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Friday October 23, 2009

Rossi seeks to wrap up MotoGP crown

STORIES by LIM TEIK HUAT

ITALIAN Valentino Rossi has been chauffeured around like a tourist since his arrival two days ago as he soaked in the city sights and even went up the Petronas Twin Towers at Kuala Lumpur City Centre with his Yamaha Racing team-mate Jorge Lorenzo.

But fun for “The Doctor” ends as he gets down to clinical business, starting with the practice session of the Shell Advance Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix at the circuit in Sepang today.

A second-placed finish at the Australian Grand Prix last Sunday and, with Lorenzo not getting any point following an early crash, Rossi is in prime position to retain the MotoGP world title in Sepang with one round to spare in the 17-stop championships.

With a cushion of 38 points over his Spanish team-mate, it is hard to see anyone preventing the flamboyant Italian from claiming a seventh world title in the premier class.

A top-four finish in Sepang on Sunday, regardless of Lorenzo’s position, will be enough for Rossi to claim the title.

“Phillip Island was like gold dust for us in terms of points and now we come to Malaysia, another of my favourite tracks ... with our first match point,” said a relaxed Rossi, who is relishing the prospect of winning the Malaysian GP for the sixth time.

The 30-year-old Rossi is certainly the rider with the most impressive record in the premier class in Sepang after finishing on the podium seven times in nine starts. Rossi was the race winner in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006 and last year.

“I have had great results here in the past and, generally, the Yamaha works well,” he said. So we have a good chance. It’s important for us to get a good setting and we need to be ready for all weather conditions. My number one target for the weekend is to try to close out the championship.”

But the show in the Malaysian GP is not all about Rossi. There are three or four other riders capable of taking the chequered flag on Sunday and Ducati’s Casey Stoner is very much in the picture.

The 2007 MotoGP world champion rode a strong race to win from start at Phillip Island to dispel any lingering doubts over his fitness following an enforced break because of injury and he is looking ahead to the challenges in Sepang.

The punishing heat and high level of humidity at Sepang will provide the 24-year-old Stoner with the next test in his recovery.

Stoner is the only rider thus far to have won in all classes at Sepang and is well aware of what to expect. He is currently in third place in the standings on 195 points.

The Australian added that Sepang would definitely be a tough race for everyone due to the extreme weather conditions.

“Being fast and consistent in those conditions is always difficult regardless. It is not easy to find the perfect set-up there but that has always been the case. The championship is out of my reach but I, like everyone else here, can only try to win races,” said Stoner, who finished sixth last year.

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