Bradley Smith and Julián Simón were again involved in a final-lap battle for victory at the last Grand Prix of the year in Valencia, with the 125cc 2009 World Champion Simón coming out on top of the Englishman for the third successive race.

Taking their contest to the very last corner of the race, Simón managed to hold off Smith for another thrilling finish, as he eventually crossed the line just 0.220s ahead of the talented young Briton. World Championship runner-up Smith rode another fine race and held the lead for several laps, as he rounded off a great season with his sixth consecutive podium.

Meanwhile, having qualified in ninth place, Gloucestershire’s Scott Redding saw his afternoon end in disappointment as he crashed with his Blusens Aprilia team-mate Esteve Rabat on the sixth lap.

Danny Webb missed the race due to a foot injury sustained on Saturday, but there was good news from the Kent rider on Friday as he announced his signature with the successful Jack & Jones sponsored WRB team in the 125cc class for the next two years.

In the 250cc class there was drama as Hiroshi Aoyama nearly threw away the title when he ran off track with seven laps to go, but an eventual seventh place finish and a later crash for his rival Marco Simoncelli secured him the title. Local rider Hector Barbera won the race ahead of Alvaro Bautista and Raffaele de Rosa.

In the MotoGP class Dani Pedrosa ended the season on a high, as he enjoyed a start-to-finish win and Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo completed the podium. The drama started before the race had even commenced, as pole position holder Casey Stoner’s high-side crash on the warm-up lap meant he was unable to take his place on the grid. That allowed Pedrosa to lead the grid from second position on the front row, and after taking the hole shot he did not look back, sealing third spot in the overall standings in the process.

Race Results

1 Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 46'47.553

2 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 46'50.183

3 Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 46'50.466

4  Colin EDWARDS USA YAMAHA 47'20.068

5  Nicky HAYDEN USA DUCATI 47'22.138

6 Toni ELIAS SPA HONDA 47'22.441

2009 Championship Results

1 ROSSI Valentino 306 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 261

3 PEDROSA Dani 234

4 STONER Casey 220

5 EDWARDS Colin 161

6 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 160

TOSELAND SIXTH IN MOTOGP DONINGTON FAREWELL

British rider James Toseland placed sixth at the British Grand Prix, just pipped to fifth by reigning MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi. The Sheffield star had a much more successful time of things than at his premier class debut at Donington Park last year, where he crashed on the opening corner.

The Monster Tech 3 Yamaha rider moved up to twelfth in the standings courtesy of the result, his joint best in 2009.

PODIUM AND DISAPPOINTMENT IN 125cc

Gloucester’s Scott Redding followed up his 2008 victory at Donington Park with a podium finish in a race of two parts, having started from eleventh on the 125cc grid. The Blusens Aprilia rider managed to work his way up to the leaders early on, and was on the second row when the race was restarted due to heavy rainfall.

The five-lap sprint was won by Julián Simón, with Simone Corsi second. Redding held his nerve in the rain for a great comeback and the only home podium of the day.

Poleman Bradley Smith had led the restart, but crashed on the opening lap. He remounted for twentieth place, but now has a mountain to climb if he is to catch up with Simón in the overall standings.

Kent-based Danny Webb crashed out on the very first lap of the race in a multiple rider incident, but escaped unharmed.

Dovizioso takes first MotoGP victory in eventful Donington swansong

Andrea Dovizioso closed the MotoGP stay at Donington Park with a first ever premier class victory, coming out on top in what became a ‘semi flag-to-flag’ race. The Repsol Honda rider made sense of the madness that ensued with steady rainfall to earn 25 points and the honour of being the last premier class winner at the Midlands circuit.

The race was one of the most unpredictable of recent years, with twists and turns every step of the way. Besides the maiden triumph there were falls for the top two in the World Championship, a disastrous pre-race decision from a title contender and riders holding on instead of coming in for a bike change.

Dovizioso had been in the chasing group on the opening laps, but was thrust up to the front courtesy of his superior pace and mistakes from his rivals. After battling with World Championship leader Valentino Rossi at the head of the field, the young Italian found himself alone out in front as the more experienced Rossi fell at the Fogarty Esses with eleven laps remaining.

Also benefitting from consistency were podium finishers Colin Edwards and Randy de Puniet, who engaged in an entertaining battle as the chequered flag came closer to being waved. Monster Tech 3 Yamaha man Edwards took second from the LCR Honda rider on the final hairpin, ending the race just under 1.5 seconds behind Dovizioso. For both riders the top three result was their first podium of the 2009 season.

The early going saw uncertainty and instability as rain fell upon the lights going off. Early leader Jorge Lorenzo had been talked out of running wet tyres and took the lead after just a handful of laps, but took a fall when he clipped a slippery rumble strip and was unable to restart his Yamaha M1. The crash had been foreshadowed by a tumble for Toni Elías, the leader of lap one and a faller at the same spot on lap seven.

The Ducati Marlboro team of Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden were the only riders to go with full wet tyres on the grid, although a lack of heavy rainfall and the durability of Bridgestone’s dry tyre meant that they were immediately off the pace. The duo were lapped by the leaders two laps before the halfway point of the race, their gamble definitively failing to pay off.

With eight laps remaining the first riders came in to change machines, but it was too late for the switch to make an impact. Alex de Angelis placed fourth, ahead of the remounted Rossi and home rider James Toseland –with whom he dueled on the last lap. Rossi now leads the World Championship by 25 points from Lorenzo.

MotoGP takes a brief break before returning in the Czech Republic on August 16th.

James Toseland took a top ten finish at the Polini Grand Prix of Japan, claiming his first points of the 2009 season. The Sheffield-born racer started from the fourth row of the grid, and had a tough battle with his rivals for those valuable World Championship marks. Riding that Monster Yamaha Tech3 M1, Toseland finished ahead of teammate and rival Colin Edwards.

It was a dry race for the MotoGP event, unlike Saturday’s torrential downpour. The rain and a nasty nip in the air had made setting up the bikes extremely difficult for the riders, who experienced different conditions when they lined up on the grid on Sunday.

The two-time World Superbike champion now heads to Jerez for round three of the MotoGP World Championship, where he suffered a big crash less than a month ago in testing.

Kent-based teenager Danny Webb led most of the 125cc race in Japan, but ended up outside the top ten as the Motegi track dried out. The De Graaf Grand Prix rider had been the frontrunner from the second lap until the final third of the race, although he lost grip on his wet tyres and ended the day eleventh.

Oxfordshire teenager Bradley Smith was again off the podium on that Bancaja Aspar Aprilia. He finished tenth and had to make a spectacular save on the third-to-last lap, but has Jerez to look forward to next week.

Youngest-ever Grand Prix race winner Scott Redding had a tough time at Motegi. He retired with twelve laps remaining.

Lorenzo storms to victory and standings top spot in Motegi showdown

Jorge Lorenzo emerged victorious from a thrilling Polini Grand Prix of Japan at Twin Ring Motegi, the second win of his MotoGP career and a result that retained his 100% podium record in the 2009 season.

The Fiat Yamaha rider took little time in taking the reins of the race, having started from the front row and showed no fear when faced with the likes of Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi in front of him. However, despite a relatively comfortable advantage, Lorenzo was never quite able to say a definitive ‘sayonara’ to his rivals as the action heated up. He held on to cross the line with a gap of less than two seconds between him and second placed teammate Rossi.

Lorenzo moves up into first place in the overall classification, for the second time in his MotoGP career. The battle for second place in the race was MotoGP at its finest, as Repsol Honda man Pedrosa exchanged overtaking moves in the middle third of the 24 laps. Pedrosa took third from out of nowhere, having had a storming start from the fourth row of the grid.

Ducati Marlboro rider Casey Stoner was unable to break away as he had done in Qatar, finishing fourth and keeping up the pressure in the general standings. Andrea Dovizioso completed a fine day for Repsol Honda in fifth, ahead of Marco Melandri, Loris Capirossi, Mika Kallio, James Toseland and Chris Vermeulen.

Race Results:

Championship Positions:

In his 50th Grand Prix Bradley Smith shot to his first ever victory by a 13 second margin at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España on Sunday. Scott Redding was close to the podium in fourth place and Danny Webb was in the top ten, on a great day for the British 125cc riders.

Not always a great starter Smith got away brilliantly, taking the holeshot and immediately building up a good lead at the front. By the midway point in the race the 18 year-old from Oxfordshire, had given himself an 18 second advantage, riding a lonely race to eventually cross the line still well ahead of the chasing pack for his maiden GP triumph.

After poleman Julián Simón and series leader Andrea Iannone both crashed Smith went unchallenged en route to victory, the Briton closing to within one point of Iannone in the standings.

“I have waited a long time for this moment, but when it finally arrives you just don’t know how it feels” explained Smith. “Everything with the bike and team worked perfectly and it was the perfect way to win my first grand prix at Jerez in front of such a massive crowd.”

Behind Smith there was a superb race-long battle for the podium with his team-mate Sergio Gadea eventually edging out Marc Márquez. Gloucestershire youngster Redding missed the podium by less than a second and Kent rider Webb was just three seconds behind Redding in eighth place.

There was further frustration for Yorkshire’s James Toseland in the MotoGP race, however, as he could do no better than an unlucky 13th having qualified in 14th place. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider will hope for better form at Le Mans in two weeks time.

The MotoGP contest was won by Valentino Rossi with his first victory of 2009, as Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner completed the podium.

A great 250cc contest saw Hiroshi Aoyama beat home favourite Álvaro Bautista on the last corner. As the front four crossed the line within three seconds of each other, Metis Gilera’s World Champion Marco Simoncelli completed the podium ahead of fourth placed Héctor Barberá.

Bradley Smith kept up the championship pace at the Grand Prix of France, doing a professional job to bring his Aprilia 125cc home in fourth and collect more valuable points. The Bancaja Aspar rider’s team-mate Julián Simón was the winner, taking over at the top of the standings after four races.

On the back of his first career win in Spain two weeks ago Oxfordshire teenager Smith came home behind German 15 year-old Jonas Folger and fellow Aspar rider Sergio Gadea. The Briton now sits second in the standings, 5.5 points behind Simón.

In an accident strewn race on a wet track Smith’s compatriots, Kent rider Danny Webb and Gloucestershire youngster Scott Redding, unfortunately crashed out and left France pointless.

Smith commented afterwards, “It was an unbelievable race and obviously I hoped to be on the podium because we had a good weekend overall and we have come here after winning at Jerez. The conditions were difficult though and I had some problems with the rear tyre which was slipping around so I wasn’t too confident on some of the corners. Still, we got some good points and we are second in the championship so we can move along to Mugello in Italy with confidence.”

A dramatic MotoGP contest, meanwhile, saw the riders swap from wet to slick tyres mid-race as the track dried out, with Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo judging things to perfection to take his second win of the year. Marco Melandri was second, Dani Pedrosa third and Yorkshireman James Toseland came home ninth, whilst Valentino Rossi was last, after a crash, a ride through penalty and three bike swaps!

In the 250cc race World Champion Marco Simoncelli returned to winning form, Spaniard Héctor Faubel recorded his first 250 podium in second, Simoncelli’s team-mate Roberto Locatelli came home third and Álvaro Bautista picked up good points in fourth to go top of the general standings. British wildcard rider Toby Markham scored two points in fourteenth place on his C&L Racing Honda machine.

The last British rider to lead a World Solo Championship was Barry Sheene who led the 1979 500cc World Championship after winning the opening round in Venezuela.

An exciting 125cc contest at the Italian Grand Prix saw Oxfordshire’s Bradley Smith (Bancaja Aspar) take victory from pole position, holding off a strong challenge from Spaniard Nico Terol on the last lap - to earn maximum points and the lead in the standings.

After morning rain the track dried relatively quickly and allowed for a highly competitive contest with Smith, Terol and Julián Simón (Bancaja Aspar) pulling away in the second half of the race to fill the podium. Smith eventually crossed the line 0.216 ahead of Terol, with Simón conceding the championship lead as he trailed his Aspar team-mate by seven seconds.

After a great performance from the English teenager on a drying track, following morning rain, Smith commented, “I had Terol and Simón right on my rear wheel and I couldn’t shake them for a long time. It looked like I was going to break away but then I nearly went down on one corner on a wet patch so I had to be careful. The last lap I was pushing very hard and had a couple more dodgy moments but to finish first again is just superb, especially after such a good weekend.”

Smith’s compatriot Scott Redding had started behind him in second place on the grid and was involved in a great battle for fourth place in the second half of the race, but the Gloucestershire rider eventually had to settle for seventh, whilst Kent’s Danny Webb unfortunately crashed out on lap six after a good start.

In the wet-drying MotoGP race James Toseland made a brave decision to come in first and change bikes when running towards the back of the field and he just missed out on equaling his best MotoGP result of sixth as he was outdone by team-mate Colin Edwards on the last lap, having also dueled with LCR Honda’s Randy de Puniet who was eventually eighth. Seventh was nonetheless Toseland’s best result of 2009 so far.

The 250cc race meanwhile, saw a popular home win for Mattia Pasini in difficult wet conditions, with World Champion Marco Simoncelli second and title candidate Alvaro Bautista third – subject to a decision from race direction after Simoncelli and Bautista ran off track together in a controversial incident.

Although Bradley Smith dropped from first to second in the 125cc World Championships on Sunday the Englishman still performed well the Catalunya circuit near Barcelona, riding intelligently to an eighth place finish from seventh on the grid.

The Oxfordshire teenager was not on his strongest form this weekend at the sixth round of the year, but he undertook a mission in damage limitation to pick up eight valuable points.

His team-mate Julián Simón now sits at the head of the standings with a 1.5 point advantage, but the Spaniard could have won the Barcelona race had he not celebrated a lap too early and thrown away a victory, eventually finishing fourth. Italian rider Andrea Iannone was the race-winner, with Spaniards Nico Terol and Sergio Gadea second and third.

Also picking up a handful of points, meanwhile, was Gloucestershire’s Blusens Aprilia rider Scott Redding, who qualified tenth on Saturday and finished the race in eleventh place. There was further frustration for Kent youngster Danny Webb however, as the Degraaf Grand Prix man had to retire early due to a hand injury.

In the MotoGP race, Valentino Rossi pulled off a superb last corner move on his young Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo to take his 99th career victory, with an exhausted Casey Stoner crossing the line third – meaning that those three riders are now all tied for first position in the standings on 106 points. Meanwhile, James Toseland brought his satellite Yamaha machine home in 13th place in the stifling 40°C heat.

The 250cc contest saw a popular victory for Alvaro Bautista, as he extended his championship lead, with Hiroshi Aoyama second and Hector Barbera third. World Champion Marco Simoncelli had crashed out on just the second lap.

Race Results:

1 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 43'11.897

2 Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 43'11.992

3 Casey STONER AUS  DUCATI 43'20.781

4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA HONDA 43'20.833

5 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA SUZUKI 43'31.728

6 Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 43'34.079

Championship Positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 106 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 106

3 STONER Casey 106

4 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 69

5 PEDROSA Dani 67

6 EDWARDS Colin 54

It only rains six days a year in Qatar but one of those days just happened to be on the opening round of the 2009 MotoGP World Championship. Heavy rain driven on by high desert winds soaked the Losail International circuit causing the postponement of the Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar.

The 22 lap race round the 3.343 mile Losail International circuit was due to start when the deluge started and it was impossible for the race to start under the floodlights.

After a meeting between the teams and Race Direction it was decided that the race will be run at 21.00 hrs on Monday evening. The last grand prix to be cancelled was in 1980 when the Austrian Grand Prix at the Salzburgring did not start because of heavy snow.

Earlier in the evening the opening round of the 125 cc World Championship was reduced to just four laps when the rain started to pour down. Eighteen year old Bradley Smith took fifth place in the race won by Italian Andrea Iannone. Only half World Championship points were awarded because of the length of the race.

Kent – based Danny Webb finished ninth with 16 year old Scott Redding in 13th place in a race that was originally scheduled to run for 18 laps. Yorkshire teenager Matthew Hoyle did not start the race after damaging his back crashing in the warm-up session.

British riders did not have the best of days at the Alice Grand Prix of Germany, with just two of the hopefuls placing inside the top ten.

James Toseland –the sole Brit competing in the MotoGP class- was again unable to achieve the top six result that he has targeted for the remaining races of the 2009 campaign, finishing tenth at Sachsenring onboard the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 M1. He earned points but was once again behind teammate Colin Edwards in the standings.

Wild card Toby Markham’s latest 250cc saw the youngster finish seventeenth on race day, and he now has two World Championship points to his name.

Kent-based Danny Webb was eighth in the 125cc race and the only Brit to finish the morning showdown. Bradley Smith crashed out definitively on lap four after previously falling on the opening lap, whilst Scott Redding retired with a mechanical problem on his Blusens Aprilia.

V is for Valentino victory in Germany

Valentino Rossi was never under any illusions that he would have it easy in his defense of the MotoGP world title, and once again the Italian was made to fight for glory at the Alice Grand Prix of Germany. The Fiat Yamaha rider took the win at Sachsenring by just the smallest of margins from persistent rival Jorge Lorenzo in a breathtaking race to extend his lead in the World Championship.

After starting from pole for the first time at the German track, Rossi took the lead of the race after thirteen laps. Both the Italian and teammate Lorenzo eked out an advantage to make it a two-way battle to the chequered flag, with a last lap battle reminiscent of the Barcelona round of the series one month ago. Rossi’s definitive pass had come at the end of the home straight with two laps to go, and he brushed off the young pretender’s overtures for his fourth win of the 2009 season.

Starting from eighth on the grid, Dani Pedrosa had established his credentials in the dry with the best lap in the morning warm up. He had another storming start at Sachsenring to move up to the lead group, and put up a bold fight both amongst and behind the Yamaha duo. The Repsol Honda rider completed the podium with a race time under three seconds down on the top two.

Early leader Casey Stoner’s condition lasted longer than he had expected in the dry race, and he was able to mount a serious challenge for the win. With five laps to go, however, he was passed by Pedrosa going into the first turn, and one lap later a sit-up meant that he lost touch of the Spaniard.

A solid ride from England’s James Toseland saw him bring his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine home in ninth place in front of 140,000 fans at the Czech Grand Prix. It was a decent result for the Yorkshireman, from 14th on the grid, as he continues to battle to save his MotoGP future.

There was drama at the front of the race as Valentino Rossi got the best of his Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo again with the young Spaniard crashing out with five laps to go, as the pair battled for the race lead, handing Rossi a 50-point title advantage with six races to go.

With Rossi eventually finishing more than 11 seconds ahead of second placed Dani Pedrosa, two more Honda riders, Toni Elías and Andrea Dovizioso, dueled for the final podium slot - Gresini rider Elías just outdoing Repsol Honda’s Dovizioso.

In fourth place in the 125cc race Oxfordshire’s Bradley Smith lost ground in the championship as runaway leader Julian Simon finished ahead of him in second place, whilst Simon’s Spanish compatriot Nico Terol took the race win.

Scott Redding battled well to win a point in 15th place despite an ankle injury sustained on Saturday, the Gloucestershire youngster crossing the line just ahead of his good friend Danny Webb who was 16th.

Race Results:

1 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 43'08.991

2  Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 43'20.757

3  Toni ELIAS SPA HONDA 43'29.747

4  Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA HONDA 43'30.409

5  Loris CAPIROSSI ITA SUZUKI 43'30.529

6  Nicky HAYDEN USA DUCATI 43'34.535

Championship positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 212 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 162

3 STONER Casey 150

4 PEDROSA Dani 135

5 EDWARDS Colin 112

6 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 107

Briton Bradley Smith was a tenth of second away from victory at the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix after riding a superb race from fifth on the grid at The Brickyard.

The Bancaja Aspar 125cc rider from Oxfordshire, was part of a five man group including championship leader Julian Simon, 2008 Indianapolis winner Nico Terol, Pol Espargaro and Simone Corsi, who battled for supremacy throughout the race, but ultimately Espargaro emerged on top, with Smith second and Corsi third.

Smith remains third in the standings with five races to go, one point behind Terol and 53.5 points behind his team-mate Simon.

There was frustration for Gloucestershire’s Scott Redding who had to retire midway through the race due to technical faults, having fought his way up to 12th from 26th on the grid. Kent’s Danny Webb missed out on the top ten by less than a second when he was overtaken at the end by Dominique Aegerter.

In the main MotoGP race the battle for the title was blown wide open as Jorge Lorenzo scored a great win and his Fiat Yamaha colleague Valentino Rossi crashed out. Yorkshireman James Toseland again matched his best MotoGP result to date with another solid sixth, from tenth on the grid.

Behind Lorenzo there was a great ride from San Marino’s Alex de Angelis, gaining his first ever premier class podium, whilst home rider Nicky Hayden also did brilliantly after qualifying sixth, repeating his 2008 Indianapolis podium, this time in third position.

World Champion Valentino Rossi hit the ground on lap nine when battling for the race lead with Lorenzo and earlier on there was also a crash for Dani Pedrosa on the fourth lap when the pole man was leading the race. He bravely picked up his RC212V and rejoined in last place, doing well to finally finish in 10th position.

A crash between the two leading riders, Andrea Iannone and Pol Espargaro, in the 125cc race at Misano on Sunday, handed a surprise podium to Oxfordshire’s Bradley Smith.

The young 18 year old rider started the 12th race of the year in pole position but struggled to stay with the race leaders and even dropped back to ninth place with ten laps remaining.

However, a late rally towards the front and the last corner crash for Iannone and Espargaro saw Smith move up the order to cross the line behind title favourite Julian Simon and another Spaniard Nico Terol. Smith remains third in the standings behind Simon and Terol.

There was a top ten finish for Kent’s Danny Webb, who also rallied late in the race, whereas there was yet more frustration for Gloucestershire’s Scott Redding who had to retire due to a technical fault.

In the MotoGP race Valentino Rossi bounced back from last week’s Indianapolis crash with a 2.4 seconds win over his team-mate Jorge Lorenzo, to move himself 30 points ahead of the Spaniard in the standings with four rounds remaining. Dani Pedrosa completed the podium and James Toseland was tenth.

Race Results:

1 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 44'32.882

2 Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 44'35.298

3 Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 44'45.282

4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA HONDA 44'59.212

5 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA SUZUKI 44'59.421

6 Toni ELIAS SPA HONDA 45'01.168

Championship Positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 237 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 207

3 PEDROSA Dani 157

4 STONER Casey 150

5 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 133

6 EDWARDS Colin 123

Bradley Smith scored a solid third place at the Portuguese Grand Prix on Sunday at Estoril, as he battled for victory in the final stages but eventually came up just short of race-winning Spaniard Pol Espargaro and second placed German Sandro Cortese.

Smith’s World Champion elect colleague Julian Simon will have to wait a while longer to wrap up the title after he crashed on the 16th lap and the Briton achieved a podium finish, meaning the gap between the two Bancaja Aspar riders is now down to 50.5 points with three races remaining.

There was heartbreak on the final lap for Kent’s Danny Webb as he was forced to retire when battling for a top five finish, whilst Gloucestershire youngster Scott Redding also suffered a late disappointment as he missed on out on a point on the final straight.

In the MotoGP race Jorge Lorenzo repeated his 2008 Portuguese triumph from pole position to cut back Valentino Rossi’s championship lead to 18 points as the Italian came home fourth. A brilliant comeback ride by Casey Stoner in second place will assure him that his recent break was the right move, the Australian pushing Dani Pedrosa back into third. James Toseland, meanwhile, was ninth.

Race Results:

1 Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 45'35.522

2 Casey STONER AUS DUCATI 45'41.816

3 Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 45'45.411

4 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 45'58.950

5 Colin EDWARDS USA YAMAHA 46'08.174

6 Toni ELIAS SPA  HONDA 46'11.231

Championship Positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 250 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 232

3 PEDROSA Dani 173

4 STONER Casey 170

5 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 142

6 EDWARDS Colin 134

Bradley Smith rode superbly in the IVECO Australian Grand Prix on Sunday at Phillip Island but he could not prevent his team-mate Julian Simon from wrapping up the 125cc World title despite battling brilliantly with the Spaniard throughout the race.

Smith and Simon were part of a seven-strong front group which stayed close together for most of the race, but they eventually pulled away in the final stages, only for Simon to outdo the young Briton on the very final lap to take the title with two rounds remaining.

The podium was completed by German rider Sandro Cortese, whilst Smith’s fellow British representatives Scott Redding and Danny Webb finished 11th and 13th respectively.

James Toseland’s frustrating season continued in the MotoGP class as he was penalised with a ride-through for a jump start and eventually finished 14th. The race was won by Casey Stoner, completing a hat-trick of home wins for the Australian, with Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa both also on the podium.

Rossi now has a 38 point standings lead with two rounds remaining, after his team-mate and title rival Jorge Lorenzo crashed out on lap one.   

Race Results:

1 Casey STONER AUS DUCATI 40'56.651

2 Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 40'58.586

3 Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 41'19.269

4 Alex DE ANGELIS RSM Gresini HONDA 41'29.353

5 Colin EDWARDS USA YAMAHA 41'32.536

6 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA HONDA 41'35.133

Championship Positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 270 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 232

3 STONER Casey 195

4 PEDROSA Dani 189

5 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 152

6 EDWARDS Colin 145

British rider Bradley Smith secured the runner-up spot in the 125cc World Championship standings with a solid second place ride in the penultimate race of his fourth full Grand Prix season, at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, early on Sunday.

Starting from third place on the grid in the sweltering heat at the south east Asian venue, Smith produced another mature and professional display as he battled with his recently crowned World Champion team-mate Julián Simón for the race win – eventually crossing the finishing line just over a second behind his fellow Bancaja Aspar rider.

Unfortunately there was not quite such good news for Gloucestershire’s Scott Redding or Kent’s Danny Webb, who both failed to finish the race. Webb was involved in a spectacular looking first lap crash, whilst Redding retired later in the race due to a technical fault.

In the MotoGP race Valentino Rossi’s third place in difficult wet conditions was enough to earn him his ninth World title (his seventh in the premier class), as he crossed the line ahead of championship rival and Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo who was fourth. The brilliant Casey Stoner won the race by 15 seconds from second placed Dani Pedrosa, whilst James Toseland picked up a solitary point in 15th place.

The World Championship concludes in two weeks’ time in Valencia with the final round of 2009 taking place over the 6th-8th November weekend.

Race Results:

1 Casey STONER AUS DUCATI 47'24.834

2  Dani PEDROSA SPA HONDA 47'39.500

3  Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 47'44.219

4 Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 47'50.684

5  Nicky HAYDEN USA DUCATI 48'03.539

6  Chris VERMEULEN AUS SUZUKI 48'05.895

MotoGP World Championship Positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 286 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 245

3 STONER Casey 220

4 PEDROSA Dani 209

5 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 152

6 EDWARDS Colin 148

125cc World Championship Positions:

1 SIMON Julian 264 points

2 SMITH Bradley 203.5

3 TEROL Nicolas 173.5

James Toseland placed sixth at today’s Alice TT Assen in the Netherlands, his best result of the year to date and on a par with his goal for the latest MotoGP World Championship round.

The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider held off Randy de Puniet, Toni Elías and Nicky Hayden for a place in the top six, all four coming home within half a second of each other. Valentino Rossi won the race itself.

Bradley Smith crossed the line fourth in the 125cc Alice TT Assen, but was awarded a podium position after the race following a penalisation for Nico Terol.

Smith started from the second row of the grid and the Oxfordshire teenager ran off track when battling with Andrea Iannone, passing along the asphalted run-off area. He kept up the chase on his Italian rival and bested him on the last lap. He remains in second place in the World Championship standings.

Kent youngster Danny Webb was the first retiree of the 125cc race, an unwilling participant in a crash for rookie Cameron Beaubier. His luck was shared by Blusens Aprilia’s Scott Redding, whose race was also brought to an early end –in his case through mechanical problems with his RSA.

The race was won by Sergio Gadea, with Julián Simón second.

Briton Toby Markham retired from the 250cc race after just ten laps in his latest wildcard appearance in the quarter-litre class.

Dutch master Rossi takes 100th Grand Prix win at Assen

Valentino Rossi won his 100th Grand Prix, took his second triumph in succession and became the undisputed leader of the MotoGP World Championship with a stellar performance at the Alice TT Assen. The Fiat Yamaha rider had a peerless performance from pole position and, unlike two weeks previous in Barcelona, needed no ‘Hail Mary’ last lap at the Cathedral of Motorcycle Racing.

A vintage Rossi performance was celebrated with his unraveling a backdrop and posing for a classic photo with antiquated cameras, the Italian’s latest post-race show with his faithful fan club.

Teammate Jorge Lorenzo was once again forced to settle for second place, his third on the bounce. The Spaniard got off to a bad start from third on the grid and, although he was able to fight back up to the front, could not provide Rossi with the same challenge that he had done last time out.

Ducati Marlboro’s Casey Stoner completed the podium with a solitary ride chasing Lorenzo. The Australian now trails Rossi and his Spanish rival in the overall standings after the trio had been level on points heading into the Assen race.

Colin Edwards equaled his best result of the year with fourth place, at the head of an enthralling battle between the ‘best of the rest’. Rizla Suzuki’s Chris Vermeulen and Edwards’ Monster Yamaha Tech 3 teammate James Toseland were also in the top six with their best finishes of the season to date.

Race Results:

1  Valentino ROSSI ITA YAMAHA 42'14.611

2  Jorge LORENZO SPA YAMAHA 42'19.979

3  Casey STONER AUS DUCATI 42'37.724

4  Colin EDWARDS USA YAMAHA 42'43.725

5  Chris VERMEULEN AUS SUZUKI 42'48.216

6  James TOSELAND GBR YAMAHA 42'53.958

Championship Positions:

1 ROSSI Valentino 131 points

2 LORENZO Jorge 126

3 STONER Casey 122

4 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 69

5 PEDROSA Dani 67

6 EDWARDS Colin 67

125 cc Championship Positions:

1 SIMON Julian 104 points

2 SMITH Bradley 98.5

3 IANNONE Andrea 84.5