A scintillating start from Australian Casey Stoner wasn't enough
to hold off five-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi in
the Dutch MotoGP at Assen.
Stoner had to settle for second after a rampaging Rossi stormed
from 11th on the grid to move within 21 points of championship
leader Stoner at the halfway point of the season.
The Australian look poised to claim yet another victory in this
memorable season for much of the race.
However, the windy conditions and skill of Rossi coupled to
relegate him to second place.
"We got an awesome start, went out to the front and felt quite
comfortable doing similar times to what we were doing in
practice, though not quite as fast because the wind was worse
today," Stoner explained after the race.
"I was getting pushed around in a few of the fast turns and had
a couple of front-end loses, so I wasn't willing to push the bike
in the braking points."
"I saw Valentino catching up, I saw him battling on the TV screens
around the track. He was chasing me down pretty hard, he had a
faster pace. I tried to up my own pace but once he came past I
was at my maximum."
Stoner said he was content with his performance and the
outcome.
"I felt great the entire race and I can't complain about the result
because we only lost five points in the championship and we've
only been off the podium twice this year," Stoner said.
The young Australian was full of praise for his team at the
halfway point of the season.
"Overall, I'm happy with the way the season's going. I didn't start
the year expecting to be leading the championship at this point,
and no matter what happens for the rest of the season we're
going to be very happy. I'm proud to be a Ducati man."