 Melandri meanwhile recovered a whopping eight positions, with Valentino Rossi only making up one place (eleventh to tenth).During the opening lap, Gibernau overtook Vermeulen - making good use of the speed of the Ducati - and moved past to open up a small gap.However, at Turn 12, Vermeulen retook the lead from Gibernau, using the better cornering speed of his Suzuki to his advantage, to lead the race again going into lap two.