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trying to find where I would get him in on the last lap when the engine expired," Roberts said. Roberts' teammate Sete Gibemau ran straight at the end of turn one, slithering through the gravel trap but remaining upright. He finished 13th in his final ride for the team. In 2003, he'll be riding a Telefonica MoviStar Gresini Honda. Proton KR's Nobu Aoki crashed on the second lap, with Proton KR wild card David Garcia retiring with 17 laps to go. Marlboro Yamaha's Carlos Checa never left the line. The Spaniard stalled and was rammed from behind by Antena 3 Yamaha D'Antin's Jose Luis Cardoso, who was four rows behind him on the grid. "I started as normal, but the revs dropped and I wasn't expecting that," Checa said. "I went forward a few meters and just stopped." Checa walked away, Cardoso didn't; the Spaniard required a stretcher. He was later diagnosed with abdominal contusions but returned to watch the second half of the race from the pit lane. Red Bull Yamaha WCM's Garry McCoy didn't make much use of his front-row starting spot. The Australian was penalized for jumping the start, then crashed not long after rejoining the race. Pramac Honda's Testuya Harda, who announced that this would be his final Grand Prix, didn't finish. The 1993 250cc World Champion, who'd qualified last, was forced to pit on the ninth lap and finished last. Having clinched the 250cc World Championship at the previous round in Australia, MS Aprilia Racing's Marco Melandri showed champion form in winning the 250cc Grand Prix in something of a walkover. The Italian edged away from a pair of others at the start, then rolled to an easy victory, winning by 4.318 seconds. Second was mostly decided on the eighth of 27 laps when Telefonica MoviStar Repsol's Fonsi crashed just in front of teammate Toni Elias. Elias continued on but lost ground on the 19th of 27 laps, handing the spot to Fortuna Honda Gresini's Roberto Rolfo, who was in a battle for second with teammate Emilio Alzamora. Alzamora attacked on the final lap; Rolfo countered and held his teammate off by .220 of a second at the flag. Fourth went to Campatella Racing's Randy de Puniet and his Aprilia, fifth to Motoracing's Roberto Locatelli, sixth to Safilo Oxydo Race LCR's David Checa, with Elias landing in 10th. The championship ends with Melandri holding 298 points, 57 more than Fonsi Nieto. Three-time AMA 250cc GP Champion Chuck Sorensen finished 21 nd, but he was in good spirits despite getting lapped. "The race was really good," the three-time AMA 250cc GP Champion said. "I got a decent start and was right there with the pack. I wanted to hold on to those guys instead of mixing it up and getting in trouble. These guys don't mind riding really close to each other, whoever it is. "I raced my own race, watched my pit board. The tires started sliding at the end. That was okay. I think I could've done a better job with tuning my suspension." Sorensen said it was different from "being number one in the U.S. to, over here, coming in last." But considering how little time the team had to prepare and the resources available, Sorensen was pleased with the effort. Frenchman Arnaud Vincent clinched the lone undecided title by finishing .1 of a second behind Dani Pedrosa in the season's final 125cc GP. Master-Aspar Team's Pablo Nieto, on his Aprilia, was third, trailed in close order by Safilo Oxydo Race LCR's Alex De Angelis, UGT3000Abruzzo's Steve Jenkner, and Nieto's teammate Hector Barbera. Vincent, 27, had arrived in Spain with an eight-point cushion on defending World Champion Manuel Poggiali of Gilera Racing, meaning he cucle ne Max Blaggl (3) leads the pack into tum one at the start of the final race of the year at Valencia. had some margin for error. But it was Poggiali who erred, getting away badly and then running well wide and out of the hunt on the fifth of 25 laps. He fell from a charging fourth to a dispirited 10th, recovering to take seventh. Polesitter Pedrosa had taken the lead from early leader Vincent on the fourth of 25 laps, holding him at bay to the end. Imola Circuit Exalt Cycle Race's Vincent finished the season with 273 points to Poggiali's 254. Pedrosa ended with 243. MotoGP Off the start, Barros led from Biaggi, with Rossi in third, then into second on the second lap. The race was on. The two pulled quickly away, Rossi stalking, Barros defending, nothing in it as the lead was never more than about a second. Midrace, Rossi began to cut the margin, knocking a tenth of a second per lap off and passing him on the 17th of 30 laps. Barros came straight back, drafting by into turn one to take the lead for good, it would turn out, though it didn't seem so at the end. On the final lap, Barros made a _ S • NOVEMBER 13, 2002 7