We don’t know about you guys, but when we saw Alvaro Bautista go down, Valentino Rossi get trapped in the middle before sliding out together with Nicky Hayden and Randy de Puniet on the first lap, we held our breathe and offered a prayer to a more forgiving racing god that nothing serious had happened, and luckily none of the riders were injured, with Hayden picking up just some bruising to his right hand and nothing else.
An apologetic Alvaro Bautista, who will be testing his 800cc Suzuki on Tuesday – there has been no further news on Suzuki’s future in MotoGP – said “It has been a bad way to end the year, because before the race I was expecting to be fighting for the podium! In all conditions we had been fast this weekend and I thought we would have a good race today.
In the first corner we all arrived together and I was between Andrea and Valentino.
Unfortunately Andrea hit my front wheel with his rear tyre and I couldn’t do anything to save the crash.
The worst thing was that I hit three other riders and they crashed as well, I am sorry for them and also sorry for the team and all the fans.
This year has been very tough, it didn’t start very well when I broke my left femur and although we did a good job – especially in the middle of the season when I was totally fit, both mentally and physically – we haven’t finished with that many good results.
I got more and more confident in the bike as the season went on and the work we have done has been amazing, we have come such a long way.
Thanks to Suzuki for all they have done and thanks to my team, they work 100% in all races and I think everybody has been able to see the improvement on the track.
Thanks also to everybody that has supported me and Rizla Suzuki in 2011, and now we will have to see what happens for next year.
”The last race of the season for Ducati riders Nicky Hayden and Valentino was just like their entire 2011 season, horrible and complicated.
Both riders will be testing the GP12 on Tuesday and Wednesday and hopefully they’ll get the bike right and that the full and convential twin spar aluminium frame they’ll supposedly be testing will help solve their chronic front end problems.
“I felt some riders coming up the inside really fast as we approached Turn 1.
Then something happened and it was just the domino effect – race over in the first corner.
I’m okay other than my hand being pretty sore.
It’s unfortunate.
One of our bike’s strengths is generating heat in the tyres, and that’s what you need on a cold, wet track like this.
Already on the warm-up lap, the bike felt good.
It’s easy to say now, but I honestly feel like we could have put up a decent fight today and had some fun,” said Nicky Hayden.
“There’s really nothing to say about today, other than that I’m sorry beyond measure not to have been able to put on Sic’s T-shirt for the lap of honour,” commented Valentino Rossi.
“It’s truly a shame.
I started well and all the conditions were in our favour for having a nice race, but we were unfortunate and received no points here either.
We finish the season tied with Sic, with him ahead of me in the standings.
I guess that’s my tribute to him!”If Rossi and Hayden had rotten season, nothing could compare to fellow Ducati rider Randy de Puniet, who had one of his roughest season’s ever.
He either crashed out or was involved in a crash five times, missed the Laguna Seca GP due to injury and now is leaving Pramac Ducati, who will be fielding only one rider, with Hector Barbera in pole postion for that ride.
De Puniet is supposedly heading back to Cecchinello’s Honda satellite team despite the fact they didn’t leave on very good terms at the end of 2010.
“I’m angry, disappointed, and sorry.
This has really been an unfortunate season.
Bautista’s fall caused my crash and three other crashes.
I was convinced that I would’ve had a good race.
I wanted to end this season in the best way possible.
It was a pleasure to be Capirex’s teammate in his final season.
” said Randy de Puniet.
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