It is the home of his toughest rival for the title who has triumphed many times here. Now Brno has become the home of Marco Melandri, author of an extraordinary double win that wowed not only all of his fans but also those who love motorcycling and spectacular racing. Two perfect races, the first showing experience as he waited for the right time to make his move after a cautious first half of the race due to a wet track, and a second half that produced a strong fight and spectacular overtaking.
Misfortune however for Carlos Checa, who started from second on the grid and missed the podium by a whisker, coming fourth, due to the fall of an opponent which forced him to slow down on the last lap. Michel Fabrizio finished eighth.
Race two also produced some superb action, full of overtaking moves that kept us glued to the TV right up to the finish line. Marco was the strongest again giving us the fifth win of the season and his first double win (also for BMW). A better race this time for Carlos who managed to reach the third step of the podium. Leon Camier finished ninth and Michel Fabrizio tenth.
Melandri is second in the overall standings 21 points behind the leader while Carlos is fourth.
Next race at Silverstone on August 5.
The statements of the riders.
Marco Melandri(Nolan X-802):
"I am living my dream today. Securing my first double victory here in Brno on this racetrack is something special. I am so happy because I already have five victories this season and nobody did expect it. Race one was already amazing. At the beginning the conditions were very difficult as it was wet. As we were riding with slicks, we just tried not to lose too many positions, but in the first few laps I struggled a lot. While I tried to improve my position I made two mistakes because I still was not feeling comfortable. When I saw that I was eighth I said to myself that I need to stay quiet and keep my rhythm to catch the front guys. It was not easy to overtake them. And when I took the lead with one lap to go I knew that I just needed to keep pushing as much as I could. I knew that I was faster than the others.
Race two was even more difficult as Tom was doing a great race, and I had to spend a lot of energy trying to catch him. The tyre was working very well today, and I could keep the gap very small. Every time I tried to pass Tom he was braking so hard that it was nearly impossible. Once I finally passed him, I made a mistake and Tom passed me back. It was really tough to catch him again. Actually I did not expect to win, but being on the victory rostrum twice today is just amazing. Seeing BMW leading the manufacturers’ championship is unbelievable and it makes me proud. I also could close the gap to Max in the rider’s championship. But the season is still long, and we think race by race. I want to thank everybody at BMW Motorrad and in the race team who work so hard every day and put so much effort in the project. It was so unbelievable and emotional to see them smiling and happy. Now I just want to celebrate this result."
Carlos Checa (X-lite X-802):
"We knew it would be hard at this track so I think we can be happy with third and fourth place finishes today. Despite the difficulties on the grid and at the start of race 1, I was able to stick with those ahead of me and maintain a good pace. I admit I had my doubts on the grid because there is no way of knowing whether conditions will change during the race but we made the right tyre choice. Having said that it was hard - I had trouble catching and then passing those in front. So, all things considered, and bearing in mind that Rea crashed in front of me on the last lap, final fourth position wasn’t so bad. Then, in race 2, I started to lose grip in the final stages. There was no way I could keep up with Tom and Marco but I’m pleased that I was able to stay close and take third place. The team has worked really well together and it’s also thanks to the harmony in the garage that I was able to take these results today."
