his third DNF of the year. Gibernau would register his final podium position in the MotoGP class at the German GP. Starting second behind Nicky Hayden on Saturday, Gibernau lost two positions as the lights went out. However, after a heavy highside threw John Hopkins off his Factory Suzuki on lap six, the marshalls waved the red flags and restarted the race. At the second start, Gibernau would lose one place and ride behind Rossi in third place, following him when he overtook Hayden at the end of lap two. Sete then overtook Rossi on lap three to hold the lead right up until the last lap, when he missed his breaking point going into turn one, gifting first place to Rossi who would go on to win the race +0.685 ahead of Gibernau, who failed to repass the Italian but managed to stay ahead of Hayden. In the next three rounds, Gibernau registered three consecutive retirements. In the Czech Republic, Gibernau took pole position ahead of Hayden, Capirossi and Rossi on Saturday. On Sunday, Gibernau converted his pole into a turn one lead when the riders behind him fought for positions. With Rossi emerging as the winner of the fight, he then surprised Gibernau by forcing his way inside him with a tough move to take the lead on the second lap. Gibernau settled into second for the next two laps before repassing Rossi briefly into the final turn - Rossi slipstreaming back into the lead into turn one. Gibernau again fought back and outbraked Rossi into the fast chicane that followed, ultimately taking the lead. On lap twelve, Rossi retook first place when he burst past Gibernau on the brakes into the final chicane, just missing Sete's knee in the process. With a few laps to go, Gibernau eased past Rossi through the last of the downhill turns and quickly built a six-bike-length lead. But it would count for nothing when he ran slightly wide at the penultimate uphill chicane, making him lose his advantage. At the start of the last lap, Rossi made a late dive on Gibernau through the fast left-right switch to retake the lead once more, then pulling a 0.5 second gap to escape Gibernau. Gibernau then tried closing in, until his RCV bobbled and a fuel-supply problem forced Gibernau to retire with just two 'S' bends to go. This retirement saw him slip