Valencia, Oct 31: Spain's Sete Gibernau will be hoping to delight the estimated 120,000 crowd by rounding off his sensational season with a victory at his home race. The 30-year-old won at Valencia in 2001, his first and only race win before the four successes for Honda this year which have won him second place in the championship ahead of Italy's Max Biaggi. Italian Marco Melandri, who has undergone surgery on a shoulder injury he picked up at the last Grand Prix in Australia, will be replaced at Yamaha by veteran Japanese rider Norick Abe. The destination of the 250cc crown Melandri won last year before moving up to MotoGP is the only one of the three titles in Grand Prix motorcycling still up for grabs.
Aprilia rider Manuel Poggiali, the 2001 125cc champion from San Marino, will battle it out with Honda's Roberto Rolfo of Italy for the championship, with only seven points separating the pair going into Sunday's race.


Daniel Pedrosa, who wrapped up the 125cc title in Malaysia three weeks ago, will still have a homecoming of sorts despite breaking both his ankles in practice for the Australian Grand Prix.

The 18-year-old Spaniard will travel down from his home near Barcelona on Sunday morning to take a lap of honour around the circuit in an open-topped car.


Bureau Report