Loris Capirossi

Loris Capirossi is an Italian motorcycle racer, who currently rides the factory Ducati MotoGP bike. A former World 250ccGP Champion, Loris is one of the regular front-runners, currently 3rd in the championship, in a gaggle of riders who are usually the next-best behind his rival and close friend Valentino Rossi for the top step of the podium.

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He first raced internationally in 1989 in the European 125cc Championship, before moving up to the World Championship at that level in 1990, as team-mate to Fausto Gresini (who now runs the Telefonica MotoGP team) becoming its youngest ever champion that year, and retaining the title a year later. He went to 250s in 1992 on a year-old bike, but in the following 2 years he lead the championship for long periods without quite winning it.

Related Topics:
Fausto Gresini - MotoGP

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1995 was his first season in the top-level 500cc championship, with a Pileri Honda, often qualifying better than he raced but still taking 6th in the series, before taking a win in 1996 for Wayne Rainey's Yamaha team. However, he was not a regular front-runner, and so returned to 250s a year later, winning the crown in 1998, against Rossi.

Related Topics:
Honda - Wayne Rainey - Yamaha

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He returned to the top level in 2000, and has been there ever since through it's evolution to today's 990cc 2-stroke MotoGP bikes. He won his home race in 2000, and 3 more en route to 3rd overall in 2001. In 2003 he joined Ducati, taking their first win at Barcelona and 4th overall, before a slightly dissappointing 2004 on a bike with huge straight line speed but a lack of grip. Still, he stayed on the bike more often than team-mate Troy Bayliss, and thus stayed in the team for a 2005 season which saw him become competitive by the end of the year, aided by improving Bridgestone tyres.

Related Topics:
Troy Bayliss - Bridgestone

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