2002 German motorcycle Grand Prix explained

Flag:GER
Grand Prix:German
Official Name:Cinzano Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland[1] [2]
Location:Sachsenring
Course Mi:2.302
Course Km:3.704
Race No:9
Season No:16
Date:21 July
Year:2002
Pole Rider Motogp:Olivier Jacque
Pole Rider Motogp Country:France
Pole Rider Motogp Bike:Yamaha
Pole Time Motogp:1:25.758
Fast Rider Motogp:Valentino Rossi
Fast Rider Motogp Country:Italy
Fast Rider Motogp Bike:Honda
Fast Time Motogp:1:26.226 on lap 29
First Rider Motogp:Valentino Rossi
First Rider Motogp Country:Italy
First Rider Motogp Bike:Honda
Second Rider Motogp:Max Biaggi
Second Rider Motogp Country:Italy
Second Rider Motogp Bike:Yamaha
Third Rider Motogp:Tohru Ukawa
Third Rider Motogp Country:Japan
Third Rider Motogp Bike:Honda
Pole Rider 250:Fonsi Nieto
Pole Rider 250 Country:Spain
Pole Rider 250 Bike:Aprilia
Pole Time 250:1:26.874
Fast Rider 250:Roberto Rolfo
Fast Rider 250 Country:Italy
Fast Rider 250 Bike:Honda
Fast Time 250:1:27.234 on lap 4
First Rider 250:Marco Melandri
First Rider 250 Country:Italy
First Rider 250 Bike:Aprilia
Second Rider 250:Roberto Rolfo
Second Rider 250 Country:Italy
Second Rider 250 Bike:Honda
Third Rider 250:Sebastián Porto
Third Rider 250 Country:Argentina
Third Rider 250 Bike:Yamaha
Pole Rider 125:Arnaud Vincent
Pole Rider 125 Country:France
Pole Rider 125 Bike:Aprilia
Pole Time 125:1:29.097
Fast Rider 125:Steve Jenkner
Fast Rider 125 Country:Germany
Fast Rider 125 Bike:Aprilia
Fast Time 125:1:29.486 on lap 3
First Rider 125:Arnaud Vincent
First Rider 125 Country:France
First Rider 125 Bike:Aprilia
Second Rider 125:Alex de Angelis
Second Rider 125 Country:San Marino
Second Rider 125 Bike:Aprilia
Third Rider 125:Steve Jenkner
Third Rider 125 Country:Germany
Third Rider 125 Bike:Aprilia

The 2002 German motorcycle Grand Prix was the ninth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 19–21 July 2002 at the Sachsenring.

MotoGP race report

This race was most notable for the hard-fought battle between the two-and four-strokes all around the circuit, the fight between Barros, Jacque and Ukawa for the win in the early stage and Rossi and Jacque in the second stage of the race.

Valentino Rossi has already built up a solid lead over the rest after eight rounds, leading the title hunt with 195 points. In second is his teammate Tohru Ukawa with 108 points and third is Max Biaggi with 89 points.

On Saturday, Olivier Jacque took pole position on the two-stroke Yamaha with a time of 1:25.758 - his first pole position of 2002 and immediately his last of the season and his career. Second is Shinya Nakano, only being +0.080 seconds behind, then Max Biaggi in third +.0.117 seconds behind and in fourth Alex Barros who is +0.198 seconds behind. On the second row of the grid is Tohru Ukawa in fifth, teammate Valentino Rossi in sixth, Jeremy McWilliams in seventh and Garry McCoy in eighth.[3] Akira Ryō enters as a wildcard for this race,[4] José Luis Cardoso replaces Pere Riba who is still rehabilitating from a fracture on his left tibia after a fall during Saturday practice at the British round,[5] Yukio Kagayama replaces Kenny Roberts Jr. who is still recovering from a surgery on his right arm[6] and John Hopkins does not participate in the race after a crash at the final practice session caused him to injure his left hand and required surgery to be fixed.[7]

All riders take off and do their usual warm-up lap before lining up in their respective grid slots. As the lights go out, Biaggi has a good start and moves into the lead heading into the Coca-Cola Kurve (Turn 1), followed by Ukawa who goes from fifth to second and slots right behind Biaggi. Barros, who initially looked to be bogged down a bit and lost some positions, regained them and goes up into third after a lunge into the first corner. Jacque loses three positions and has to stick with fourth, his teammate Nakano right behind him in fifth. Sixth is Norifumi Abe, who overtook multiple riders from fourteenth on the grid. Rossi meanwhile did not have a good start, losing three places and finding himself stuck down in ninth behind Daijiro Kato at sector one on the opening lap. In the sext few corners, both Ukawa and Barros manage to get by Biaggi - the Japanese for the lead and the Brazilian for second. Biaggi is now coming under attack from Jacque as well. At the Sachsen Kurve (Turn 13), Rossi easily goes up the inside of Kato and takes eighth place, the airhorns blasting as he does so. Carlos Checa is now also right behind Kato, not yet making a move.

On lap two, both Jacque and Nakano have overtaken Biaggi, promoting them to third and fourth position. At the start/finish straight, he loses another position to Abe, who overtakes both McWilliams and Biaggi to move up into fifth spot entering the Coca-Cola Kurve. Biaggi is now sixth and McWilliams seventh. Behind them, Kato makes a late lunge and overtakes Rossi around the outside heading into the Coca-Cola Kurve and entering Turn 2 for eighth. Ukawa and Barros have now opened up a gap to the Gauloises Tech 3 Yamaha duo of Jacque and Nakano in third and fourth. Exiting turn 9, Rossi passes Kato and takes eighth place. Heading into the Sachsen Kurve, Barros tries to dive down Ukawa's inside but isn't quite able to, the airhorns blowing in the background. Further back, Checa also tries to pass Kato on the straight heading up to the corner but isn't able to get past.

Lap three and Barros sets the fastest lap of the race. McWilliams then surprises Biaggi by passing him on the inside heading into the Coca-Cola Kurve for sixth place, Rossi also trying to get by but having to slot behind Biaggi for the time being. At Turns 10 and 11, Barros is now very close to Ukawa but isn't able to make a move at any of the remaining corners or straights. McWilliams is also right behind Abe but is not able to get past at the Queckenberg Kurve (Turn 14).

On lap four, Biaggi blasts past McWilliams on the start/finish straight, the Englishman then retaking the position by outbraking him going into the Coca-Cola Kurve. Turning the bike, he has a slight moment, forcing Biaggi wide and opening the door for Rossi to take seventh as he also tries and succeeds in making a move. At Turn 11 and 12, Barros is once again very close and tries to send it down the inside, not being able to pass and having to settle in second for now. Also at Turn 12, Rossi is right behind McWilliams but isn't able to get by, then both Rossi and Biaggi have a look up on the inside at the Queckenberg Kurve but still aren't able to pass.

Lap five and both Rossi and Biaggi easily pass McWilliams on the start/finish straight, Rossi immediately catching up on Abe in fifth spot. Jacque has by now slowly caught up to the fighting duo of Ukawa and Barros to make it a three-way battle for the lead. Barros then has a look at Ukawa's inside but opts to stay behind for now, getting close once again at Turns 11 and 12 but still not making a move. Rossi then tries to get by Abe at the Sachsen Kurve but fails, having to stay behind the Japanese for now.

On lap six, Jacque goes side by side with Barros and outbrakes him at the Coca-Cola Kurve, taking second position from him. Rossi now sets the fastest lap of the race. Also at the start/finish straight, Rossi overtakes Abe and moves up into fifth spot. By now, Nakano and Rossi have all closed up as well, making the fight for the lead a five-man battle. Barros goes up the inside of Jacque to take second entering Turn 12, with both Rossi and Biaggi making a pass on Nakano and Abe for fourth and sixth place at the Sachsen Kurve.

Lap seven and Biaggi has a look at Nakano's outside, choosing not to pass for now. At Turn 12, Barros throws it up the inside of Ukawa and takes the lead. At the subsequent straight, Barros, Ukawa, Jacque and Rossi go side-by-side but it is Jacque who makes good use of the situation to pass Ukawa and put himself up into second. Ukawa loses two places in just two corners, Rossi having to stay behind for the time being. Behind them, Biaggi also makes a late lunge to pass Nakano and take fifth.

On lap eight, the top six is as follows: Barros, Jacque, Ukawa, Rossi, Biaggi and Nakano. Cardoso has to enter the pits for a jump start, having to serve a stop-and-go penalty. At the straight before the Sachsen Kurve, Barros dangerously swerves from right to left, almost hitting Jacque in the process. Behind them, Rossi passes Repsol Honda teammate Ukawa and moves up into third at the Sachsen Kurve.

Lap nine and Biaggi tries to pass Ukawa as he brakes earlier at the start/finish straight, pushing him wide at the Coca-Cola Kurve. At the Sachsen Kurve, Jacque looks to be making a move but opts to stick behind Barros for the time being. Rossi has now also closed up on the pair in front of him.

On lap ten, Jacque again has a look up the inside of Barros at the start/finish straight but does not make a move for now. Exiting Turn 12, Rossi has to brake a little as the power difference of his four-stroke almost causes him to crash into the back of Jacque's two-stroke, thus not being able to overtake the Frenchman for now.

Lap eleven and Jacque is still all over the back of Barros. Rossi closes up on the Frenchman at the Sachsen Kurve but does not overtake. Checa also briefly has a look at Abe's rear but decides to stay behind for now.

On lap twelve, Checa has a peek up on the inside of Abe, not making the pass for the time being. On the previous lap, three riders have crashed out - Kato, Kagayama and teammate Sete Gibernau. Kato lies injured on the grass, the marshalls and Kagayama helping him out as another one removes his bike from the gravel and yet another one assists Gibernau. The reason for the collision is Gibernau going up the inside of Kato, collecting his rear and bringing down Kagayama alongside him. At the straight before the Sachsen Kurve, Rossi looks to be making a pass on Jacque but stays behind for the time being.

Lap thirteen and Checa now gets past Abe, outbraking him heading into the Coca-Cola Kurve. This promotes him up to sixth. Exiting the Coca-Cola Kurve and heading into Turn 2, Rossi runs wide and Ukawa goes through to third place. At the straight before the Sachsen Kurve, Rossi goes side by side and easily passes Ukawa to regain third. At the Queckenberg Kurve, Biaggi also goes up the inside of the Japanese to snatch fourth away from him.

On lap fourteen, Rossi looks to be making a pass on Jacque at the Sachsen Kurve but once again stays behind for the time being.

Lap fifteen - the halfway point of the race - and Biaggi easily passes Rossi on the start/finish straight for third position, 'The Doctor' waving at him as a signal to get by. At the Sachsen Kurve, Rossi then retakes the lead by diving down his inside and goes back up into third.

On lap sixteen, Rossi opens up a small gap to Biaggi and is now right up the rear of Jacque. At the straight before the Sachsen Kurve, Rossi tries to pass Jacque on the outside but isn't able to get by and has to stay behind in third.

Lap seventeen and Rossi has another peek up Jacque's inside coming up to the Coca-Cola Kurve, but stays behind. At the Sachsen Kurve, Rossi again tries to pass Jacque on the inside but just isn't able to.

On lap eighteen and the positions are still stable. At the straight before the entrance of the Sachsen Kurve, Ukawa tries to pass Biaggi - who has a bad exit - for fourth but fails and stays behind.

Lap nineteen and Rossi finally makes his move on Jacque at the start/finish straight, going up his inside and taking second from him at the Coca-Cola Kurve. At the exit of Turn 12, Rossi then blasts past Barros on the outside, taking over the lead of the race entering the Sachsen Kurve.

On lap twenty, the top six is as follows: Rossi, Barros, Jacque, Biaggi, Ukawa and Checa. At Turns 11 and 12, Barros closes up on Rossi but the Italian manages to ride away on the straight, the difference between the two and four-strokes being very obvious there.

Lap twenty-one and Jacque now overtakes Barros at the start/finish straight for second spot, going up his inside and outbraking him at the Coca-Cola Kurve. Exiting Turn 9, Jacque has a slight moment which unsettles his bike a bit. At Turns 11 and 12, the Frenchman closes up but the power difference of the four-stroke Repsol Honda makes all the difference in the next straight.

On lap twenty-two, Jacque has another moment entering the Coca-Cola Kurve. However, he manages to stay right behind Rossi and harasses him all throughout the lap. At the Sachsen Kurve, Jacque carries more corner speed and manages to exit it better than Rossi but is still not able to go by.

Lap twenty-three Jacque is now all over the rear of Rossi yet loses out on the straights, causing him to stay behind once more.

On lap twenty-four, Jacque tries to take a tighter line at Karthallen (Turn 8) but still isn't able to get past Rossi.

Lap twenty-five and Barros has now come back into the fight, making it a three-way battle for the lead. Just behind him is Biaggi in fourth. At Turn 9, Rossi makes a mistake and goes wide, immediately being overtaken by Jacque and Barros, demoting him to third. Jacque has now retaken the lead of the race. At the Sachsen Kurve, Rossi tries to take second as quick as he can but cannot get past and has to stay behind in third for now.

On lap twenty-six, Biaggi now tries to pass Rossi around the outside of the Coca-Cola Kurve, Rossi forcing him wide and keeping the position. Heading into the Karthallen, Jacque has a moment and that unsettles his bike a bit. Abe in seventh is now also putting pressure on Checa, exiting Turn 9 with a shorter line and trying to go side by side with the Spaniard. The two-strokes of Jacque and Barros are now opening up a gap to third place Rossi on the four-stroke.

Lap twenty-seven and Barros tries to line up a pass at the entrance of the Sachsen Kurve, not being able to and choosing to stay behind for the time being.

On lap twenty-eight, Rossi sets the fastest lap of the race. At the entrance of the Coca-Cola Kurve, Barros makes a dive down Jacque's inside to take over the lead of the race. However, exiting the corner, he loses the front end and collects Jacque as well, the duo sliding into the gravel trap and ending their races effectively. This now gives Rossi the lead of the race and promotes Biaggi and Ukawa into second and third place. Jacque is being carried away by the marshalls, still being able to slowly walk while Barros walks away unhurt on his own.

Lap twenty-nine, the penultimate lap, and Rossi has opened up a slight gap to Biaggi, the Italian being hounded by Ukawa himself. Checa is now fourth, Abe fifth and Nakano sixth.

Rossi crosses the line to start the final lap - lap thirty - and he sets the fastest lap of the race. He has a minor moment exiting Turn 12 as Nakano dives down the inside of Abe at the Sachsen Kurve to take fifth spot. Rossi has no problems, exits the Queckenberg Kurve and does a little wheelie whilst crossing the line to win the race - his eighth win of the season and ninth consecutive podium finish so far. In second place is Biaggi, third is Ukawa and Checa pips a charging Nakano for fourth place. The Japanese rider is fifth and sixth is Abe.

On the parade lap back to parc-fermé, fans have invaded the track. Rossi and others try to dodge them as he raises his arm to celebrate the win.

The riders make their way onto the podium, the first one to appear being Ukawa, then a happy Biaggi and a delighted Rossi, the fans cheering loudly as he shows up and screaming "Vale! Vale!" as well. The important figures hand out the trophies - first to Ukawa, then to Biaggi and eventually Rossi, the Italian kissing and raising it up as a sign of victory as the fans cheer and sing. The Italian national anthem plays for Rossi. As it stops, the podium girls hand out the champagne and Biaggi cheekily sprays one of the girls, as do Rossi and Ukawa, before spraying at the crowd and each other.

Rossi's victory, Biaggi's second place and Ukawa's third place now means Rossi increases his lead at the top of the standings. He has 220 points, followed by Ukawa in a distant second with 124 points and Biaggi in third with 109 points.

MotoGP classification

Pos.No.RiderTeamManufacturerLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints
146 Valentino RossiRepsol Honda TeamHonda3043:32.783625
23 Max BiaggiMarlboro Yamaha TeamYamaha30+0.730320
311 Tohru UkawaRepsol Honda TeamHonda30+1.100516
47 Carlos ChecaMarlboro Yamaha TeamYamaha30+2.3301013
556 Shinya NakanoGauloises Yamaha Tech 3Yamaha30+2.743211
66 Norifumi AbeAntena 3 Yamaha d'AntínYamaha30+2.7801410
799 Jeremy McWilliamsProton Team KRProton KR30+15.43879
89 Nobuatsu AokiProton Team KRProton KR30+18.980138
98 Garry McCoyRed Bull Yamaha WCMYamaha30+19.26987
1066 Alex HofmannWest Honda PonsHonda30+34.533186
1133 Akira RyōTeam SuzukiSuzuki30+34.592205
1217 Jurgen van den GoorberghKanemoto RacingHonda30+45.404174
1330 José Luis CardosoAntena 3 Yamaha d'AntínYamaha30+1:16.460193
Ret19 Olivier JacqueGauloises Yamaha Tech 3Yamaha27Collision1
Ret4 Alex BarrosWest Honda PonsHonda27Collision4
Ret55 Régis LaconiMS Aprilia RacingAprilia25Accident15
Ret31 Tetsuya HaradaPramac Honda Racing TeamHonda16Retirement16
Ret51 Yukio KagayamaTelefónica Movistar SuzukiSuzuki10Accident11
Ret74 Daijiro KatoFortuna Honda GresiniHonda10Accident9
Ret15 Sete GibernauTelefónica Movistar SuzukiSuzuki10Accident12
DNS21 John HopkinsRed Bull Yamaha WCMYamahaDid not start
Sources: [8] [9] [10]

250 cc classification

Pos.No.RiderManufacturerLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints
13 Marco MelandriAprilia2232:12.725225
24 Roberto RolfoHonda22+0.181420
39 Sebastián PortoYamaha22+2.150616
410 Fonsi NietoAprilia22+8.471113
515 Roberto LocatelliAprilia22+15.565311
624 Toni ElíasAprilia22+29.543910
78 Naoki MatsudoYamaha22+29.857109
821 Franco BattainiAprilia22+29.89058
926 Ralf WaldmannAprilia22+38.653147
106 Alex DebónAprilia22+40.53386
1118 Shahrol YuzyYamaha22+42.231175
1228 Dirk HeidolfAprilia22+59.989164
1319 Leon HaslamHonda22+1:00.304183
1412 Jay VincentHonda22+1:00.434192
1542 David ChecaAprilia22+1:00.569201
1676 Taro SekiguchiYamaha22+1:01.01125
1722 Raúl JaraAprilia22+1:02.85121
1832 Héctor FaubelAprilia22+1:24.58326
1953 Max NeukirchnerHonda21+1 lap28
Ret25 Vincent PhilippeAprilia19Retirement15
Ret11 Haruchika AokiHonda15Accident11
Ret17 Randy de PunietAprilia14Accident7
Ret51 Hugo MarchandAprilia11Retirement23
Ret77 Thierry vd BoschAprilia10Retirement24
Ret54 Nico KehrerHonda8Retirement29
Ret7 Emilio AlzamoraHonda6Accident13
Ret41 Jarno JanssenHonda4Accident22
Ret27 Casey StonerAprilia1Retirement12
Ret52 Christian GemmelHonda1Retirement27
Source: [11]

125 cc classification

Pos.No.RiderManufacturerLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints
121 Arnaud VincentAprilia2740:40.023125
215 Alex de AngelisAprilia27+0.108420
317 Steve JenknerAprilia27+9.995716
41 Manuel PoggialiGilera27+9.996213
522 Pablo NietoAprilia27+10.160611
616 Simone SannaAprilia27+16.018310
726 Daniel PedrosaHonda27+16.82689
841 Youichi UiDerbi27+23.921118
936 Mika KallioHonda27+24.004107
1023 Gino BorsoiAprilia27+24.263126
1125 Joan OlivéHonda27+24.807155
126 Mirko GiansantiHonda27+24.858164
1334 Andrea DoviziosoHonda27+40.540133
1447 Ángel RodríguezAprilia27+40.69592
155 Masao AzumaHonda27+40.943211
1612 Klaus NöhlesHonda27+48.82922
1748 Jorge LorenzoDerbi27+48.85619
188 Gábor TalmácsiHonda27+49.18114
1919 Alex BaldoliniAprilia27+1:01.94917
2057 Chaz DaviesAprilia27+1:03.12523
2180 Héctor BarberáAprilia27+1:09.27029
2211 Max SabbataniAprilia27+1:09.71018
2384 Michel FabrizioGilera27+1:10.10425
2428 Ivan GoiAprilia27+1:24.89228
2520 Imre TóthHonda27+1:24.94026
2677 Thomas LüthiHonda27+1:28.88433
2731 Mattia AngeloniGilera27+1:31.36134
2872 Dario GiuseppettiHonda27+1:31.62724
2973 Claudius KleinHonda27+1:32.29230
3092 Patrick UngerHonda27+1:32.38431
3174 Jascha BüchHonda26+1 lap35
3276 Matěj SmržHonda26+1 lap37
3393 Manuel MickanHonda26+1 lap32
Ret7 Stefano PeruginiItaljet15Retirement20
Ret50 Andrea BalleriniHonda14Retirement27
Ret4 Lucio CecchinelloAprilia13Accident5
Ret42 Christian PistoniItaljet7Retirement36
Source: [12]

Championship standings after the race (MotoGP)

Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round nine has concluded.[13]

Riders' Championship standings
RiderPoints
1 Valentino Rossi220
2 Tohru Ukawa124
3 Max Biaggi109
4 Alex Barros87
5 Carlos Checa85
Constructors' Championship standings
ConstructorPoints
1 Honda225
2 Yamaha145
3 Suzuki73
4/ Proton KR48
5 Aprilia28

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2002 German MotoGP. 13 June 2017. Motorsportmagazine.com. 16 May 2018.
  2. Web site: Sachsenring - The Motor Racing Programme Covers Project. Malcolm. Mitchell. Progcovers.com. 16 May 2018.
  3. Web site: Qualifying results - Sachsenring.. July 19, 2002. Crash.
  4. Web site: Ryo to go wild in German and Czech races.. July 16, 2002. Crash.
  5. Web site: Pere Riba hopes to be fit for Brno MotoGP. Dorna. Sports. www.motogp.com.
  6. Web site: Roberts to miss German GP after surgery.. July 16, 2002. Crash.
  7. Web site: John Hopkins continuing recovery from surgery in California MotoGP. Dorna. Sports. www.motogp.com.
  8. Web site: 2002 German MotoGP - Motor Sport Magazine Database. 13 June 2017. Motorsportmagazine.com. 29 July 2018.
  9. Web site: Cinzano Motorrad GP Deutschland – MotoGP – Race Classification. MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 21 July 2002. 26 May 2018.
  10. Web site: GERMAN GRAND PRIX · MotoGP Race Classification 2002. Motogp.com. 29 July 2018. 4 September 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200904051413/https://www.motogp.com/en/Results+Statistics/2002/GER/MotoGP/RAC. dead.
  11. Web site: Cinzano Motorrad GP Deutschland – 250cc – Race Classification. MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 21 July 2002. 26 May 2018.
  12. Web site: Cinzano Motorrad GP Deutschland – 125cc – Race Classification. MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 21 July 2002. 26 May 2018.
  13. Web site: Standings . 2002. resources.motogp.com . PDF. 2019-08-22.