“The old chicken has laid another egg…,” says Valentino

With his third place finish in today’s Malaysian MotoGP at Sepang, Valentino Rossi also won the 2009 MotoGP world championship – his seventh premier class world title and ninth world title including his wins in the 125cc and 250cc classes! ‘Nine world championships is a great achievement, I’m so happy! I need to thank everyone, especially Jeremy. I couldn’t have done it without Jeremy and he is like my motorcycle father. I also have to thank my family and friends. In order to stay at this level through a whole season, you have to be calm and have the right people around you and this is what I have. We’ve stayed concentrated and focused even in the bad moments, so we can congratulate ourselves with this ninth title,’ says The Doctor. ‘The T-shirt and the celebration is called the ‘Gallina Vecchia!’ In Italian we say that the old chicken makes good soup but it’s no use for laying eggs. I am old now – 30 – but this old hen has made another egg today, and now we have nine! As usual I thought it up at home in Tavullia, together with my fan club, and we had great fun designing the T-shirt and the helmet,’ says the man who is the greatest motorcycle racer of our times.

‘I still feel just as motivated as ever. I still have a great passion to ride better and better, to be on my bike and to win. I enjoy always trying to improve and to work with my team to do this. I am 30, but I still feel great emotion and great satisfaction from success. My passion for motorcycles is what keeps me enjoying every race and helps me to keep pushing even though I am the oldest of these first top guys. I have to train harder and work harder to stay focused now, but I still enjoy the challenge as much as ever,’ says Rossi, making it clear that he isn’t going to stop racing motorcycles anytime soon. ‘I think next year will be very, very hard. We’re all on the same bikes and I think it will be between me, Lorenzo, Stoner and Pedrosa again. On Tuesday in Valencia we will try the new model and I am looking forward to working on the new M1, but I have the greatest rival in my team so it won’t be easy,’ says Rossi. ‘Every championship is special for different reasons, it’s unforgettable every time and this day is no different. I’m World Champion once again and now I want to go and party…!’

Here are some statistics with which you can thrill and amaze (or not…) your mates down at the pub: Rossi has now matched Mike Hailwood and Carlo Ubbiali with nine titles in all classes. Only Giacomo Agostini, with 15, has more world titles. Rossi’s win in Assen this season made him only the second rider in history to take 100 wins in all classes. Rossi now has 103, 19 less than Agostini’s all-time record of 122. Rossi holds the all-time premier class victories record, having beaten Agostini’s tally at Indianapolis in 2008. He now a premier-class win tally of 77. Rossi’s win this season in Brno saw him take the all-time podium record with his 160th podium in all classes. He is also the only rider to have stood on the podium in the premier-class more than 100 times. Today’s podium was his 163rd in all classes. With 44 wins from 102 races since he joined the Japanese factory in 2004, Rossi is the most successful Yamaha rider of all time. He has 21 more wins than Kenny Roberts, Yamaha’s next most successful rider. Today’s title means he has now won more titles for Yamaha than for any of the other manufacturers he has ridden for in his career. His win at Misano, Italy, this year was his 11th win in all classes on home soil. Rossi is the only rider in history to have won at least one GP in 14 successive seasons. In 1997, at the age of 18, Rossi became the second youngest ever 125cc World Champion after scoring 321 points and eleven wins.

Two years later, at the age of 20, he became the youngest ever 250cc World Champion with nine wins. In 2001 Rossi joined Phil Read as one of only two riders ever to win the 125cc, 250cc and 500cc titles. Rossi’s debut victory for Yamaha at the opening race of 2004 in South Africa made him the first rider in history to take back-to-back wins for different manufacturers. After winning the MotoGP World Championship three times with Honda, Rossi took his fourth premier-class title with Yamaha in 2004 and became the only rider other than Eddie Lawson to win consecutive premier-class titles for different manufacturers. Rossi remains the only rider to win the premier-class title on four different types of motorcycle: 500cc 4-cylinder two-stroke, 990cc 5-cylinder four-stroke, 990cc 4-cylinder four-stroke and 800cc 4-cylinder four-stroke. Rossi has never missed a GP since his 125cc debut in 1996. He has started 226 successive races in all classes, 166 of which have been in the premier class. Both of these are records. We wish The Doctor all the very best - we’re sure that for as long as he chooses to race, he will continue to win!

source : fasterandfaster.net

Ben Spies replica R1 from UK dealer, CMC

Via MCN

For those who think a Rossi-rep R1 might be too common, CMC, a Yamaha dealer in the UK, has readied a Ben Spies replica R1. The bike is painted in Ben’s World Superbikes colours and the exhaust system gets Akrapovic carbon end cans. The bike costs £12,499 OTR.

Spies and Rossi replica R1s are all fine but what we’d really love to see from Yamaha is a series of limited-edition 1980s specials – Kenny Roberts, Eddie Lawson and Wayne Rainey replica Yamaha R1s. Now that would be something!

source :fasterandfaster.net

Walau Juventus menguasai bola lebih banyak di babak pertama, 45 menit pertama lebih terasa lambat yang dikarenakan Siena bermain padat di setengah lapangan. Di menit 3 bola yang diumpankan Poulsen ke depan gawang Siena diraih Amauri sayangnya dia sudah terperangkap offside. Dua menit berselang bola umpan untuk Trezeguet yang diraih Amauri gagal diteruskan karena Amauri terperangkap Offside lagi.

Di menit 7, Diego mengumpan bola ke Amauri di area penalti namun terlalu panjang sehingga bola keluar dan menghasilkan tendangan gawang. 4 mneit kemudian, Grygera mengumpan bola ke Trezeguet namun tendangannya terhalang. Menit 14 tendangan bebas untuk Juve: bola diumpankan ke depan gawang namun Curci dapat menangkap bola dengan baik.

15 menit pertandingan berjalan Calaio berusaha menyerang namun dirinya terperangkap offside. Dua menit berselang, Poulsen mengumpan bola namun kiper lawan dengan mudah meraihnya. 4 menit berselang, bola umpan ke Trezeguet terlalu jauh untuk diraih. Semenit berselang, Poulsen mengumpan bola namun terlalu panjang dan keluar dari area permainan.

Menit 22 De Ceglie kesulitan mengontrol bola dan menembak terlalu lurus ke arah kiper. Dua menit berselang, Trezeguet terperangkap offside setelah dia meraih bola yang diumpankan secara matang. Umpan kedua kembali diberikan namun Amauri terhalang bek yang menjaganya.

Di menit ke 25 terlihat Diego yang melakukan tendangan langsung tetapi masih melambung tinggi di atas tiang gawang setelah menerima umpan dari Poulsen. Satu menit kemudian, tembakan yang kuat dilakukan Siena dari lapangan tengah masih melambung tinggi di atas tiang gawang juga. Menit ke-27 terlihat Diego memberikan bola yang baik ke daerah pertahanan terhadap Molinaro yang masih bisa diantisipasi oleh pertahanan.

Pada menit ke-28 giliran sebuah tembakan dari Amauri diblok oleh pertahanan siena. Juventus benar benar menumpuk tekanan pada pertahanan siena. Pada setengah jam pertandingan berlangsung, tendangan Maccaraone masih melambung sangat tinggi di atas tiang gawang. Satu menit kemudian, ada tendangan bebas untuk Juve: Diego menempatkan bola di jantung pertahanan tapi bola disundul oleh pemain bertahan kepada Curci.

Menit ke-38 terlihat sebuah kesimpulan bahwa trezeguet terperangkap offside oleh curci ketika asisten wasit mengangkat bendera tanda pemain offside. Dua menit kemudian, ada tendangan bebas untuk Juve dari sisi kanan ketika Diego diganjal: pemain asal Brasil ini sendiri meletakkan bola ke jantung pertahanan dan sundulan Cheillini pun melebar.

Pada menit ke-42, umpan bola terobosan yang baik oleh Diego untuk Trezeguet masih bisa diantisipasi oleh penjaga gawang. Satu menit kemudian, ada sepak pojok untuk Juve: bola langsung menuju ke area pertahanan tapi pemain bertahan sien membersihkannya.

Satu-satunya kesempatan untuk Siena di babak pertama datang di waktu kedua dari dua menit waktu tambahan yang diberikan oleh wasit: Buffon melakukan penyelamatan yang baik dari aksi Ekdal. Kedua tim pergi untuk beristirahat di sebuah pertandingan yang masih berkedudukan imbang.

Paruh kedua Caceres masuk menggantikan Grygera dan Juventus segera melakukan tekanan. Pada 1 menit ada sepak pojok untuk Juve: bola dibersihkan dari area pertahanan di waktu pertamanya tapi bola liar yang datang ke arah diego langsung di tujukan ke Cheillini yang masih membentur tiang gawang dari posisi yang sangat mengundang untuk mencetak gol! sebuah kesempatan emas yang baik! Dua menit kemudian adalah waktu untuk Siena yang mendapat keuntungan dari tendangan bebas: bola dibuang ke pojok oleh Caceres: bola mencapai ke Jajalo yang melakukan tendangan dan Buffon melakukan penyelamatan.

Juventus terus mendominasi dan beberapa detik kemudian, Amauri menerima bola di daerah pertahanan dan mencoba untuk meletakkan bola di belakangnya tapi pertahanan siena membersihkannya. Empat menit kemudian, tembakan Jajalo yang dibelokkan hanya melebar ke area tendangan penjuru.

Ferrara membuat pergantian lain pada menit ke-8 membawa Camoranesi masuk untuk menggantikan Molinaro. Satu menit kemudian, sebuah bola untuk Trezeguet dari Caceres masih dapat diantisipasi oleh pertahanan. Dua menit kemudian Camoranesi melakukan sebuah umpan tarik yang baik ke daerah pertahanan mencapai Diego untuk pertama kalinya dan kemudian Amauri tetapi pemain bertahan siena berhasil mengelola dengan jelas.

pada menit ke 18, Chielini dengan tantangan besar membersihkan wilayah Juve setelah Siena berhasil melepaskan diri. Satu menit kemudian, sebuah bola dimasukkan ke dalam wilayah Siena dan dibersihkan dengan susah payah oleh pertahanan. Dari aksi lemparan kedalam bola mencapai Trezeguet yang melakukan sundulan dan Turci melakukan penyelamatan. Juve memang pantas mendapatkan gol ketika mereka menumpuk tekanan.

menit ke 20 terlihat tembakan dari jarak jauh oleh Amauri yang langsung menuju ke pelukan Turci. Satu menit kemudian, sebuah tendangan putar indah oleh Amauri di daerah pertahanan lawan tetapi bola dibuang tepat pada waktunya oleh Brandao. Pada menit ke-22 Camoranesi yang melakukan umpan silang ke daerah pertahanan masih dapat ditangkap dengan mudah oleh penjaga gawang.

Pada menit ke-23 bola yang dimasukan ke dalam wilayah siena oleh De Ceglie tetapi pemain bertahan membersihkannya. Daerah yang Siena pun berada dibawah tekanan. menit ke 24, ada sepak pojok untuk Juve: Diego langsung melakukan umpan dan jatuh dalam pelukan penjaga gawang.

Juve mendapatkan apa yang mereka layak dapatkan pada menit ke 25 menit: Diego diganjal ketika berlari oleh Codrea. Tendangan bebas untuk Juve: Diego menempatkan bola ke daerah jantung pertahanan dan Amauri menyentuh bola untuk memasukan kedalam gawang untuk pembuka: 1-0!

Siena mencoba untuk bereaksi dan pada setngah jam di babak kedua Caceres melakukan blok kepada Reginaldo untuk membantu Buffon untuk menangkap bola di daerah jantung pertahanan. Lima menit kemudian, ada sebuah umpan silang yang baik oleh De Ceglie terhadap Trezeguet yang terjebak perangkap off-side. Pada menit ke-40 ada sebuah tembakan dari Diego yang menyimpang lebar karena terbentur Trezeguet.

Pada menit ke-42 Sissoko masuk untuk menggantikan Diego dan satu menit kemudian ada tendangan bebas untuk siena dan Buffon melakukan penyelamatkan dengan mudah. Pada menit ke-2 dari 4 menit waktu tambahan Maccarone berhasil mendapatkan bola dan mengolanya ke daerah pertahanan tetapi Buffon meraihnya dengan aman. Pada menit terakhir ada tendangan bebas untuk Siena: Juve membuang bola tersebut dan waktu berakhir. 0-1 dan 3 poin!!!

Juventus kembali ke kemenangan juga dalam kejuaraan dengan Amauri sebagai pahlawan hari ini dan gol dari tiga-poin yang didapat membuat Juve membuat panas persaingan dengan Inter dan Sampdoria, lawan mereka berikutnya pada hari Rabu.

Serie A 2009/10 pekan ke 9
Siena, Stadion Artemio Franchi
Senin 25 Oktober  2009

SIENA - JUVENTUS: 0-1

Scorers: Amauri (72nd).

SIENA: Curci, Ficagna, Terzi (Rosi 58th), Brandao, Del Grosso, Vergassola, Codrea Paolucci 83rd), Ekdal, Jajalo, Maccarone, Calaiò (Reginaldo 74th). Reserves: Pegolo, Rossi, Rosi, Garofalo, Genevier, Paolucci, Reginaldo. Coach: Giampaolo.

JUVENTUS: Buffon, Grygera (Caceres 46th), Legrottaglie, Chiellini, Molinaro (Camoranesi 54th), Poulsen, Felipe Melo, De Ceglie, Diego (Sissoko 88th), Amauri, Trezeguet. Reserves: Manninger, Cannavaro, Caceres, Grosso, Sissoko, Camoranesi, Giovinco. Coach: Ferrara.

WASIT: Tagliavento

KARTU KUNING: Legrottaglie (37th), Codrea (70th), Camoranesi (84th),

source : juventus.co.id

PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk (Telkom), melakukan transformasi bisnis secara fundamental yang diikuti juga dengan diperkenalkannya corporate identity baru untuk menyambut era baru Telkom sebagai satu-satunya perusahaan T.I.M.E (Telecommunication, Information, Media dan Edutainment) di Indonesia.
Transformasi kali ini adalah yang paling besar sepanjang sejarah Telkom, karena bersifat fundamental, menyeluruh dan terintegrasi yang menyentuh empat aspek dasar perusahaan, yakni: Transformasi Bisnis, Transformasi Infrastruktur, Transformasi Sistem dan Model Operasi dan Transformasi Human Resources.

LOGO LAMA TELKOM	LOGO BARU TELKOM

Kalau kita perhatikan ada banyak perubahan dari logo yang lama menjadi logo baru malah bisa dikatakan perubahan secara total, yaitu pada warna,font dan lambang/logo. Logo Telkom baru lebih Modern,perpaduan warna yang apik dengan penambahan warna orange. Saya pribadi sangat suka dengan perpaduan warna tersebut,biru tua,biru muda, dan orange dengan latar belakang putih. Dengan lambang lingkaran (biru muda) dan seperti telapak tangan dengan 5 jari ( orange ) menyatu ( biru tua), Dan hampir dipastikan pada logo yang baru tidak ada sudut.

Selamat Buat TELKOM INDONESIA

source : tipsntrick.net

Frenchman Sebastien Loeb cruised through the final stage of the Rally of Great Britain today to take victory in his Citroen Total team C4 WRC and wrap up a remarkable sixth World Rally Championship title.

The win, the seventh from the 12-round season for Loeb and his co-driver Daniel Elena, was the 54th of his record-breaking WRC career.

Loeb and Elena climbed onto the roof of their car at the end of the decisive 27km Rheola stage, and punched the air as they celebrated their victory in front of a crowd of fans and journalists.

Loeb clinched his sixth title by the closest of margins; his total of 93 points was just one ahead of his arch rival Mikko Hirvonen of the BP Ford Abu Dhabi Team.

“It’s been an incredible season,” said a delighted Loeb. “We made a good start then we lost everything and we came here one point behind Mikko. Finally we’ve done it and I’m really happy but Mikko has been extremely strong. I know it will be tough next year for sure.

“This has been one of my best title wins; the battle was so intense - going almost until the end of the last rally. It was incredible. We have had some highs and some lows this year but we finished with the victory. It’s an incredible feeling!” he added.

Ford Focus RS WRC driver Hirvonen, and his co-driver Jarmo Lehtinen, were next to reach the finish control, and were two of the first to congratulate Loeb and Elena. After his bonnet flew up on the penultimate test, Hirvonen did enough over the final 22.51km to secure second place in Wales, and get closer to Loeb in the Drivers’ fight than anybody since Marcus Gronholm in 2006.

“Well, the bonnet pin was the last of our problems but I really lost the rally yesterday when I couldn’t find the speed on those two stages, [SS8 and SS9]” said Hirvonen. “Now I need to go back to work and find more speed for next year. It was definitely the best year I’ve ever had, though. We’re really close now to his speed and that feels good. It’s been a great year, but of course a big disappointment at the end.”

Loeb’s Citroen Total team-mate Dani Sordo finished third, just one second behind Hirvonen, to take the final step on the podium and secure third place in this year’s Drivers’ Championship standings on a total of 64 points. “This has been a great day and a great championship, I’m really happy,” said the Spaniard. “I pushed hard on this rally but unfortunately the times of Mikko and Sebastien were too good. I tried hard to catch Mikko at the end, and I’ve really enjoyed my fight with Petter too, but of course big congratulations must go to Sebastien.”

In fourth place, 21 seconds slower than Sordo, was four time Rally GB winner Petter Solberg. The Norwegian, running under the Citroen Junior Team banner this weekend, said he was delighted to round off his first season as an independent driver locked in a battle for the podium. “It’s been a long journey to get here, but I’m very pleased with this result,” he said. The car was good - but I should have done a little more testing in the mud. But my improvement through the rally has been good and the whole year, actually, has been fantastic. By team has done a brilliant job and thanks again to Citroen for giving me this possibility. It could have been a better weekend, though, yesterday we were so unlucky, but I tried today to beat Sordo but I’m happy, very happy. Next year we want a proper car and full spec attack. I hope to battle for the championship.”

After missing the opening round of the season in Ireland, Solberg ended the year ranked fifth in the series on a total of 35 points.

Five minutes behind the leading group, in fifth place, was Petter’s elder brother Henning in the first of the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford team cars. The Norwegian struggled on the opening day with a persistent engine misfire, but ended the event with two top-five times. “I’m happy, we are here at the end, and I hope to start another new season next year,” he said. Solberg finished sixth in the WRC Drivers’ series on a total of 33 points - matching his career best finish in 2007.

Sixth overall was Henning’s team-mate Matthew Wilson - the only full-time British driver in the WRC. After losing time on day one with a traction problem, Wilson was disappointed not to have had a fight on his hands on his home round of the series.

“It was a frustrating day on Friday, and very, very difficult to drive when the handling was so tricky. It been okay from then on, yesterday especially was okay in the afternoon, but overall a bit of a frustrating end to the season; we’d have liked to have been a bit more on the pace. Overall though the year has been quite good. Hopefully we’ll get the chance to do this again next year, keep the momentum going and improve some more.” Wilson ended the season placed seventh in the 2009 Drivers’ standings on a total of 28 points - the best ranking of his career to date.

Seventh was Wilson’s Ford stable-mate Jari-Matti Latvala. The Finn dropped out of winning contention on the opening day because of a driveshaft failure. He had another difficult day today, crashing off the road after the flying finish of SS12, and ended up nursing his battered Ford Focus RS WRC to the end of the event. “It’s been a very character building rally,” said Latvala at the stage end. “After the problem on Friday we struggled with the driving a bit and then there was my mistake today. I’ll be happy to get to the finish. It’s been a tough season for me. Now I want to forget rally for a while, think about something else, and then refocus on 2010.” Helped by his win this year in Sardegna, Latvala ended the season fourth in the Drivers’ standings on a total of 41 points.

Eighth, and collecting the final Drivers’ Championship point, was Conrad Rautenbach - the Zimbabwean wrapping up his second season with the Citroen Junior Team placed tenth in the series on a total of 10 points. “It’s been a really difficult rally, but we always knew it would be,” he said. “We had a few problems, but I managed to get through without making any silly mistakes. It’s good to end our year in the points like this.”

source : wrc.com

Yamaha seal the MotoGP, World Superbike and World Supersport rider titles in just a single day

On the day when Yamaha were able to celebrate three world titles in MotoGP, World Supersport and World Superbike, it is the latter that is arguably most likely to be considered the sweetest triumph.

A first World Superbike title for the Japanese manufacturer after 21 years of trying, Ben Spies fought back from a ten point deficit heading into the final round to take the championship by a mere six points.

A tense day for team manager Massimo Meregalli as he watched Spies ride for fifth position in the final race of the season, he was relieved to finally see his rider cross the finish line to be crowned champion.

“I feel great! This is the first time I’ve had this victory feeling. I was so nervous for this whole weekend. Ben showed us that the speed he had was ok but I know Nori very well and Ducati as well so I was always worried that something was going to come.

“Fortunately we finished very well. I want to thank everyone, not just the people here in the team and Yamaha but the people at home, mine and the team’s families, they give us a lot of support and are patient, I think it is hard for them too, so thank you to my wife!”

The fourth different manufacturer to win the riders’ title in five years, Yamaha Motor Europe manager Laurens Klein Koerkamp expressed his delight at seeing the team sweep the board in just a single day.

“A fantastic day for Yamaha! Today was the crown of a year’s hard work for Ben and the team. From the first moment we started to work with Ben it was clear he was something special. He did an amazing job in his rookie season, not knowing many of the circuits in Europe.

“This victory is also very well deserved for the team who have given 100%. I know how hard we have all been trying and coming close for such a long time. This championship success is a clear testimonial of the competitiveness of the new R1 and a validation of Yamaha’s vision of production bike development and so is also shared with the engineers in Japan.”

source : crash.net

“Lorenzo has pushed me to new levels and it’s been a great duel to the end” - Valentino Rossi.

Valentino Rossi won his ninth world championship with one round of the 2009 season to spare, after a third place finish at a wet Sepang in Malaysia on Sunday.

The 30-year-old, who has now won seven world championships in the premier 500cc/MotoGP class, had taken the 2009 title lead with his first win of the season at round three in Jerez.

Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo and Ducati’s Casey Stoner then fought back, and all three were level at the top of world championship standings after round six in Catalunya.

The next five rounds proved crucial, with Stoner falling victim to mystery fatigue problems while Lorenzo crashed out at both Donington Park and Brno.

Rossi won three of those five races to build his title lead to a peak of 50 points after the Czech Republic, but instantly lost half that advantage - and threw Lorenzo a championship lifeline - when he crashed out of the following Indianapolis Grand Prix.

The see-saw continued with a Rossi victory at Misano and then a Lorenzo win at Estoril - when Rossi was only fourth, dropping his title advantage to 18 points.

The pressure was on for Phillip Island but Lorenzo cracked first, making a mistake into turn one and crashing out, effectively wrecking his hopes of taking the title down to the final round in Valencia.

38 points clear heading into Sepang, Rossi only needed to be 25 points ahead of Lorenzo to wrap up the title - a feat he easily achieved after converting a record 58th pole into third place in the rain-delayed race, one place in front of Lorenzo.

“Nine world championships is a great achievement, I’m so happy!” said Rossi. “I would need one hour to thank everyone! Starting with everyone at Yamaha - Furusawa-san, Lin Jarvis, Davide Brivio and all my guys, especially Jeremy. I couldn’t have done it without Jeremy and he is like my motorcycle father!

“I also have to thank my family and friends - Stefania, Graziano, Uccio, Albi…so many! All the team, Yamaha and Bridgestone; together we’ve done a great, great job and it’s always a huge enjoyment to ride and work with these people.

“In order to stay at this level through a whole season you have to be calm and have the right people around you and this is what I have. We’ve stayed concentrated and focused even in the bad moments, so we can congratulate ourselves with this ninth title.”

Rossi suffered a scare at the start of the race when he ran wide whilst trying to outbrake Dani Pedrosa into turn one and had plummeted to tenth - behind Lorenzo, who had started from the back of the grid – by the end of a soaking first lap.

The #46 then shadowed his team-mate up the order, before taking fourth from the young Spaniard on lap eight of 21. That became third position when Andrea Dovizioso crashed out on lap 15, allowing Rossi to reach his target of celebrating championship victory from the podium.

“Without the rain it could have been a brilliant race, with the four top riders fighting together, but the rain changed it,” said Rossi of the weather. “It was scary for everyone because all the work we’d done was useless and we were riding ‘blind’ with the setting.

“I made a good start but I made a mistake at the first corner in braking, it felt like I was braking for one year and I went wide!” he smiled. “Of course I wanted to win but after the first corner it was difficult with Casey so strong so I went for the podium. I really enjoyed the race and I think it was great to watch.

“After Dovizioso unfortunately crashed I tried to go with Dani but then he started to push and I already had the podium, so I decided to take it a bit easier. I was happy to risk a little for the podium, but it wasn’t sensible to keep taking risks for second when the championship was safe.”

As has come to be expected, Rossi and his fan club had a special celebration waiting for the #46 after the race - who was handed a t-shirt and helmet with the number 9 on and the words ‘old hens make the best soup’. A live hen, complete with Rossi livery, was also on hand, as were nine eggs!

“The t-shirt and the celebration is called the ‘Gallina Vecchia!” In Italian we say that the old chicken makes good soup, but it’s no use for laying eggs. I am old now, 30, but this old hen has made another egg today and now we have nine!” he said. “As usual I thought it up at home in Tavullia, together with my fan club, and we had great fun designing the t-shirt and the helmet.”

2009 was unique for Rossi, since it marked the first time since joining the premier-class that his team-mate had also been his main title rival.

“It’s been a great season, for sure one of the hardest at times,” reflected Rossi. “It’s been harder than last year, when we won after two difficult years, but we’ve had some troubles this year at times and I have had a very hard rival in my team-mate Lorenzo. He has pushed me to new levels and I think it’s been a great duel to the end.

“There have been some bad moments, like Portugal when we weren’t at 100%, but we have worked well. Lorenzo has done a great job to put this pressure on us so I have to say well done to him.”

“Every year is special but this year was very interesting because we realised from the start of the season that our strongest rival was in our garage,” confirmed Rossi’s team manager Davide Brivio. “It hasn’t been easy but it’s been a fascinating season for everyone.”

Rossi has won six of the 16 races so far this season, compared with four victories for Lorenzo, four for Casey Stoner - who dominated Sunday’s race - and one each for Repsol Honda riders Pedrosa and Dovizioso.

Crucially, Rossi failed to score points only twice (Le Mans and Indianapolis) compared with four times for Lorenzo.

“This season we’ve had a mono-tyre rule but we have still improved the lap record in many laps and this shows that we’ve all been on the limit all season,” commenedt Rossi. “This is why we’ve all made mistakes; this is to be expected when you have four riders fighting together.

“The best moment of the season for me, the best emotion, was the last pass in the last corner at Barcelona,” said Rossi, who snatched home victory from Lorenzo in Catalunya. “This was the most exciting moment of the championship for me, one of the best for many years I think! The worst moment was probably the stupid error and crash in Indianapolis, but this led to the perfect win in Misano in front of all the fans so in the end it was okay!”

Seven MotoGP titles is just one less than the record of Giacomo Agostini, while nine world championships in all classes puts Rossi equal third alongside Mike Hailwood and Carlo Ubbiali - and behind only Angel Nieto (13) and Agostini (15) .

“I still feel just as motivated as ever,” insisted Rossi. “I still have a great passion to ride better and better, to be on my bike and to win. I enjoy always trying to improve and to work with my team to do this. I am 30 but I still feel great emotion and great satisfaction from success.

“My passion for motorcycles is what keeps me enjoying every race and helps me to keep pushing even though I am the oldest of these first top guys. I have to train harder and work harder to stay focused now, but I still enjoy the challenge as much as ever.

“I think next year will be very, very hard. We’re all on the same bikes and I think it will be between me, Lorenzo, Stoner and Pedrosa again. On Tuesday in Valencia we will try the new model and I am looking forward to working on the new M1, but I have the greatest rival in my team so it won’t be easy!

Ben Spies finishes fifth in the final race of the season to win the 2009 World Superbike Championship

Ben Spies will go to MotoGP as the new World Superbike Champion after doing exactly what he needed to do in order to secure the title in the final race of the season at Portimao.

Having dominated the opening race to open out a 15 point advantage over Noriyuki Haga heading into the decider, the American produced a comparatively tentative performance to simply ride for the chequered flag in fifth place.

Finishing within where he needed to, regardless of where Haga finished, the Ducati rider rallied hard in the latter stages to finish in second, but it wasn’t enough to deny Spies, the two rivals and friends concluding their epic season-long battle separated by just six points.

An outstanding weekend for Yamaha having secured the MotoGP and World Supersport titles on the same day, Spies’ win is also a first for the Japanese manufacturer at World Superbike level.

The race itself was won by Haga’s team-mate Michel Fabrizio, who passed Jonathan Rea on the final lap. The Northern Irishman would go on to make a further mistake to slip behind Haga too. Shane Byrne finished fourth, ahead of Spies and Max Biaggi.

Six rounds into the 2009 World Superbike Championship and Ben Spies’ title ambitions looked to have been dashed before they had barely started – eight rounds later and the American is celebrating becoming world champion in his first year.

It’s testament to Spies’ superior end to the 2009 season that he was able to break down a lead that was as much as 88 points following Kyalami, to come back and snatch the title from Noriyuki Haga at the very final round.

The statistics speak for themselves, Spies winning 14 races and 11 pole positions, a tally that already puts him equal 12th on the all-time list after just a single season with a handful of records firmly in his pocket.

While Spies’ success in Portugal, which saw him take a win and a fifth place finish, was certainly aided by Noriyuki Haga’s dramatic exit from race one, he still did it having been on the back foot heading to Portimao.

His triumph comes as he prepares to bid farewell to World Superbikes almost as quickly as he arrived, Spies embarking on a graduation to MotoGP with the Tech 3 Yamaha team.

On the day that the manufacturer also sealed the MotoGP and World Supersport crowns, Spies paid tribute to Yamaha for giving him a title-winning package from the off.

“First I’ve got to thank Yamaha for giving me everything I needed to win,” he said. “It was really good, we did what we had to do and it was difficult to do that because the pace was quite fast and I saw that there were a couple of people behind me.

“I knew that if Nori won I had to be sixth, so I tried to stay out of trouble. It was spectacular; I can’t thank Yamaha enough and everyone who’s been behind me for my first year here. It’ll sink in over the next couple of days!”

Spies will make his debut with the Tech 3 team at the Valencia season finale, joining fellow American Colin Edwards full-time for 2010. James Toseland and Cal Crutchlow will make up Yamaha WSB’s line-up next season.

Portimao - Race results (2)

Spies puts one hand on title after Haga fall

Ben Spies wins the first race of the day at Portimao, while Noriyuki Haga crashes out.

Ben Spies will take a 15 point advantage over Noriyuki Haga into the final race of the 2009 World Superbike Championship after cruising to victory at Portimao, while his title rival crashed out of contention.

Spies fended off the attentions of Max Biaggi and Jonathan Rea to take a comfortable lights-to-flag victory, the American completing the first half of his objective to secure the double he originally needed to guarantee himself the title.

However, it is now just a top six finish he requires in the final race of the season to ensure he wins the trophy in his maiden season after Haga threw away his advantage with a fall on the seventh lap.

The Japanese rider was up to fifth position when he lost the front-end of his Ducati Xerox at turn four, forcing him into retirement.

Indeed, the erstwhile championship leader had been making solid progress up the order from his tenth place starting position, Haga getting a decent getaway to survive the melee into the opening bend and rise up to eighth place immediately.

Spies, however, had executed the start he needed to get out in front, the Yamaha man plunging into the opening turn ahead of Biaggi, Shane Byrne, Rea and Leon Haslam.

With Michel Fabrizio’s poor start effectively ruling him out of victory contention, he quickly dropped behind Haga and shadowed him as his team-mate battled it out with fellow Ducati rider Fonsi Nieto.

However, far from bowing to expected team orders, Nieto put up a staunch defence of sixth position on the DFX machine, holding off Haga until the start of lap two when he was overtaken through the opening bends.

Quickly latching onto the British group of Rea, Byrne – the pair having swapped positions at the start of lap two – and Haslam, Haga had an even tougher time working his way past, but was gifted fifth when the Stiggy Honda rider ran wide at turn one whilst under pressure from the Ducati on lap six.

However, Haga’s charge up the order would come to a dramatic halt just a lap later when, as he was pushing hard to catch Byrne, his bike got away from him, man and machine sliding forlornly off the circuit as the field swept past. Despite his best efforts, Haga couldn’t get going again and was forced to concede.

With Yamaha immediately notifying Spies of Haga’s misfortune, attention turned to the front as Biaggi continued to put pressure on the American.

A series of quick laps at the start of the race had helped the pair to put air between themselves and Rea, Biaggi mirroring Spies, even if he never looked close enough to wrest the position off him.

However, when both riders began to experience a slight dip in pace at the half-way stage, it would prompt Rea and Byrne to get back in contention, the duo making it a four-way battle by lap fourteen.

Despite the added attention of his rivals, Spies would ultimately benefit from Biaggi and Rea’s feuding, eking out his margin to just over a second.

With Rea’s best opportunity to pass down the home straight being scuppered by the Aprilia’s superior straight-line speed, it took an error from Biaggi on lap 16 to allow the Ten Kate Honda man through into second position.

Giving him a shot at trying to catch Spies, Rea was almost two seconds behind the leader as they entered the latter stages of the race. However, the gap wouldn’t come down, with Biaggi instead slipstreaming past into second place again on lap 19. Not to be outdone, Rea struck back on the penultimate revolution with a daring pass on the Italian at turn two.

It meant Spies was free to ease to the chequered flag with a 1.6sec advantage over Rea, prompting jubilation in the Yamaha garage as they now stand on the verge of winning their first ever World Superbike title.

Having been unable to respond to Rea’s decisive attack, Biaggi was instead hounded across the finish line by an inspired Byrne, who put in one of his most convincing rides of the season to come home fourth for Sterilgarda Ducati. The result also means he moves up to eighth in the standings at the expense of Tom Sykes, who has withdrawn from the final round with a shoulder injury.

Fabrizio came home a quiet fifth having been outshone by the privateer Ducati of Byrne, while Leon Camier put in a fine performance to claim sixth on the Aprilia after working his way up from 13th position on the grid.

Mirroring his result on home soil for Airwaves Yamaha at Donington Park, the new British Superbike champion finished ahead of several more experienced riders, including Carlos Checa and Ruben Xaus, both of whom were front runners at Portimao last season.

In a race of attrition that saw just 14 riders finish on the same lap, several top names failed to see the chequered flag, including Haslam, who crashed out on lap eleven whilst running in sixth position, while Jakub Smrz and Yukio Kagayama were others to hit the tarmac during the race. Meanwhile, technical issues cost good results for Sylvain Guintoli, Nieto and Troy Corser.

It meant several riders posted notable results, including Matthieu Lagrive in ninth for Althea Honda, while Guandalini’s Matteo Baiocco secured his first World Superbike top ten result after winning out in a battle with the factory Kawasakis.

Broc Parkes and Makoto Tamada followed in 11th and 12th, ahead of David Salom, David Checa and Luca Scassa, the latter scoring despite finishing four laps off the lead after benefitting from a late retirement for Roland Resch, the Austrian having been on course for his first ever points before a spectacular engine blow.

Portimao - Race results (1)

Cal Crutchlow finishes fourth in Portimao to win the 2009 World Supersport title in his maiden season.

Cal Crutchlow has been crowned the 2009 World Supersport Champion after his fourth place result in the final race of the season at Portimao proved more than enough to take the title.

Heading into the race needing just a tenth place finish, although Crutchlow shied away from challenging for the victory, his run to fourth sees him become the first non-Ten Kate Honda rider to win the title in seven years.

The race itself was won by the only rider able to challenge Crutchlow, with Eugene Laverty doing exactly what he needed to do in claiming a dominant victory on Parkalgar Honda’s home ground.

A race largely devoid of action, particularly compared to many of the epic races that have defined the 2009 season, Laverty got a good start from pole position to take a lead he wouldn’t lose into the opening bend.

Followed by Kenan Sofuoglu, Crutchlow would run third initially before being passed by the Kawasaki of Lascorz. The Spaniard would also get the better of Sofuoglu on lap three, but his hopes of overhauling the Turk for third in the standings were dashed just moments later when he crashed out of the race.

By this point, Laverty had opened up a sizeable lead over fellow Honda man Sofuoglu, the Irishman sprinting to the chequered flag to win his fourth race of the season by 3.4secs.

Crutchlow’s task, meanwhile, was merely to reach the finish, a strategy he stuck to on lap eight when he refused to get embroiled in a fight with the charging Triumph of Garry McCoy, the Briton preferring to let him into third place.

However, with no rider close enough to challenge him for fourth, Crutchlow was left to simply shadow McCoy, crossing the line to become Britain’s first World Supersport champion by five points.

Despite losing their grip on the Supersport riders’ title for the first time since 2001, Laverty and Sofuoglu were nonetheless instrumental in helping Honda to a seventh consecutive manufacturers’ crown, three points up on Yamaha.

Mark Aitchison put in a fine effort to catch and pass Michele Pirro for fifth position on the Althea Honda, although sixth for the Italian still marks the best result of his maiden season in the category.

Chaz Davies added to Triumph’s joy with a measured run to seventh, the former grand prix rider doing his chances of landing a full-time ride with the Italian-run team next year no harm at all.

He finished ahead of former champion Fabien Foret and Barry Veneman, who put in a decent performance on the year-old George White Honda, while local favourite Miguel Praia completed the top ten on the second Parkalgar Honda.

Elsewhere, Andrew Pitt handed over his crown with a whimper by finishing a lowly 11th, just ahead of Colombian newcomer Martin Cardenas. British pair Michael Laverty and Kev Coghlan, meanwhile, completed the points in 14th and 15th.

Full race results for the 14th and final round of the 2009 World Supersport Championship at Portimao, Portugal.

1. Eugene Laverty IRL Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR 20 laps
2. Kenan Sofuoglu TUR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR +3.443s
3. Garry McCoy AUS Triumph BE1 Racing 675 +13.874s
4. Cal Crutchlow GBR Yamaha SSP YZF R6 +15.144s
5. Mark Aitchison AUS Althea Honda CBR600RR +16.608s
6. Michele Pirro ITA Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni YZF R6 +20.008s
7. Chaz Davies GBR Triumph BE1 Racing 675 +22.007s
8. Fabien Foret FRA Yamaha SSP YZF R6 +22.034s
9. Barry Veneman NED George White Honda CBR600RR +23.031s
10. Miguel Praia POR Parkalgar Honda CBR600RR +24.002s
11. Andrew Pitt AUS HANNspree Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR +31.794s
12. Martin Cardenas COL Veidec Racing Honda CBR600RR +31.811s
13. Katsuaki Fujiwara JPN Kawasaki Provec ZX-6R +32.218s
14. Michael Laverty GBR ECHO CRS Honda CBR600RR +33.196s
15. Kev Coghlan GBR Holiday Gym Racing Yamaha YZF R6 +1min 02.386s

16. Doni Tata Pradita INA Yamaha YZF R6 +1min 06.401s
17. Danilo Dell’Omo ITA Kuja Racing Honda CBR600RR +1min 08.010s
18. Yannick Guerra ESP Holiday Gym Racing Yamaha YZF R6 +1min 18.977s
19. Flavio Gentile ITA Althea Honda CBR600RR +1min 19.080s
20. Olivier Four FRA Intermoto Czech Honda CBR600RR +1min 22.144s
21. Robert Muresan ROU MS Romania Triumph 675 2mins 06.258s
22. Marcin Walkowiak POL LW BOGDANKA Yamaha YZF R6 +1 lap

Not Classified

23. Massimo Roccoli ITA Intermoto Czech Honda CBR600RR 16 laps completed
24. Arie Vos NED Veidec Racing RES Honda CBR600RR 15 laps completed
25. Sam Lowes GBR ECHO CRS Honda CBR600RR 7 laps completed
26. Joan Lascorz ESP Kawasaki Provec ZX-6R 3 laps completed

source : crash.net