than he had dared dream after being out since the Brno race in July. Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) had a great ride to sixth, leading Nannelli home in tight midfield race. He was the top Yamaha finisher today. David Salom (Yamaha Spain World Supersport) was 17th and just missed out on a point. Fabien Foret (8th - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "Eighth place and I am really happy with that. One month ago I was at home with a neck brace on and feeling not so good, but today has made me glad I came back for this race. In the middle I had a lot of pain but I was fighting and I did not want to give up. I made some small mistakes because I am not so relaxed, a bit rigid on the bike and not so confident, but it was a good result. I can go home now and get ready, because we have one month until the next race." Broc Parkes (DNF - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "The crash was really not what we needed and there was nothing I could do to avoid it. I felt good and knew we were going to be competitive if we could have finished the race. We just have to look to the final race now and finish as well as we can." Wilco Zeelenberg (Team Manager, Yamaha World Supersport Team) The bike was too badly damaged for Broc to carry on without repairs. He would not have scored points even if he started again. It is a shame. It was a bad move at a bad moment and the Championship has been decided by it. We are happy for Fabien; he really improved and he even did a 1'43.6 lap near the end, which is almost as fast as the leaders. Eighth is a great position when he was not sure if he could even finish the race. He will be mentally and physically stronger at Portimao. I think it was a pity to end our championship challenge this way because there could have been a good battle still with the other guys and Broc, but Andrew deserved it because he won even when Rea was well down." Massimo Roccoli (6th - Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) "That was a good result for us today and I was pleased to come out on top of the fight with Nannelli. I had a bit of a problem with some other riders on the first laps but after three or four laps I got a good rhythm going and ended up with the best result of the year." Race 1 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 37'57.929 2, Barry Veneman, Suzuki, NED, 0'1.250 3, Joshua Brookes, Honda, AUS, 0'1.514 4, Matthieu Lagrive, Honda, FRA, 0'1.685 5, Didier Van Keymeulen, Suzuki, BEL, 0'5.075 6, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 0'13.171 7, Gianluca Nannelli, Honda, ITA, 0'13.386 8, Fabien Foret, Yamaha, FRA, 0'19.563 9, Josh Hayes, Honda, USA, 0'19.677 10, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 0'21.686 11, Gianluca Vizziello, Honda, ITA, 0'22.599 12, Katsuaki Fujiwara, Kawasaki, JPN, 0'24.967 13, Patrick Vostarek, Honda, ITA, 0'28.888 14, Ivan Clementi, Triumph, ITA, 0'29.351 15, Robbin Harms, Honda, DNK, 0'38.000 16, Chris Martin, Kawasaki, GBR, 0'40.934 17, David Salom, Yamaha, ESP, 0'43.876 18, Jesco Gunther, Triumph, GER, 0'46.230 19, Balazs Nemeth, Honda, HUN, 0'58.762 20, David Perret, Honda, FRA, 0'59.258 21, Russell Holland, Honda, AUS, 1'1.131 22, Santiago Barragan, Honda, ESP, 1'14.306 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 1'41.543 Rider Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Andrew Pitt, Honda, AUS, 194 2, Jonathan Rea, Honda, GBR, 164 3, Joshua Brookes, Honda, AUS, 157 4, Broc Parkes, Yamaha, AUS, 139 5, Fabien Foret, Yamaha, FRA, 105 6, Joan Lascorz, Honda, ESP, 105 7, Craig Jones, Honda, GBR, 100 8, Barry Veneman, Suzuki, NED, 92 9, Robbin Harms, Honda, DNK, 71 10, Gianluca Nannelli, Honda, ITA, 69 11, Massimo Roccoli, Yamaha, ITA, 58 12, Matthieu Lagrive, Honda, FRA, 56 13, Gianluca Vizziello, Honda, ITA, 52 14, Didier Van Keymeulen, Suzuki, BEL, 38 15, Chris Walker, Kawasaki, GBR, 36 28, David Salom, Yamaha, ESP, 9 Manufacturer Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Honda, 290 2, Yamaha, 192 3, Suzuki, 101 4, Triumph, 70 5, Kawasaki, 46 ---------- RACE REPORT - 05/10/2008 Corti on the podium at Magny-Cours The aggression and commitment shown by Claudio Corti (Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team) throughout the 14-lap Superstock 1000 race at Magny-Cours paid off with a third place finish that puts him tenth in the championship standings, on 49 points. Michele Pirro (Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni) finished tenth in the race, and stays 15th in the championship fight as the final round looms at Portimao in early November. Claudio Corti (3rd - Yamaha Motor Italia Junior Team) "We have had some bad luck recently so it is fantastic to be able to get back onto the podium for the first time this year. Now we move forward to Portimao in determined mood for the last round." Michelle Pirro (10th - Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni) "After the start there was a lot of confusion and I had a clash with another rider which put me back a bit. In the early part of the race the set-up was not the best. Until half the race was finished I did not have so much feel from the bike." Race 1 - 9 Laps Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 24'7.794 2, Freddy Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 0'0.463 3, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 0'0.543 4, Alessandro Polita, Ducati, ITA, 0'1.001 5, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 0'1.792 6, Franck Millet, MV Agusta, ITA, 0'2.556 7, Sylvain Barrier, Yamaha, FRA, 0'8.425 8, Kenny Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 0'8.701 9, Michael Savary, Suzuki, CHE, 0'12.636 10, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 0'12.776 11, Maxime Berger, Honda, FRA, 0'14.352 12, Chris Seaton, Suzuki, AUS, 0'22.002 13, Domenico Colucci, Ducati, ITA, 0'23.114 14, Barry Burrell, Honda, GBR, 0'23.739 15, Davide Giugliano, Suzuki, ITA, 0'27.654 16, Raymond Schouten, Yamaha, NED, 0'27.893 17, Gareth Jones, Suzuki, AUS, 0'28.672 18, Andrea Antonelli, Honda, ITA, 0'29.861 19, Filip Backlund, Suzuki, SWE, 0'31.655 20, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 0'39.173 21, Peter Hickman, Yamaha, GBR, 0'42.859 22, Pauli Pekkanen, KTM, FIN, 0'43.156 23, Matt Bond, Suzuki, GBR, 0'43.591 24, Marko Jerman, Yamaha, SVK, 0'49.153 25, Niccolo Rosso, Honda, ITA, 0'50.458 26, Gregory Junod, Yamaha, CHE, 0'53.215 27, Jure Stibilj, Honda, SVN, 1'1.096 28, Tommaso Lorenzetti, Suzuki, ITA, 1'1.390 29, Roy Ten Napel, Suzuki, NED, 1'4.057 31, Danny De Boer, Suzuki, NED, 1'9.815 32, Brank Srdanov, Yamaha, NED, 1'10.142 33, Michal Drobny, Honda, CZE, 1'12.430 34, Cameron Stronach, Kawasaki, AUS, 1'26.143 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 1'41.994 Rider Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Xavier Simeon, Suzuki, BEL, 131 2, Alessandro Polita, Ducati, ITA, 127 3, Maxime Berger, Honda, FRA, 124 4, Brendan Roberts, Ducati, AUS, 122 5, Michele Pirro, Yamaha, ITA, 89 6, Matej Smrz, Honda, CZE, 73 7, Davide Giugliano, Suzuki, ITA, 72 8, Andrea Antonelli, Honda, ITA, 57 9, Freddy Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 55 10, Claudio Corti, Yamaha, ITA, 49 11, Chris Seaton, Suzuki, AUS, 40 12, Barry Burrell, Honda, GBR, 33 13, Kenny Foray, Yamaha, FRA, 32 14, Michele Magnoni, Yamaha, ITA, 30 15, Domenico Colucci, Ducati, ITA, 26 22, Sylvain Barrier, Yamaha, FRA, 13 Manufacturer Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Ducati, 170 2, Honda, 166 3, Suzuki, 146 4, Yamaha, 126 5, Kawasaki, 49 6, MV Agusta, 10 7, KTM, 2

The fifteen year-old star-in-the-making Loris Baz (Yamaha France Junior Team) took a hard fought second place in Saturday’s European Superstock 600 Championship race, and in taking the podium he also took the championship in his rookie year. The close race was a constant battle with fellow Yamaha riders Linfoot and Gines, and Baz was only outbraked by Linfoot on the entrance to the final corners of the Magny-Cours circuit. Baz happily shares the success of his championship victory with Martial Garcia’s Yamaha France Junior Team, who have provided strong support and a fast R6 Yamaha to Loris all season long, providing him with the opportunity to shine on track. This season the young rider won 3 races out of 8, at Valencia, Monza and Brands Hatch. He finished second at the Nürburgring, at Brno and finally this weekend at Magny-Cours. He also took third at Misano, giving him a respectable 7 podiums in 9 races. Loris Baz (Yamaha France Junior Team) “This race was for me like the others. We are all young, so the start is always hot. I didn't want to take chances. I had a good security margin. On my pit board, I saw that at one point I was 3rd and Bussolotti 7th. Then I was 4th and he was 5th. So I passed two riders to have a good gap. In the last lap, I could have tried to win, but I wanted to play it safe. Thank you to my team, to Yamaha, to Jean-Claude Olivier, to my parents, to all the people who help me and to my fan club who came all the way from Spain." This is now the third consecutive European Superstock 600 Championship win for Yamaha as the manufacturer continues to dominate the class.Year on year the challenge of competitor machines has been met with a further leap forward by the legendary YZF R6 taking it to the next level again. Straight out of the box, the new for 2008 R6 has proved itself a formidable track weapon in the hands of the talented young riders of the future, featuring chassis and swing-arm improvements which raised corner speed and improved handling. The YCC-I system improved performance, particularly mid-range, again offered serious advantages to the riders on track.The Superstock class itself is as close to production as possible in racing, only minor differences separate the winning R6 on track and the road going Supersport machine found in the Yamaha dealer.

Fiat Yamaha rider and 2008 World Champion Valentino Rossi recovered from yesterday's mishap to charge through the field from the fourth row at Phillip Island today, eventually taking second behind Casey Stoner. His team-mate Jorge Lorenzo took a second consecutive fourth place after a race long battle with several other riders. A mistake during qualifying yesterday had left Rossi with strained neck muscles and a grid position of 12th, but the Italian relishes a challenge and he was already up to eighth by the end of the first lap, despite narrowly missing a collision when Alex de Angelis crashed out in front of him. On lap four Rossi found himself the back marker of a Yamaha trio, behind his team-mate Lorenzo and Tech 3 rider James Toseland. He despatched the Spaniard within two laps and got by Toseland soon after but the Briton put up a spirited challenge, wresting third back and hanging on for five more laps until Rossi eventually got the better of him. With a podium place secure the eight-time champion could have been forgiven for coasting home but he is never one to take the easy option and, with clear air and his M1 and Bridgestone tyres working perfectly, he gradually began to close on Nicky Hayden, who was nearly six seconds ahead. Little-by-little he made up the gap until he was within striking distance, making his move on the very last lap to take second and his 14th podium of the season. After an intense two weeks the MotoGP paddock now has a two week rest before the penultimate round in Malaysia on 19th October. Valentino Rossi - Position: 2nd Time: +6.504 "That was a very exciting race for me, from start to finish! Unfortunately I made a small mistake yesterday and I paid a high price for it - both with my starting position and with my body! This morning my neck was okay but I had a lot of pain in my head, so I have to say thank you to Dr. Costa and the Clinica Mobile because they gave me a lot of massage and some medicine and I was in better shape for the race. I got a good start and I was lucky to miss de Angelis by just a couple of centimetres, and then I arrived to Lorenzo and Toseland. The first time I passed James I thought I would be able to go but then he passed me back and I realised that his pace was not so bad, and we had a great battle! He was very strong and difficult to pass but once I did get by I was able to go and then I just kept pushing and gradually Nicky got bigger and bigger. It was fun to keep fighting till the last lap and I am very happy with this second position because it's always a great emotion to be on the podium here. Thanks to my team and to Bridgestone, with Casey as strong as he was I think this was the best we could have done today and I really enjoyed the race." Davide Brivio - Team Manager "We didn't win but this was another incredible performance from Valentino, demonstrating once again how he never gives up. The championship is secure, he was starting from the fourth row and the podium would have already been a good achievement but he still pushed at the maximum and was able to come second! He wasn't in perfect shape but the Clinica Mobile helped him a lot and he was able to do his best once again. We're racing to have fun now and we had a lot of fun today in a race that was exciting from start to finish." Fourth place for Lorenzo after island battle Jorge Lorenzo was disappointed to miss out on the podium at Phillip Island today, despite prevailing in a race-long battle for fourth place. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi stormed through the field after starting 12th to finish second behind Casey Stoner. Lorenzo started from second on the grid but he did not quite have the outstanding rhythm he had yesterday and he slipped to fourth on lap one. He then traded places with Tech 3 Yamaha rider James Toseland a couple of times before settling in behind the Briton as Rossi loomed behind. By lap 13 of 27 Lorenzo's world champion team-mate had dispatched his Yamaha compatriots and was disappearing off and it then became a battle for fourth between the Spaniard, Toseland, Andrea Dovizioso and Shinya Nakano with the foursome trading passes at times more reminiscent of a 125cc race. In the last few laps Lorenzo was able to take control of proceedings somewhat and he was able to hang on to fourth, just ahead of Nakano with Toseland in sixth. The rookie is 27 points off third in the championship and also has a mathematical chance of second, with two rounds remaining. The next battle comes in two week's time at Sepang in Malaysia. Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 4th Time: +11.500 "I'm not very happy with the race because I know I should have been able to fight for the podium today. I didn't ride like I know I can, Toseland was in front of me many times and I couldn't pass him, and then I couldn't follow Valentino when he came through. I think I had the rhythm to have been with Valentino but it didn't work today. Even though it's mathematically still possible, I think that the second and third places in the championship are probably lost to me now. I think that the most important thing now is to get good results in Malaysia and Valencia so that we finish the season in the right way. The team, the tyres and the bike are all working well, we're getting good results but we know they can be better. I like Malaysia a lot, I rode there in the winter and I think it will be good for Michelin, so I'm looking forward to it." Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager "We're a bit disappointed about today's result because we definitely had the potential to be on the podium and that's what we were hoping for. We had a few more problems than yesterday with grip in the rear and in the hard braking areas we weren't as good as the others, so we suffered for this. Aside from this it was a good race and Jorge had a great battle for fourth, so despite the result we've enjoyed it and now we're looking forward to the next one." Birthday boy Toseland celebrates in style at Phillip Island James Toseland celebrated his 28th birthday in fantastic fashion today, the Tech 3 Yamaha rider equalling his best MotoGP result in a pulsating Australian MotoGP race. Toseland played a starring role from the start of an enthralling 27-lap race as he charged into third place on the first lap. He briefly surrendered third to fellow Yamaha YZR-M1 rider Jorge Lorenzo on lap three, but retaliated superbly with a bold move at the first corner on lap five. Toseland then led a three-way Yamaha dice that included a hard-charging Valentino Rossi as he rode magnificently to keep the world champion at bay for six laps. Twice Rossi passed Toseland in quick succession, only for the British rider to respond with inch-perfect moves to reclaim third in what proved to be the battle of the race. Toseland's determined pursuit of Rossi thrilled a large Australian crowd, but as he lost touch with the Italian on lap 13, he was then locked in another terrific battle with Lorenzo, Andrea Dovizioso and Shinya Nakano. Just when it looked like his faultless display would be rewarded with his career best result, he dropped from fourth to sixth on a frantic lap 25. Toseland continued to push hard but was unable to improve on sixth, but his performance was arguably the outstanding ride of the day. Colin Edwards also made a great start from the third row of the grid as he tried to mark his 100th Grand Prix appearance with a top six. Fifth on the first lap, he quickly encountered some traction issues, and his reward for a hard fought race was a battling eighth place. Today's result saw the Tech 3 Yamaha team move back into fourth place in the Team World Championship standings. James Toseland - Position 6th - 100 points "That was an unbelievable race. I got a really good start but Casey and Nicky were incredibly fast at the start. They really put the hammer down and I was wary that I needed to save my tyre for the last few laps, which are always difficult on this track with so much wear on the left side. I just wanted to stay out of trouble but I had some incredible battles out there. The one with Valentino was something special. When he passed me I knew I had to get straight back by him. If I had let him go I knew I'd have to push right at the limit and that would wear my tyre too quickly. The rear was already spinning at that point and I tried everything I could to keep him behind me. When he did pass me and he pulled a gap, I did push a bit too hard and that cost me towards the end of the race. But it was an honour to be racing with Valentino and passing him. In the last three laps I'd just lost a bit of grip and that was crucial because it probably cost me those two places. I knew fourth was up for grabs so I tried to pass Andrea at Honda Hairpin on the last lap. We ran a bit wide and Andrea seemed a bit upset but I passed him without touching him. I am sorry if he is upset, but he is upset for no reason. I was fighting for the best result of my MotoGP career so I had to try something. Shinya came by as I ran wide but I passed him back at Siberia, only for him to come right back underneath me because I ran a bit wide again. I am just happy with the way I rode. I rode hard and I am really pleased that on my birthday I put a good show on and I could enjoy it. I was riding my heart out and when I have a ride like that and I pass Valentino it encourages me even more." Colin Edwards - Position 8th - 126 points "I got a really good start and I thought I could hang in with the battle for third and fourth, but pretty much from the first couple of laps I knew it was going to be a really difficult race. I couldn't even keep them close to me because I couldn't get in the corner and I couldn't get out of the corners. Quite early on I had a moment on the front-end and that hadn't happened all weekend. After that I just couldn't push and I just stayed at the same pace. I couldn't really do more than a 31.5 and it didn't matter what I did I kept falling back. Right at the end I could see de Puniet was running into a few problems with his rear tyre and I was slowly reeling him back in. I managed to pass him and make it stick. It is severely disappointing because I really believed that I could run up close to the podium today. I was riding really hard so to finish eighth is frustrating. I felt like I was on the absolute limit at the pace I was running and it wasn't good enough. This isn't the way I wanted to celebrate my 100th Grand Prix, but congratulations to James. He rode a great race and I'll be looking for a lot more in Malaysia." Herve Poncharal - Team Manager "James was absolutely incredible today and he could not have done anymore to get his best result of the season. It was a shame he was sixth again, but again he showed what a true fighter he is. We were quietly confident going into the race after we had a very strong qualifying session with James fifth and Colin seventh on the grid. James made an incredible start and when we saw him fighting in third we couldn't believe it because we weren't sure whether he could maintain the pace knowing how tough this track is for the tyres. But he kept his pace and that was impressive. He also fought very hard with some of the top guys in this championship. His fight with Valentino was extra special and terrific to watch. Not a lot of guys get passed by Valentino and then pass him straight back, so it was incredible to see him do this. We were dreaming of a podium at one point but the way he rode, I think he gave the fans a really special show. It was a great way to celebrate his birthday and I think he gave himself a good present with that ride. Colin didn't finish where we expected but he fought hard to the end and his result has helped us move back into fourth in the Team World Championship, which is very important for us. I'd also like to congratulate Mike di Meglio for winning the World 125 Championship. As a French team it is special to see home grown talent succeed on the world stage." Race 1 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 40'56.543 2, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 0'6.504 3, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 0'7.205 4, Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha, ESP, 0'11.500 5, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 0'11.914 6, James Toseland, Yamaha, GBR, 0'12.243 7, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 0'12.780 8, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 0'25.920 9, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 0'26.037 10, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 0'26.799 11, Toni Elias, Ducati, ESP, 0'27.027 12, Anthony West, Kawasaki, AUS, 0'47.808 13, John Hopkins, Kawasaki, USA, 0'48.333 14, Sylvain Guintoli, Ducati, FRA, 0'48.899 15, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 0'48.935 16, Marco Melandri, Ducati, ITA, 1'11.767 Best Lap Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 1'28.665 Rider Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 332 2, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 245 3, Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, ESP, 209 4, Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha, ESP, 182 5, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 145 6, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 131 7, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 126 8, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 118 9, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 106 10, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 102 11, James Toseland, Yamaha, GBR, 100 12, Toni Elias, Ducati, ESP, 91 13, Sylvain Guintoli, Ducati, FRA, 60 14, Alex De Angelis, Honda, SMR, 55 15, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 54 Team Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Team, Points 1, FIAT Yamaha Team, 514 2, Repsol Honda Team, 340 3, Ducati Marlboro Team, 296 4, Tech3 Yamaha, 226 5, Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 222 6, Honda Gresini, 161 7, Team Alice, 151 8, JIR Scot Team, 145 9, Kawasaki Racing Team, 96 10, Honda LCR, 54 Manufacturer Standings 05/10/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Yamaha, 361 2, Ducati, 286 3, Honda, 275 4, Suzuki, 165 5, Kawasaki, 81

The 62nd Motocross of Nations saw the biggest media attendance of the year for a European race and a large contingent of the press corps crowded the Monster Energy hospitality unit on Saturday to see David Philippaerts select a canvas print from a dedicated gallery compiled to celebrate a title-winning campaign and present it to the Wings for Life foundation. Ten images of the Yamaha Monster Motocross Team including action shots of Philippaerts and Josh Coppins as well as photographs from the victory scenes at the decisive Grand Prix Citta di Faenza were displayed to the press and public inside the hospitality. The World Champion then signed and gave one of the pictures to former number one Heinz Kinigadner for auction to generate more funding for the foundation that works for research and prevention of spinal injuries. “It was great to see the gallery and reminded me of some of the good times we had this season,” said the Italian. “It was a nice gesture by Yamaha Motor Europe and I am pleased that we could show it off at the same time as the race replica,” he added referring to the new 2009 YZ450F Yamaha Motocross Team Replica that was launched at the same moment. “Wings for Life is an important organisation and to give them one of the pictures was no problem at all, it was good that Heinz could be there also; it was a special moment,” he added.

American racing sensation Ben Spies has signed up to the Yamaha factory World Superbike Team to partner 23 yr old British rider Tom Sykes for the 2009 season. The 24yr old American rider from Dallas is fresh from a record third championship win in a row, taking the AMA Superbike Championship crown again for 2008. Spies is only the fourth rider in the history of AMA Superbike to win three consecutive titles and 3rd on the all-time AMA Superbike wins list with a total of 28 AMA Superbike wins. This now completes the Yamaha World Superbike team for 2009. Spies has been racing and winning in the AMA Superbike Championship since 2005, and has an unrivalled 90% podium finish rate for racing, the highest for any AMA rider in the history of the championship. He took second place in his rookie year followed by the three successive championship wins. Prior to this he had a three year stint in the AMA Supersport Championship,. Spies turned pro in 2000, racing in the AMA Superstock Championship for two years before joining AMA Supersport in 2002. Spies has also ridden in MotoGP in 2008, starting in place of injured Loris Capirossi at the British GP, finishing 14th place scoring his first MotoGP points. He had a further 2 wildcard outings, achieving 8th at Laguna Seca and an even more impressive 6th at Indianapolis. “I’m very excited about joining Yamaha in World Superbike,” Spies said. “This is a positive step for the direction of my career. I’ll have a great opportunity to race on many of the top road racing circuits in the world. Riding with a company as passionate about racing as Yamaha is going to put me in a good position to contest for a world championship right from the start.” “Superbike racing originated in America, but it’s been a while since we’ve had an American world champion. There’s a great tradition of American riders in World Superbike and I hope to put my name alongside great champions like Fred Merkel, Doug Polen, Scott Russell, John Kocinski and Colin Edwards. “ “After considering my offers it became obvious to me that Yamaha would be a great home. Yamaha was excited about the possibility of me joining them and they just made me feel like I was coming into a great family. You look at how Yamaha treats its riders and how, even after their careers are over, they’re always part of the Yamaha family. That was really important to me. I’m looking forward to the challenge at hand and to work with Yamaha to produce a winning team and ultimately a World Superbike Championship.” Massimo Meregalli (Yamaha’s factory Superbike Team Manager) – “We’re really enthusiastic to have signed Ben Spies for the 2009 team. He’s proved to be a very skilful and successful rider in AMA Superbike, he has been one of the riders we have followed closely this year. We are sure he will be a great combination with Tom Sykes, the team are looking forward to starting with them both next year. There will be a lot to learn with new circuits and new bikes but we also have new motivation as a fresh team and will give 200% to help the riders win in 2009. ” “We’re very excited to have Ben join the team” said Yamaha Motor Europe Racing Division Manager Laurens Klein Koerkamp. “He’s proved to be a top rider with his AMA titles and recent rides in MotoGP, we believe he’s got a long future ahead of him at the highest levels in motorcycle racing.“

Despite being down to just two riders for the penultimate round of the 2008 World Enduro Championship due to the injury sustained by Spaniard Cristobal Guerrero at this year's ISDE in Greece, the UFO Corse Yamaha team put in a strong showing at their home round of the WEC series in Piediluco, Italy with Maurizio Micheluz claiming the team's best E1 class results with 3rd on Day1 and 4th on Day2. With Albergoni riding just 15 days after cracking a shoulder blade at the ISDE, Maurizio Micheluz led the UFO Corse team on Day1 claiming his first podium result of the year. With many riders struggling to get to grips with the hard, dry Italian terrain, Maurizio gelled with each of the event's special tests to finish the opening day just 48 seconds behind eventual winner Mika Ahola and ahead of former double E1 world champion Ivan Cervantes. Winning one of the day's extreme tests, finishing 3rd on two of the enduro tests, as well as 2nd on the opening motocross test, Maurizio put in his strongest performance of the season. On Day2 Maurizio dropped one position to 4th in the E1 class despite continued good riding. With one round of the '08 WEC series remaining, Maurizio sits 5th in the E1 championship standings. For Simone Albergoni the GP of Italy was a tough one. Having been unable to ride since the ISDE where he crashed on the final day and cracked one of his shoulder blades Simone was unable to perform at his best and despite his efforts could place no higher than 4th on Day1 and 7th on Day2. Starting well on the first day and winning the first timed extreme test Simone saw his pace decrease as the day wore on. On Day2 several crashes, including one big accident on the final enduro test, stopped Albergoni placing higher than 7th. Despite being extremely disappointed Simone remains third in the E1 championship standings and sits 20 points ahead of Yamaha France rider Marc Germain. Despite being best known as a mud specialist Germain claimed a creditable runner-up result on Day1 finishing just 24 seconds behind winner Mika Ahola. On Day2 Marc matched his day one result to finish as runner-up. Simone Albergoni (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 1 class - Day 1 5th, Day 2 7th: "It's not been a good weekend for me, mainly because I broke my shoulder blade when I crashed in the final motocross race at the ISDE. With just 15 days between the two races I've struggled. Half way through every special test I had no power, I just couldn't push. I wasn't able to train before the race so I was getting very tired. I had several crashes on day two, one of which was very big. I was lucky not to hurt myself. Although my results weren't what I wanted for my home GP it's not been too bad as far as the championship is concerned because I only lost 10 points to the rider behind me." Maurizio Micheluz (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 1 class - Day 1 3rd, Day 2 4th: "I'm really happy to have got my first podium of this season at my home race. It's also the second podium of my career so it's great to be back once again. I tried to push as much as I could on day one because I was really enjoying the conditions. I was second until the last lap on day one so I am very happy with the way it finished. Some of the other riders were a little faster on day two, but I still managed to finish fourth so it has been a very good weekend for me. It's been a very difficult race. We had more than one-hour of special tests as well as a tight time check on each lap. It's been a typically Italian race and I've really enjoyed it." Race 1Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Mika Ahola, Honda, FIN, 69'21.900 2, Marc Germain, Yamaha, FRA, 0'24.710 3, Maurizio Micheluz, Yamaha, ITA, 0'48.910 4, Ivan Cervantes, KTM, ESP, 1'11.880 5, Simone Albergoni, Yamaha, ITA, 1'14.450 6, Bartosz Oblucki, Husqvarna, POL, 1'49.380 7, Mike Hartmann, KTM, GER, 2'48.760 8, Damien Miquel, Suzuki, FRA, 3'23.830 9, Tom Sagar, KTM, GBR, 3'50.530 10, Luca Cherubini, TM, ITA, 3'52.740 11, Jari Juha Mattila, Honda, FIN, 4'17.270 12, Eero Remes, KTM, FIN, 5'7.860 13, Giuliano Falgari, Honda, ITA, 5'46.500 14, Jakub Horak, KTM, CZE, 7'39.950 Race 2Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Mika Ahola, Honda, FIN, 84'40.140 2, Marc Germain, Yamaha, FRA, 0'44.850 3, Ivan Cervantes, KTM, ESP, 0'51.730 4, Maurizio Micheluz, Yamaha, ITA, 1'52.160 5, Eero Remes, KTM, FIN, 2'54.160 6, Jari Juha Mattila, Honda, FIN, 2'55.350 7, Simone Albergoni, Yamaha, ITA, 3'7.260 8, Bartosz Oblucki, Husqvarna, POL, 3'35.800 9, Mike Hartmann, KTM, GER, 4'12.010 10, Damien Miquel, Yamaha, FRA, 4'50.510 11, Jordan Curvalle, Suzuki, FRA, 9'1.480 12, Jakub Horak, KTM, CZE, 12'3.410 Rider Standings 27/09/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Mika Ahola, Honda, FIN, 325 2, Ivan Cervantes, KTM, ESP, 322 3, Simone Albergoni, Yamaha, ITA, 267 4, Marc Germain, Yamaha, FRA, 242 5, Maurizio Micheluz, Yamaha, ITA, 196 6, Cristobal Guerrero, Yamaha, ESP, 185 7, Mike Hartmann, KTM, GER, 145 8, Jordan Curvalle, Suzuki, FRA, 140 9, Tom Sagar, KTM, GBR, 140 10, Eero Remes, KTM, FIN, 137 11, Bartosz Oblucki, Husqvarna, POL, 109 12, Luca Cherubini, TM, ITA, 102 13, Jakub Horak, KTM, CZE, 82 14, Daryl Bolter, Husqvarna, GBR, 58 15, Danielle Tellini, Suzuki, ITA, 50 Manufacturer Standings 27/09/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, Honda, 325 2, KTM, 309 3, Yamaha, 296 4, Husqvarna, 167 5, Suzuki, 153 6, TM, 102 7, Kawasaki, 47 8, Sherco, 12 ---------- RACE REPORT - 29/09/2008 Aubert close to title after Italian win With just one round of the 2008 World Enduro Championship remaining UFO Corse Yamaha team rider Johnny Aubert holds a 16-point lead over Finn Juha Salminen having finished the GP of Italy as the E2 class winner on Day1 and as runner-up on Day2. Having suffered both injury and mechanical troubles at the UFO Corse Yamaha team's home round of the world championship in past years, this time around Aubert did exactly what he needed to do and finished without problems as he closed in on his first ever world championship title. Winning the first three special tests on day one to open up an important lead over rival Salminen, Aubert then maintained his position at the front of the class throughout the course and adding a further three test wins to his name claimed an eventual 18 second winning margin. On Day2 Aubert again started strongly by winning four of the first five special tests. Looking as if he was headed towards a second victory he found himself trailing Salminen as the day neared it's close and on the very last extreme test of the event parted company with his bike in spectacular fashion, losing well over one-minute. Luckily uninjured following his spill, Johnny held on to the runner-up position and now heads to his second home GP of the season in France with a 16-point lead at the top of the E2 championship standings. Ensuring Yamaha enjoyed a strong presence in the Enduro 2 class at the GP of Italy, Fabrizio Dini placed a creditable 5th on Day1 having held 3rd in class for much of the opening two laps. Looking to secure strong results at his home round of the WEC the WR450F-mounted rider rode exceptionally well on the extreme test where he placed 3rd in the class on two separate occasions. Also performing well on the motocross and enduro tests the former motocross racer was consistent throughout the day. Disappointingly, Day2 started badly for Fabrizio as, after the opening three special tests, he was placed down near the bottom of the E2 standings. During the day however he managed to pull himself back up the results, helped again by impressive riding on the extreme test. Johnny Aubert (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 2 class - Day 1 1st, Day 2 2nd: "It's been a really good weekend for me. I was 21 seconds faster than Juha in the first lap on day one, which was a great start. I was faster on the motocross and extreme tests and he was faster on the enduro test. I ended the day 18 seconds ahead and it was a good run. I was having a good day again on Sunday, having a decent battle with Juha, and it looked like I was going to finish second. I arrived at the final extreme test and made a huge mistake. I crashed on one of the big rock steps and lost more than one minute. Thankfully, I made a good final motocross test and managed to hold my second place. I have just one race to go now, my second home race in France. I'm a little more relaxed now, but maybe that will change when the final race of the season gets a little closer." Fabrizio Dini (UFO Corse Yamaha) Enduro 2 class - Day 1 5th Day 2 8th: "The first day was really good for me. I was third for two laps. After that I had a small problem on the enduro test and finished fifth, which isn't so bad. I was really looking forward to the second day, but things didn't go as well as I hoped they would. I crashed five times including two big crashes in the enduro test. After that it was very difficult. I finished eighth, which I'm happy with because after the first three tests I was last in the E2 class. It's been a very difficult race with lots of special tests and one very challenging and tight time control." Race 1Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Johnny Aubert, Yamaha, FRA, 69'0.880 2, Juha Salminen, KTM, FIN, 0'17.990 3, Rodrig Thain, TM, FRA, 1'24.980 4, Alessandro Belometti, KTM, ITA, 1'31.680 5, Fabrizio Dini, Yamaha, ITA, 1'59.840 6, Fabio Mossini, Honda, ITA, 2'8.160 7, Nicolas Paganon, Aprilia, FRA, 2'46.350 8, Nicolas Deparrois, GasGas, FRA, 3'15.930 9, Joakim Ljunggren, HusaBerg, SWE, 3'17.340 10, Jean Francois Goblet, BMW, BEL, 4'50.160 11, Aaron Bernandez, Husqvarna, ESP, 4'57.600 12, Antoine Meo, Husqvarna, FRA, 5'7.190 13, Rudy Cotton, Beta, FRA, 5'13.840 14, Dario Cardinali, Husqvarna, ITA, 30'39.780 Race 2Â Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Juha Salminen, KTM, FIN, 84'8.990 2, Johnny Aubert, Yamaha, FRA, 1'21.880 3, Alessandro Belometti, KTM, ITA, 1'41.530 4, Antoine Meo, Husqvarna, FRA, 1'41.880 5, Rodrig Thain, TM, FRA, 1'54.760 6, Fabio Mossini, Honda, ITA, 2'19.710 7, Nicolas Paganon, Aprilia, FRA, 3'16.480 8, Fabrizio Dini, Yamaha, ITA, 3'37.900 9, Joakim Ljunggren, HusaBerg, SWE, 3'39.930 10, Nicolas Deparrois, GasGas, FRA, 3'47.590 11, Simo Kirssi, BMW, FIN, 5'34.330 Rider Standings 27/09/2008 Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Points 1, Johnny Aubert, Yamaha, FRA, 319 2, Juha Salminen, KTM, FIN, 303 3, Alessandro Belometti, KTM, ITA, 223 4, Rodrig Thain, TM, FRA, 196 5, Joakim Ljunggren, HusaBerg, SWE, 189 6, Antoine Meo, Husqvarna, FRA, 180 7, Fabrizio Dini, Yamaha, ITA, 171 8, Nicolas Paganon, Aprilia, FRA, 143 9, Simo Kirssi, BMW, FIN, 139 10, Fabio Mossini, Honda, ITA, 126 11, Valtteri Salonen, HusaBerg, FIN, 126 12, Nicolas Deparrois, GasGas, FRA, 111 13, Jari Juha Mattila, Honda, FIN, 110 14, Alessandro Zanni, Honda, ITA, 78 15, Aaron Bernandez, Husqvarna, ESP, 59 Manufacturer Standings 27/09/2008 Pos., Manufacturer, Points 1, KTM, 328 2, Yamaha, 319 3, HusaBerg, 215 4, Husqvarna, 206 5, Honda, 200 6, TM, 196 7, BMW, 169 8, Aprilia, 143 9, GasGas, 111 10, Beta, 49 11, Suzuki, 26