Newsgroup: it.sport
Titolo: Dorna NEWS - German GP

Roberts Junior fastest in mountain mist
500 class rookie Kenny Roberts Junior justified his famous name by 
taking his first ever provisional pole position in
streaming wet conditions at the notoriously rain-prone Nurburgring 
circuit in the first of two days of practice for Sunday's
German GP.
"Junior", who rides for the Marlboro-backed works Yamaha team owned by 
his three-times-World-Champion father Kenny
Senior, was less than two tenths ahead of Japan's Shinichi Itoh, the 
Repsol Honda rider's best position since he switched to
the new lightweight V-twin Honda this year.
Luca Cadalora (Kanemoto Honda) was third, and Roberts's team-mate 
Jean-Michel Bayle fourth, completing the
provisional front row of the grid.
Alex Barros (Pileri Honda) was fifth, ahead of morning session leader 
Scott Russell (Lucky Strike Suzuki), in his first visit to
the track.
This left the dominant rider of the year, defending champion Michael 
Doohan, down in eighth, one place behind his Repsol
Honda team-mate Alex Criville.
There were a number of crashes, but no serious injuries, including 
Doriano Romboni, riding the lightweight V-twin Aprilia.
The positions could change radically. With rain now forecast throughout 
the weekend riders who were holding back today in
the hope of dry weather tomorrow will be obliged to stick their necks 
out.
250cc: WALDMANN OUT OF THE WOODS
Top German riders Ralf Waldmann (HB Honda) and team-mate Jurgen Fuchs 
led the first day of practice in the 250 class,
half-a-second apart, but fully a second ahead of the next man, Italian 
Aprilia privateer Luca Boscoscuro and the works
Chesterfield Elf Honda of Jean-Philippe Ruggia.
Conditions made it a good day for privateers in this class; with Dutch 
Honda rider Jurgen vdGoorbergh ahead of the works
Honda of Luis d'Antin, the works Aprilia of Marcellino Lucchi and the 
semi-works Aprilia of Eskil Suter on row two.
Lucchi, official factory tester for Aprilia, is taking the place of the 
injured Roberto Locatelli.
Last week's pole qualifier Olivier Jacque (Chesterfield Elf Aprilia) was 
down in 10th; sole Marlboro Yamaha rider Tetsuya
Harada 12th; defending double world champion Max Biaggi (Chesterfield 
Aprilia) 14th.
125cc: MANAKO LEADS THE CRASH-HIT CLASS
UGT Europa Honda rider Tomomi Manako was narrowly fastest in the 
smallest GP class, less than two tenths ahead of
Assen winner Emilio Alzamora (Cepsa Honda), with Italian teenage 
sensation Valentino Rossi (AGV Aprilia) and former
champion Kazuto Sakata (Krona Aprilia) close behind. Defending champion 
Harachuki Aoki was 10th.
The 125 class was the hardest hit by crashes, with 13 fallers compared 
with 11 in the 250 class and six 500s.
-- 
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Classic second win for Cadalora
Italian rider Luca Cadalora won his second GP of the season in fine 
style in Germany today, leading off the line, dropping
back to second as four other riders caught up for one of the closest 
races of the year, then regaining the lead in the closing
laps to cross the line two tenths of defending World Champion Michael 
Doohan.
The Kanemoto-Honda rider won the opening round of the season, but has 
been on the rostrum only three times in the eight
races since.
But Doohan was angry that he had not tried harder to attack at the 
finish, after mis-reading the lap countdown clock and
being taken by surprise by the chequered flag.
His Repsol-Honda team-mate Alex Criville was a close third; with Lucky 
Strike Suzuki rider Scott Russell fourth and
promising Marlboro Yamaha class rookie Kenny Roberts Junior fifth.
Japanese GP winner Norifumi Abe was closing up in the last laps, and was 
sixth, narrowly ahead of Tadayuki Okada's
lightweight V-twin Repsol Honda.
The start was delayed after a spectacular crash on the warm-up lap left 
debris on the circuit. The victims were Belgian rider
Laurent Naveau, who broke his hand; and Team Lucky Strike Suzuki rider 
Terry Rymer, who injured his ankle, but restarted
on a spare bike, only to fall again while lying tenth.
Front row qualifier Doriano Romboni (IP Aprilia) also failed to finish, 
after crashing out of the top ten on the second lap.
Doohan extended his championship lead over Criville to 166 points 
against 109; while Cadalora closed up to 106. Barros is
fourth on 91, then Abe on 78.
250cc - 25 laps, 113.900km
Ralf Waldmann (HB Honda) made no mistakes to claim his second successive 
win of the season in front of his home crowd,
biding his time in a fearsome five-bike group, then making the break in 
the closing laps to cross the line just two seconds
ahead of the survivors. He was the first German to win at the new 
Nurburgring, opened in 1984.
French bright hope Olivier Jacque (Chesterfield Elf Honda) was second, 
taking his first-ever podium finish; then Waldmann's
team-mate Jurgen Fuchs made a brilliant last lap to claim third from 
defending champion and title points leader Max Biaggi
(Chesterfield Aprilia) by half-a-second, the position changing hands 
three times on the final lap.
It was Biaggi's worst result for almost two seasons, breaking a run of 
17 consecutive top-three finishes; but the Italian rider
was riding in pain, after a practice crash in Holland a week ago.
Aprilia test rider, substituting for the injured Roberto Locatelli, had 
been with the leaders on the Nastro Azzurro Aprilia, but
crashed out with six laps remaining.
Luis d'Antin (MX Onda Honda) won a distant battle for fifth from private 
Aprilia rider Lucca Boscoscuro and Jean-Philippe
Ruggia (Chesterfield Elf Honda), the trio covered by less than a second, 
but 24 seconds adrift of the leaders.
Then came Regis Laconi's private Honda - the bike minus the lower part 
of its fairing after a first-corner collision that
eliminated three riders.
Waldmann reduced Biaggi's leading margin slightly, with 126 points to 
the Italian's 174. Harada is third on 97 - he retired
from a lowly 11th place with ignition trouble; Fuchs moved to fourth on 
83.
125cc - 23 laps, 104.788km
Masaki Tokudome (Ditter Plastic Aprilia) won a thrilling first race of 
the day, leading for most of the distance only to be
passed in the closing two laps. He fought back brilliantly, repassing 
Italian Stefano Perugini (Nastro Azzurro Aprilia) at the last
gasp to take his third win of the year by less than half-a-second.
Defending champion Harachuki Aoki (Rheos Honda) was third, biding his 
time at the back of the eight-strong leading group
then timing his final run perfectly to push Emilio Alzamora (Cepsa 
Honda) to fourth, with Italian teenager Valentino Rossi
(AGV Aprilia) fifth, then Peter Oettl (Marlboro Aprilia), Jorge Martinez 
(Airtel Aprilia) and Tomomi Manako (UGT Honda).
The first six were covered by just over two seconds.
Aoki's title lead was slightly reduced, at 146 points to Tokudome's 100. 
Perugini and Alzamora are equal on 94, with
Manako on 85.
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