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Two seconds give Marco Melandri a clear second

Wednesday, 5 October 2011 14:03 GMT
Two seconds give Marco Melandri a clear second
Marco Melandri was in particularly fine form at Magny-Cours over the weekend, the Italian putting in some powerful performances to notch up two second places on a circuit he had never seen before. With one round left, Melandri, a WSBK rookie, has now almost completed an outstanding year in second place in the overall Championship classification.


Despite struggling with the front set up on his machine in race one, the Italian managed to gradually work his way through the pack to cross the line second, just behind Carlos Checa as the Spaniard claimed the 2011 World Championship title. In race 2 Melandri climbed up to the third before closing in on and overtaking his team-mate on the last lap to power his Yamaha to the line, close behind champion Checa and claim the second step on the podium, while Laverty closely followed in third.


"I'm pleased with my two podium finishes today," said Marco. "Race one was very difficult, I was with struggling with the front so we modified the fork a bit before the second race but it didn't make the difference I had hoped for. At the beginning I didn't have a good feeling with the bike but mid-way I was more comfortable and pushed as hard I could. When I saw Eugene on the small hairpin on the last lap, I knew it was my only chance to get ahead. My target today was to catch up on the riders ahead and I did my best in both races so I'm happy to come away with two seconds."