With the asphalt still wet after a morning of light rain, the riders started with wet-weather tyres on a fast-drying track. Rossi got a poor start from second on the grid and crossed the line for the first time in seventh place, with Edwards behind him in eighth. An outstanding ride from the seven-time World Champion then saw him fight his way back to the front, making up five seconds on the leaders and taking the lead on lap 14. The racing line by now was almost completely dry however, and behind him most riders had already opted to pit and change onto their second bikes with slick tyres. When Rossi eventually came in to change one lap later he had built up such a lead that he was able to re-join the race in second place, behind eventual winner Loris Capirossi, but Yamaha’s jubilation was short-lived as Rossi immediately ran into serious issues with his front tyre and was forced to pit again. He rejoined the race in 15th but was able to make up only two places to the finish as he struggled with grip. Edwards, who was in third place when Rossi came in for the first time, rejoined in eighth but had similar tyre problems and also dropped back through the field to cross the line two seconds behind his team-mate.

Casey Stoner took sixth place, which was enough to secure him the World Championship title. Rossi remains second and 26 points clear of Dani Pedrosa, who failed to finish the race, while Edwards drops two places down the standings to ninth, with three races remaining.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 13th Time: +1′09.699
“It’s a great pity for us how everything has turned out this weekend, because in the dry we were faster than Stoner and we could have had a good chance. The first problem today was the weather this morning, but actually we were able to find a good setting for the bike and when the race started we were quite hopeful. I got a bad start but on the drying track I had the fastest pace and I was able to make up five seconds to the leaders. After I passed Melandri I came into the box to change and maybe this was one lap too late, but our strategy was more or less okay because I was able to come back into the race with only Loris in front of me. We had an intermediate front tyre, a slick cut which is normal in these situations, but the bike was almost impossible for me to ride and turn and it felt like there was something seriously wrong. I came back in but my mechanics could see there was nothing wrong so I went straight out again, and by then it was too late; the race was over for me and the championship was gone. After four or five laps the tyre began to work better and I was able to keep going to the end, but without this problem it would have been possible for me to be on the podium or even to fight for the win with Loris. The conditions were very unfortunate. However this is racing and now we have three more races and we will do our best to find a way to win and end the season on a high note. I’m really sorry for my fans and for everyone in the team. Congratulations to Loris but especially to Casey on becoming world champion. I am very flattered that he made a dedication to me on his victory t-shirt, if someone else has to win then I am glad it’s one of my fans! He is a great rival and I hope that we can continue this rivalry into the future.”

Herve Poncharal - Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 Team Manager
That was an incredible weekend. Sylvain had a really strong start to the race from 18th on the grid. He was catching a lot of riders and made the perfect decision to be one of the first to come in and went out on cut slick tyres and from that moment he was the fastest on the track lap after lap to get up to fourth. He went so close to a podium and that is a little disappointing but he rode so well and to have finished fourth is something we will remember for a long time. It was also very satisfying to achieve the result in Japan at the home of Dunlop and shows all the hard work the company has put in.

After making a poor start to the weekend by finishing 14th yesterday, Rossi made a step up this morning and put in the second fastest time in free practice. His qualifying session did not get off to plan however as he made an off-track excursion in the opening minutes and then found himself down in 18th place mid-way through. Edwards meanwhile, was doing little better in 17th, but both began to steadily improve as they worked on refining their race settings and finalising their tyre choices for tomorrow

Once it came down to qualifying tyres it was clear that Rossi especially was on top form and his first run put him in second place, before improving again with his second tyre and moving one place higher. Pedrosa was even faster however and, despite Rossi’s Michelin tyre working well enough to give him a second flying lap, a small mistake on the last corner cost him a few tenths and he was unable to better the Spaniard. Edwards also put in two good qualifying laps and looked to have sixth in the bag before he was edged down one place by Toni Elias.

Tomorrow’s 24-lap race gets underway at 1400 Japanese time. Rossi must finish in front of Casey Stoner in order to keep his championship hopes alive for another race; the Australian will start from ninth tomorrow, on the outside of the third row.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 2nd Time: 1′46.255 Laps: 25
“I’m in good shape and I’m very happy with this result after the problems we had yesterday. We were struggling a lot but everyone has worked very hard and today has been much, much better. We tried some modifications and now I can use the throttle well and the grip from the tyres is good. In fact today the tyre situation is really a lot better and I can use my M1 how I want to, with a good rhythm. This morning especially was a big improvement although this afternoon we tried some different things again and it wasn’t quite so good to start with. Pedrosa’s rhythm is slightly better than mine at the moment so we have one or two things to work on, but we’re definitely in a good position and we are starting from the front row, which is the most important factor. I was very happy with the qualifying tyres because I was able to do two laps with the second one. Michelin brought a new tyre and asked that I try for a second lap and it worked well, so this is very encouraging. Now I am really looking forward to the race; it’s going to be hard in this heat but we will do our best and see what happens.”

Davide Brivio - Team Director
“It’s been a good day’s work, considering the issues we were facing yesterday. Valentino is in good shape for the race and, most importantly, starting from the front row again. Colin has a few more things to work on but he’s improved his pace a lot as well and with a good start he can be in the fight tomorrow. We have a few more details to check and our engineers are working hard to make sure both riders have the best package for tomorrow; it will be a very testing race and 24 laps here puts a lot of stress on tyres, brakes and engine, so we need to be sure everything is perfect. Then we will just be hoping to see another exciting race like last week and with both of our riders able to be in the fight until the end.”

The long trip to Motegi has at least been taken in buoyant mood thanks to Rossi’s stunning fourth victory of the season in Portugal. The Italian kept his slim World Championship hopes alive with a breathtaking ride that saw him cut the gap to series leader Casey Stoner to 76 points with four rounds and a maximum haul of 100 points remaining. The race in Japan is followed by trips to Australia and Malaysia before the series returns to Europe for its traditionally grand finale at Valencia in Spain.

Designed in 1997 as a test venue, Motegi has ultra-modern facilities although the outstanding paddock is not quite matched by the intricacies and character of a somewhat geometric circuit layout. A bump-free surface offers good levels of grip without being particularly abrasive, but the proliferation of second gear turns, linked for the most part by mini-drag strips, means braking and acceleration are the main prerequisite to a fast lap time, and consistency the key to a good race.

Valentino Rossi - “Motivation and confidence high”
Valentino Rossi’s fourth win of the season was his 29th for Yamaha and with four races remaining before the end of the year he is keen to add to that tally. The 28-year-old’s army of Japanese fans will be supporting him all the way this weekend at a circuit he admits is not high up on his list of favourites – despite holding the lap record of 1’47.288 – and he plans to continue his winning ways.

“Portugal was a great, great race and it was fantastic to win again after so long,” said Rossi. “Now we go straight to Motegi and the motivation and confidence within the team is very high. We know that our rivals are always very strong in Motegi and we expect the same from Stoner this year, but I’ve never won there with Yamaha so I will be doing my best to change that this week.

“We’re not thinking of the championship, we know it’s probably out of our reach, but we can do the best we can to try to keep it open for as long as possible and this will be our goal next week. Our top speed is much better with the new engine, our tyres worked well in Portugal and now we hope we have the same situation again in Japan.”