Becoming the first 500 GP champion to follow in the footsteps of his father, Kenny Roberts, Jr. clinched the title today with a sixth place finish at the Rio GP (with two rounds remaining). His closest pursuer, Valentino Rossi (Honda) won the race, but is mathematically eliminated from the championship.
Roberts expressed relief, and indicated that he had been riding “tight” (while worried about points), and looks forward to the next two races.
The Hondas of Daijiro Katoh and Tohru Ukawa finished 1/2 in the 250 GP race at Rio.
250cc Final Race Results (Top 10)
1. Daijiro Katoh (#74 - HONDA) 2. Tohru Ukawa (#4 - HONDA) 3. Marco Melandri (#35 - APRILIA) 4. Shinya Nakano (#56 - YAMAHA) 5. Anthony West (#14 - HONDA) 6. Ralf Waldmann (#6 - APRILIA) 7. Franco Battaini (#21 - APRILIA) 8. Sebastian Porto (#9 - YAMAHA) 9. Jason Vincent (#24 - APRILIA) 10. Luca Boscoscuro (#37 - APRILIA)
500cc Final Race Results (Top 10)
1. Valentino Rossi (#46 - HONDA) 2. Alex Barros (#10 - HONDA) 3. Garry McCoy (#24 - YAMAHA) 4. Norick Abe (#6 - YAMAHA 5. Max Biaggi (#4 - YAMAHA) 6. Kenny Roberts, Jr. (#2 - SUZUKI) 7. Sete Gibernau (#5 - HONDA) 8. Regis Laconi (#55 - YAMAHA) 9. Tadayuki Okada (#8 - HONDA) 10. Jurgen vd Goorbergh (#17 - HONDA)
250cc Points Standing After Round 14 (Top 10)
1. Olivier Jacque (#19 - YAMAHA) 241 pts. 2. Shinya Nakano (#56 - YAMAHA) 232 pts. 3. Daijiro Katoh (#74 - HONDA) 218 pts. 4. Tohru Ukawa (#4 - HONDA) 218 pts. 5. Marco Melandri (#35 - APRILIA) 132 pts. 6. Anthony West (#14 - HONDA) 127 pts. 7. Ralf Waldmann (#6 - APRILIA) 121 pts. 8. Franco Battaini (#21 - APRILIA) 96 pts. 9. Sebastian Porto (#9 - YAMAHA) 78 pts. 10. Naoki Matsudo (#8 - YAMAHA) 75 pts.
500cc Points Standing After Round 14 (Top 10)
1. Kenny Roberts, Jr. (#2 - SUZUKI) 224 pts. 2. Valentino Rossi (#46 - HONDA) 173 pts. 3. Garry McCoy (#24 - YAMAHA) 150 pts. 4. Carlos Checa (#7 - YAMAHA) 142 pts. 5. Alex Barros (#10 - HONDA) 141 pts. 6. Max Biaggi (#4 - YAMAHA) 129 pts. 7. Norick Abe (#6 - YAMAHA) 126 pts. 8. Loris Capirossi (#65 - HONDA) 126 pts. 9. Alex Criville (#1 - HONDA) 112 pts. 10. Nobuatsu Aoki (#9 - SUZUKI) 103 pts.
