Sachsenring, 13 July 2008: the LCR Honda MotoGP rider Randy De Puniet got the final 8th place in today’s 30-lap German Grand Prix at Sachsenring circuit. The tenth round of the season started today at 14:00 local time and was held in wet conditions after two days of dry practices.

Rain showers hit the 3.671Km track early in the morning and the premier class riders used the 25-minute warm up session to chose the correct tyres for the German race and the 27-year-old aboard the Michelin-shod Honda RC212V set the 8th quickest time on the damp surface.
Started from the 6th position, De Puniet was 8th at the end of the first lap behind Rossi but he never had the right feeling on rain tyres during the race.
Stoner got his 4th 2008 victory followed by Rossi and Vermeulen.


De Puniet – 8th: “It was a very hard race because we did not test in the wet in the last two days and the warm up session was held on a damp track. So we decided to start with hard compound tyres in the front and in the rear but probably we made a mistake because the rear one was too hard. Basically I never had enough grip in the right side of the bike throughout the whole race. Then I went out in the gravel in the first corner in the seventh lap because I lost the control of the front in the wettest part of the track. After that I tried to set my rhythm battling with Capirossi for the 7th position. With 2 laps to go the rain became heavier and was more difficult for me to keep the position so Capirossi passed me in the last corner before the straight. Honestly I am not very happy but in these conditions the 8th place is not so bad”.


Race:

1 Stoner
2 Rossi
3 Vermeulen
4 De Angelis
5 Dovizioso
6 Guintoli
7 Capirossi
8 De Puniet
9 Nakano
10 West
11 Toseland
12 Elias
13 Hayden

OUT: Melandri, Edwards, Pedrosa, Lorenzo.