MotoGP Phillip Island - 'Pit-stops I like,' declares Rossi

Factory Yamaha's Valentino Rossi snatched third place in today's Phillip Island MotoGP race during the mandatory pitstop where he dived ahead of Cal Crutchlow and Alvaro Bautista to secure another podium.

Factory Yamaha's Valentino Rossi snatched third place in today's Phillip Island MotoGP race during the mandatory pitstop where he dived ahead of Cal Crutchlow and Alvaro Bautista to secure another podium.

The Doctor was involved in a three-way scrap for the whole race but had to recover from a first-turn error where he lost places to the Brit and the Spaniard. Rossi also joked that the pit-stop system could be the way forward.

"Sincerely, I like! Maybe it was a little bit more easy to divide the race in two parts and I am happy because we manage to do a good work in the pit. It is my first podium in a flag to flag race. I was able to gain some position as with the first bike I was in big, big trouble, I had a big moment in the first corner and I lose two positions behind Cal and Alvaro," said the nine-time world champion speaking in Australia.

"There was not much I could do and I have to wait for the change of bike and I was able to overtake them. The second part of the race I enjoy more because I was stronger with a big battle with Cal. Also, it begin to rain and I have a lot of mosquito on the visor but I say it is the last lap for the podium so I push the maximum. Now we have to continue to work this like this. 

I think pitstops could be an option for the future, a longer race with two stops, maybe! It is more intense because you go 100 per cent from the beginning to the first stop, you have a second to relax and then after you go another time 100 per cent, I like the system but is better as normal."

By David Miller

Image by Yamaha Racing