Personal opinion: a very experienced rider, been racing for a long time, had some good years, and some not so good years, well, some one needs to teach the young guys at the back of the grid how the game is played.
Mugello 2005 - Melandri vs Capirossi
(from MotoGP.COM)
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| Place of birth: Bologna |
| Date of birth: 04/Apr/1973 |
| Weight: 59Kg. |
| Height: 165cm. |
The oldest rider on the MotoGP grid, Loris Capirossi has a wealth of experience and a pedigree in Grand Prix racing that few can match.
‘Capirex’ was 125cc World Champion by the age of 17, and went on to defend the title before moving up to the 250cc class in 1992. The Italian picked up 16 podiums, including 7 victories, during his time in the quarter-litre category, and switched to 500cc with Honda in 1995, where he was named Rookie Of The Year.
A first 500cc triumph came on a Yamaha at Eastern Creek in his second premier class season, but after 1996 Capirossi chose to move back down to 250cc with Aprilia. Two years later he was lifting the title in the quarter litre class, once more attracting interest from MotoGP team bosses.
Signed by Sito Pons to ride a Honda NSR500 in 1999, Capirossi picked up 15 podiums and a race win in three seasons on the Japanese two-stroke, before switching to Ducati for 2003 to ride the four-stroke Desmosedici. A surprising victory at Catalunya, along with five podiums and fourth place overall, confirmed his quality ahead of a difficult sophomore season.
In 2005 the Ducati team had a hesitant start, but the final third of the campaign marked a new phase in which Capirossi performed at an extremely high level. After a second place finish in Brno, the Italian racked up two successive victories in Japan and Malaysia as he looked to improve his championship position, although a practice crash at Phillip Island cut short his fine run of form.
Capirossi took third in the championship in 2006, and won at Jerez, Brno and Motegi. He was level on points with Nicky Hayden at the head of the leaderboard before he suffered a crash in Catalunya in the first of three consecutive races, robbing him of the chance to fight for the title.
Although 2007 was a comparatively poor year for the Italian, his final season with Ducati did see the man synonymous with the team’s MotoGP project help them to the team and constructors titles. Four podiums, including a win at Motegi and a one-two with Casey Stoner in Australia, salvaged something from the opening 800cc season supposed to bring the elusive world title to the Capirossi household.
Still probably best know for his time on the red bike, Capirossi switched to Suzuki for 2008, placing tenth in the overall standings after a difficult year. Crashes in Catalunya and Assen contributed to a run of three consecutive non-finishes, and also left a sore Capirossi at less than 100%. The highlight of his first season with Suzuki, with whom he continues in 2009, was a solitary podium in Brno.
Career
Statistics
| Season | Category | Starts | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Tot. | Poles | Bike | Points | Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | MotoGP | 16 | 1 | 1 | Suzuki | 118 | 10 | |||
| 2007 | MotoGP | 18 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | Ducati | 166 | 7 | |
| 2006 | MotoGP | 17 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 2 | Ducati | 229 | 3 |
| 2005 | MotoGP | 15 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | Ducati | 157 | 6 |
| 2004 | MotoGP | 16 | 1 | 1 | Ducati | 117 | 9 | |||
| 2003 | MotoGP | 16 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 3 | Ducati | 177 | 4 |
| 2002 | MotoGP | 14 | 2 | 2 | Honda | 109 | 8 | |||
| 2001 | MotoGP | 16 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 4 | Honda | 210 | 3 | |
| 2000 | MotoGP | 16 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | Honda | 154 | 7 |
| 1999 | 250cc | 15 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 2 | Honda | 209 | 3 |
| 1998 | 250cc | 14 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 8 | Aprilia | 224 | 1 |
| 1997 | 250cc | 14 | 3 | 3 | 1 | Aprilia | 116 | 6 | ||
| 1996 | MotoGP | 15 | 1 | 1 | 2 | Yamaha | 98 | 10 | ||
| 1995 | MotoGP | 12 | 1 | 1 | Honda | 108 | 6 | |||
| 1994 | 250cc | 14 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 5 | Honda | 199 | 3 |
| 1993 | 250cc | 14 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 7 | Honda | 193 | 2 | |
| 1992 | 250cc | 13 | Honda | 27 | 12 | |||||
| 1991 | 125cc | 13 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 12 | 5 | Honda | 200 | 1 |
| 1990 | 125cc | 14 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 | Honda | 182 | 1 |
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