Hayden takes title as Rossi slips up

MOTOR SPORT: American Nicky Hayden took advantage of a rare error by five-times champion Valentino Rossi to claim his first MotoGP world title in a dramatic race in the season-ending grand prix in Valencia yesterday.

Rossi, who went into the final race with an eight-point lead in the standings, slid off into the gravel as he lost control of his front tyre on the fifth lap and was unable to make up lost ground. The Italian finished in 13th place, but it was Hayden who took the title with a third-place finish behind winning Ducati duo Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi.

Rossi pulled alongside Hayden as he took the plaudits on his lap of honour and sportingly shook the Honda rider's hand.

The 25-year-old American, whose title chances seemed to have evaporated when he was brought down by team-mate Dani Pedrosa in the penultimate race in Portugal, collapsed to his knees as he lit a series of firecrackers on the Ricardo Tormo track.

"I'm really proud," Hayden, visibly shaking with emotion as tears ran down his cheeks, told Spanish state television. "We didn't give up even when we were down and we never gave up fighting."

Hayden scored points in every grand prix bar Portugal, winning two races and finishing on the podium in 10 of the 17 rounds of the championship. Rossi won five races but failed to make the points in three. The American finished five points ahead of Rossi in the standings, while Capirossi overtook fellow Italian Marco Melandri to take third place in the championship by a point.

Rossi made a slow start and dropped to seventh by the end of the first lap as Bayliss set the early pace. Hayden's Honda team mate Dani Pedrosa slotted into second and then let the American slip past him while he concentrated on keeping Rossi at bay.

The battle for the title overshadowed Bayliss's victory in the race but the Australian's win was also a remarkable achievement.

The 37-year-old, who won the World Superbike championship this year, only took part in the race as a replacement for the injured Sete Gibernau and led home a Ducati one-two.