2007 MotoGP Shanghai Results

Casey Stoner snagged his third win of the season and extended his championship lead to 15 points by claiming the checkers at Shanghai on Sunday. The Aussie was joined on the podium by Valentino Rossi and John Hopkins, with Hopper earning the first rostrum of his MotoGP career.

John Hopkins began his day strong by claiming the holeshot with a good start, but before the first lap was finished Valentino Rossi had taken the lead with Casey Stoner pushing into second. On the start-finish straight, however, Stoner blew past The Doctor, exhibiting the clear supremacy of the Duacti GP7 on the long straights.

With the fight for first heating up not all the MotoGP field made it through the first lap clean. After the first turn, Toni Elias was the focal point of a first-lap melee, with the Spaniard destroying the Shanghai hopes of a pair of riders: Alex Barros, who got held up by Elias' aggressive maneuver and the reigning champ, Nicky Hayden, who had to summon some of his dirt-track skills to keep the rubber side down as he rode into the grass having been T-boned by the wild Spaniard.

Marco Melandri pushed into the top three during the opening laps but gave way to Hopkins for third on Lap 6. Meanwhile, up front it was Stoner and Rossi pressing for the lead with each man holding the position for mere seconds before giving way to the other.

The two front-runners slingshot back and forth for the lead throughout the middle laps of the 22-lap race, but Hopkins began to creep forward to the front-running pair.

At the halfway point Rossi moved into the lead, but just as The Doctor snatched first-place Stoner blew right past on the straight and set his fastest lap of the race to that point. Hopper held third, with the American followed further back by Dani Pedrosa and Marco Melandri.

At 10 to go it was the front three spaced out but well ahead of the remaining MotoGP pack. With the laps waning, Stoner and Rossi were fixing for a first-place fight, with Hopper appearing to have an outside shot. After the front three there was a wide gulf to Pedrosa and Melandri fighting over fourth and an even wider gulf to the riders contesting sixth.

Seven laps remaining it wasn't a matter of whether Hopkins would earn his first career podium, it was a matter of where Hopper would place on the rostrum as he held third by six seconds over Pedrosa. Then Rossi pulled a maneuver even the five-time MotoGP champion couldn't pull off, passing Stoner momentarily but running wide off the track into the grass and surrendering second to Hopper.

Stoner kept his cool, with Rossi already making his fatal error, and with three to go there wasn't a doubt who the winner would be. The only question was whether Hopper or Rossi would hold second-place and its 20 championship points, but it was The Doctor who would win out.

Stoner took the checkers and increased his lead in the championship to 15-points, winning his third race of the season. Rossi crossed in second, with John Hopkins earning his first career podium finish. Given his performance all weekend, it just seemed that Hopper was due at long last, and the Rizla Suzuki rider made good. Dani Pedrosa and Marco Melandri rounded out the top 5.

"We're looking for a train of them, I can feel it," said Hopper on his podium finish, the American clearly energized by getting the podium monkey off his back. "I am so happy with the way the race went and I want to dedicate my first podium to my Dad! Without doubt he was watching me and he certainly helped get me through to the finish - there will be more of these to come! I want to also give a big thanks to everyone who has supported me and especially my family. I also owe a huge thank-you to my crew who have been right behind me all the time. I really want to congratulate Bridgestone for the great tyres and Suzuki for the huge steps forward with the bike that is enabling me to run at the front now."

It's been a long time coming, but Hopkins was due and maybe the confidence of this first rostrum will push the Suzuki rider to the steps with more frequency in the rounds to come.

For Stoner, the victory isn't unexpected, but in a sense that is a stunner in and of itself which even the 21-year-old Aussie acknowledges.

"If last year someone had told me that at this point of the season I would have won three races I would have laughed! Anyway, today was another perfect day," said Stoner. "I really want to say thank you to Ducati, to Vittoriano Guareschi of the test team, and to Bridgestone and to all the sponsors who have given me this opportunity. The pace of the race was incredibly fast and we were really quick on the straights. Again we were able to take this advantage and I could just stay at the front with the lap times we were doing."

Loris Capirossi moved up from a fourth-row start to finish sixth, one spot ahead of fifth-row starter Chris Vermeulen. Randy de Puniet, Alex Hofmann, and Carlos Checa rounded out the top 10, one position ahead of Colin Edwards. Poor Nicky Hayden, watching his world title slip from his grasp, the Kentucky Kid stubbornly continued the race after Elias punted him off the track to finish 12th. The valiant effort by Hayden earned some points but his title hopes are all but gone even this early in the season.

MotoGP Shanghai Results:
1. Casey Stoner (Marlboro Ducati)
2. Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha)
3. John Hopkins (Rizla Suzuki)
4. Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda)
5. Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda)
6. Loris Capirossi (Marlboro Ducati)
7. Chris Vermulen (Rizla Suzuki)
8. Randy de Puniet (Kawasaki)
9. Alex Hofmann (Pramac d'Antin)
10. Carlos Checa (LCR Honda)
11. Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha)
12. Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda)
13. Sylvain Guintoli (Tech 3 Yamaha)
14. Alex Barros (Pramac d'Antin)
15. Kenny Roberts Junior (Team Roberts)
DNF Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda)
DNF Makoto Tamada (Tech 3 Yamaha)
DNF Toni Elias (Gresini Honda)

MotoGP Championship Points:
1. Stoner - 86
2. Rossi - 71
3. Pedrosa - 49
4. Melandri - 41
5. Hopkins - 39