German GP: Gresini Racing race report

SIMONCELLI TAKES ANOTHER STEP FORWARD WITH SIXTH PLACE AT SACHSENRING

Marco Simoncelli made up for his disappointment at Barcelona two weeks ago in fine style at Sachsenring today, where sixth place confirmed his constant progress in the premier class. His performance merited such an impressive result, the Italian battling in the chasing pack throughout the second part of a split race -- caused by a red flag after nine laps -- and it means he can now turn his attention towards breaking into the front group. It was a day to forget for his team-mate Marco Melandri, who struggled to cope with the incessant left-turns at this track and slowly lost strength and feeling as he trailed home in tenth.

Marco Simoncelli (6th): "That was the most fun I've had in a MotoGP race since the start of my debut season. Obviously sixth place is an important result but the thing that gives me most pleasure is the incredible battle I was in for the entire race. I had so much fun over the last few laps in the fight with Dovizioso and Hayden -- it was like a minibike race! We were passing each other a couple of times on each lap and I enjoyed myself so much that I don't even care that I missed out on fifth place. I tried one last pass on Dovizioso in the final corner and I got inside him but I braked too late and ran wide. I am still really happy though and I have to say I got a little lucky because at the restart I was able to fit a different tyre that we'd already used in practice and that allowed me to set a faster pace over the first few races. I'm really pleased and I would like to thank Honda, San Carlo, Team Gresini, all the crew and my chief mechanic Aligi. "

Marco Melandri (10th): "That was a particularly difficult race and I didn't have a good feeling from the start. After around ten laps I had no more strength in my arm and I started to feel a lot of pain. There are so many left corners here and I totally lost my rhythm -- all I could think of was making it to the end."

Fausto Gresini: "Simoncelli had a really nice race today. Once again he has shown that he is capable of achieving top results in MotoGP. He put up a great fight, battling with Dovizioso and Hayden and not giving up until the end, finishing fifth. He knows how to improve and I am sure he will continue to do so for the rest of this season but he has given San Carlo and the Team something to celebrate tonight. I'm sorry for Melandri, who struggled through another tough race."

-source: gresini racing