In Donington rainThe eighth 250cc race of the 2007 season took place in rain-soaked conditions at England's Donington Park circuit with Kopron Team Scot's Andrea Dovizioso taking a superb Nickel & Dime British Grand Prix win.
The Italian rider came from sixth on
the grid to take his second victory of the year, closing to within 11 points of World Champion Jorge Lorenzo at the top of the general standings after his Spanish rival crashed out – Lorenzo suffering a nasty highside with 17 laps to go.
Master – Mapfre Aspar rider Alex de Angelis had led from pole until the penultimate lap but crashed with victory seemingly within his grasp, though the lead he and Dovizioso had built up at the front meant he was able to remount to finish second and stay in touch in the championship race.
Hiroshi Aoyama of Red Bull KTM came from 10th on the grid to take third, by just 0.233s ahead of compatriot Yuki Takahashi of Kopron Team Scot, while another Japanese rider – Hiroshi's younger brother Shuhei Aoyama of Repsol Honda crossed the line sixth.
There were numerous crashes throughout the race, some ending the riders' participation but also several falls from which the relevant riders remounted to finish with valuable championship points.
The crashers included Mika Kallio (Red Bull KTM) and Julian Simon (Repsol Honda) who were sixth and seventh respectively after remounting following accidents towards the end of the race, while an excellent ride from rookie Ratthapark Wilairot from privateer outfit Thai Honda PTT-SAG saw him come from 17th on the grid to secure his best result to date in eighth place.
The Spanish riders in particular seemed to struggle with the wet conditions, with the likes of Alvaro Bautista (Master – Mapfre Aspar), Hector Barbera (Team Toth Aprilia) and Aleix Espargaro (Blusens Aprilia) all crashing out in addition to Lorenzo.
DORNA / CAPSIS International
