How Rossi Can Win The Championship In Japan

[grantwils]

FYI - Anyone else looking forward to it?

Valentino Rossi is on the brink of taking his sixth MotoGP World Championship, with his first chance of confirming the crown coming next weekend at Twin Ring Motegi. The Fiat Yamaha rider is in a powerful position in at the head of the standings, with an 87 point lead over 2007 titlist Casey Stoner and a further seven point lead over third-placed Dani Pedrosa. Rossi has the situation in his hands, with a podium finish assuring him of the title - even if Stoner records a first Japanese win.

A rostrum for Stoner could effectively be a stay of execution for the Ducati rider, who at best could reduce the gap to 62 points with 75 still up for grabs, if Rossi fails to score a point. A runner-up finish for the Australian would mean that Rossi could afford to finish as low as eighth, whilst rounding off the podium would require Rossi to finish twelfth or better. Stoner taking fourth place would mean that just a point would give the Italian his sixth title.

Pedrosa will only become involved should he win or finish runner up; a Pedrosa win obliges Rossi to finish in the top ten, whilst second place leaves the Yamaha rider in need of a solitary point.

[therenster]

Rossi needs 4th or better irrelevant of what Whinger does to take the title

[dedpidgin2]

Regardless of the personalities involved, I'd rather have seen a tight contest to the end of the season - makes things more interesting. It's a done deal now, barring injuries... bit boring really.

[steve]

i think this years championship has been great , it took rossi a bit of time to get used to his new tyres but in the last few races i think he has shown stoner is a really bad loser ,

rossi put the tyre situation on a level playing field thus creating a battle purely between himself an stoner an the yam an the duke , he got rid of the weak element of his bike (michelins) an Yamaha upped thier game to build a bike to take on the duke ,

imho Rossis ability as a racer/bike developer far outweighs Stoners an im pretty sure Stoner knows that ,

i think its pathetic that Stoner is moaning about an alleged injury when he is so far behind Rossi , nothing like that came from Rossi when he lost the last 2 championships

i will be cheering Rossi on on sunday morning as i would love to see him win his 8th world title

i think motogp needs more people with a personality like Rossis as imho Stoner and Pedrosa dont even have a personality

[steve]

ive just found this on MCNs web site



Valentino Rossi is confident he can add to his already impressive CV by wrapping up his sixth MotoGP world title in Japan this weekend.

Chasing his first ever four-stroke victory at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit, Rossi can become only the second rider in history to regain the title after a two-year gap. The other rider to do this was Giacomo Agostini, who Rossi overhauled recently to become the most successful rider in premier class history with 69 wins.

Rossi is a massive 87-points clear of rival Casey Stoner with just four rounds remaining, and the Italian only needs to finish in the points if the Ducati rider is off the podium.

The Fiat Yamaha rider said it would be a sweet moment for him to win back the crown he last claimed in 2005.

“At the end of 2005 I arrived from five titles in a row in MotoGP, but 2006 and 2007 for me were quite difficult. It was two seasons with a lot of problems, some bad luck and some mistakes of my own.

"I think now I am very different compared to 2005 because first I am older but I have more experience and those two years taught me a lot. They made me grow up a lot and teach me a lot of things about losing and not always winning.

"I am so happy to be back at the top of the championship and to have another chance to try and win the title", said the 29-year-old, who will test Yamaha’s 2009 prototype YZR-M1 in Japan on Monday.

[Cossackmannie]

I'd love to see him just sit off Stoner's tail for the whole race so Stoner sees his pitboard repeatedly displaying 46 and +0.2 so he knows Rossi is sitting there the whole race. He'd be going mental waiting for the pass to come but Rossi would be going for the win regardless I think.
Rossi has shown how much more is needed to be a champion than just having the fastest bike. Mental strength and the ability to get results when the bike or rider isn't 100%.

Must admit to being keen to see what Hayden does with the Duke though