The Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, Round 17: the final round of the 2009 MotoGP season.

Ron Lieback
AllAboutBikes.com Content Editor

Although Valentino Rossi secured the 2009 MotoGP title with a second place finish at Malaysia, the season finale at Valencia in Spain will decide many battles for closing positions in the championship.

With this year’s title, Rossi has nine world (seven premier) championships, but this year was tough for the Italian, with only six wins, the least he’s ever taken in any championship. The 30-year-old is expected to challenge whoever comes near for a podium finish, which may be his Fiat Yamaha teammate and biggest rival, Jorge Lorenzo.

But Rossi also said he will try to enjoy the racing since the title is clenched: “I am very happy to be going to the final race with the championship won and the pressure off, now we can just enjoy ourselves. It's been a fantastic year and now we just have one more weekend before we start work for 2010. Valencia hasn't been a great track for me in the past and I've had some bad times there, but at the moment we're in great shape and our bike is working well everywhere we go, so I hope it will be the same at Valencia. It's a great place to finish and the atmosphere is amazing, so we will just do our best and hope for another good race to end off a great season.”

Lorenzo should have a solid second-place finish in the championship if he gains just one point; 25 points separate him from Ducati Marlboro rider Casey Stoner, who has finished on the podium in every race since returning from a three-race hiatus (Brno, Indianapolis and Misano) due to an illness that causes severe fatigue. There’s only one way the Spaniard Lorenzo can loose second: if he doesn’t have a finish that accumulates points and Stoner wins.

And this track is no stranger to Stoner. Last year, the 24-year-old Australian won, and the season before he took second: “My Ducati has always run really well there and I’ve been on the pace for the past couple of seasons – in testing and in the races – so obviously we’re hoping that trend continues, even though we will have to make a few small adjustments to the bike. We’re finally at the end of the season and already looking forward to the next one, so if we can win this race then great, if not we’ll try and finish the year with a podium and then start working towards next year.”

As for Lorenzo the 22-year-old has never won at the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, but had finished as runner-up in 2005 before clinching the first of his two 250cc titles there in 2006.

“Valencia is an amazing place to finish the championship, at home, with your fans. I’ve never got a victory here and I know that it's not one of the best tracks for Yamaha, but I am confident that I can try to change that and finish the championship in the best possible way. The last two races haven't been great for me and I really want to get over that. Furthermore, I need one point to become ‘vice-champion’ and I would really like to do that with a podium or a win. That’s my aim in Valencia.”

In fourth and 11 points behind Stoner is Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa. Pedrosa won at Valencia in 2007, finishing second last year.

“I always look forward to the Grand Prix here, and this year is no different. It’s a circuit I really enjoy riding at, even though it’s quite a tight layout, but what makes it really special is the way that you can feel the support from the fans all the way round the circuit. And of course, being a Spanish rider, I get a lot of positive attention here which gives you some extra motivation too. I’ve had some good results at Valencia in the past, and this weekend it would be great to finish off the year with a win - that’s what I want. It’s not been the easiest of seasons and we haven’t been able to challenge for the championship so I’m even more determined to sign off on a high note. The result at the last race, where I got on the podium for the first time in wet conditions, has given me a lot of confidence too. We know it can rain at Valencia, so we’re ready for anything this weekend.”

The fifth-place battle is very tight, with just six points separating the other Repsol Honda rider, Andrea Dovizioso and the American Colin Edwards on the Monster Tech 3 Yamaha. Currently in sixth, Edwards capitalized on Dovizioso’s crash at Sepang, and tightened the battle significantly.

And don’t forget Ben Spies. The World Superbike Champion and future partner of Edwards will be racing this weekend as a Yamaha wildcard. “I’m really excited for the opportunity to race at Valencia this weekend,” said Spies. “I’m fully aware that MotoGP is a big step up from World Superbike and realize it’s not going to be possible to achieve the same results in my first year there. I see this weekend as an opportunity to spend some time on the bike and start learning it for next season, and to have some fun as well!”

The Valencia circuit, named after Spanish rider Ricardo Tormo, is unusual due to its design built within a stadium complex that makes it possible for every seat in the house to view any part of the circuit. Valencia, which should bring 130,000 spectators, measures just over 4 kilometers, and has been on the MotoGP calendar since 2002. One of the few tracks to run counter-clockwise, it’s known for tight corners connected by short straights, flip-flop chicanes and slow-speed infield corners.