Phillip Island 2000
1st Max Biaggi
2nd Loris Capirossi +0.182 s
3rd Valentino Rossi +0.288 s
4th Alex Barros +0.426 s
The fast, sweeping curves of Phillip Island almost always keep the front-running pack tangled together like a pack of brawling hyenas, but this time even more so. Shortly after half-distance just 1.6 seconds covered the leading dozen! But as the frenzy increased, the group dispersed as some riders crashed, others ran into each other and others destroyed their tyres.
With three laps to go the casualties left five men going for the win: Max Biaggi (Marlboro Yamaha YZR500), Valentino Rossi (Nastro Azzurro Honda NSR500), Garry McCoy (Red Bull Yamaha YZR500) and Pons Honda team-mates, Loris Capirossi and Alex Barros. Biaggi bravely stole the lead from Capirossi with one and a half laps to go, just holding on to his advantage as they sped down the start-finish for the final time. The three Italians flashed across the finish-line almost together, Barros just behind, McCoy losing touch in the final assault.
Rossi, who had won his first two 500 GPs only a few weeks earlier, might have made it a third on the Island, but the battle was so frantic that he failed to see the last-lap signal on his pit-board.