DOVIZIOSO AIMS TO KEEP MOTEGI MOMENTUM ROLLING IN MALAYSIA
. By Bikeland Staff
The 2010 MotoGP World Championship continues its quick-fire Far East tour at Sepang on Friday, when practice for Sunday’s Malaysian Grand Prix gets underway, just five days after last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi. Straight after Sepang the paddock dashes to Phillip Island for the following Sunday’s Australian GP and then back to Europe for the season finale at Estoril, Portugal, and Valencia, Spain. It’s a high-energy end to a busy year, with five races in six weeks.
Sadly, the 2010 MotoGP world title is now beyond the means of the Repsol Honda squad. Until Motegi, Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) had a slim possibility of overhauling championship leader Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha), having outscored his fellow Spaniard at the previous three races. But a crash during first practice in Japan left Pedrosa nursing a broken left collarbone which was pinned and plated the next day at the USP Dexeus Clinic in Barcelona. Pedrosa expects to return to racing at the Australian GP, though there is a slim possibility that the gritty 25-year-old may ride at Sepang.
If he is absent, the Repsol Honda torch will be carried by Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V) who arrives in Malaysia still buzzing from a brilliant weekend at Honda’s home Grand Prix. Dovizioso started the Motegi race from pole position – his first in the premier class – and went on to score a close second-place finish, less than four seconds behind winner Casey Stoner (Ducati). During the Japanese GP weekend he made important advances in electronics settings for his RC212V, which he hopes will help him at other racetracks.
The Italian will be doing everything in his powers to keep his Motegi momentum rolling at Sepang, a circuit with which he gels brilliantly. Dovizioso has scored podiums in all three classes at the superbly challenging venue and it was at Sepang that he scored his first MotoGP podium in 2008. He also secured the 125 World Championship at Sepang in 2004, so the omens are good.
Dovizioso’s Motegi podium also made a little bit of history for the Repsol Honda partnership – its 250th podium in the elite class, making it one of most successful relationships in the sport’s history. Repsol and Honda first got together in 1995 when Mick Doohan won the second of his five consecutive premier-class crowns on a Repsol Honda NSR500.
Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) goes into the final four races of 2010 with a battle on his hands. The Frenchman’s avowed goal for this season was to be MotoGP’s top non-factory rider, a target he was well on the way to achieving until he suffered a broken left tibia and fibula during July’s German GP. After a miraculously short four-week rehabilitation, de Puniet returned to action at the Czech GP, but he has understandably struggled to continue his dazzling early season form. He is still top privateer, holding eighth place overall, but he has three men – Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V), Colin Edwards (Yamaha) and Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) – within nine points of him. A good result at Sepang is therefore essential to maintain his position.
Simoncelli had another great ride at Motegi, the MotoGP rookie duelling with veteran Colin Edwards (Yamaha) for a top-five result and finally getting sixth place, equalling his best finish in the premier class. The hard-riding Italian has dazzled with his aggressive riding style in his debut year in the big class and he has good reason to look forward to a return to Sepang – it was in Malaysia that Simoncelli sealed the 250 World Championship in 2008.
Team-mate Melandri’s big hope for this weekend is to work his way back into the top ten. Another former 250 World Champion but now in his tenth year of MotoGP competition, Melandri has struggled to find the form which took him to five MotoGP victories in 2005 and 2006.
Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP RC212V) is delighted to be back at Sepang, a track at which he has won two Grand Prix victories, at the 2007 and 2009 Malaysian 250 GPs. Aoyama’s stunning win from pole position at Sepang last year was a crucial moment in his successful bid to win the final 250 World Championship. Still not fully recovered from the broken vertebra he sustained at June’s British GP, the Japanese may find Malaysia’s hot and humid conditions tougher than usual on this occasion. His goal is straightforward – to repeat his top-ten result from Motegi.
Toni Elias (Gresini Racing Moto2, Moriwaki) has the chance to secure the first-ever Moto2 World Championship on Sunday with three races remaining. Even if his only remaining title rival Julian Simon (Mapfre Aspar Team, Suter) wins his first Moto2 victory at Sepang, Elias will wrap up the crown if he finishes the race in second place. The Spaniard has ridden a remarkable season, winning exactly half of the 14 races so far. He is also the only rider to have won GP victories in 125s, 250s, MotoGP and Moto2. Amazingly, despite his glittering GP career, which began at Jerez in 1999 and has produce 17 victories across four classes, this will be Elias’ first World Championship.
Of course, Elias will have to fight all the way to put the crown out of reach of Simon, because there will be plenty of other riders aiming for victory at Sepang. Reigning 125 World Champion Simon currently sits second overall thanks to some superb consistency – six podiums including four runner-up finishes at the last four races – having adapted brilliantly from a little 125cc two-stroke to a considerably larger 600cc four-stroke.
If Simon has impressed with his constancy, Andrea Iannone (Fimmco Speed Up, Speed Up) has dazzled with his outright speed. Runaway winner at Mugello, Assen and Aragon, the Italian has proved he is untouchable when everything goes his way. Sepang may well suit his riding style which features awesomely fast corner speeds.
Thomas Luthi (Interwetten Moriwaki Moto2, Moriwaki) is another former 125 World Champion who has adapted superbly to his CBR600-powered Moto2 machine. And like Simon, the 2005 125 world champ has been a consistent top-three finisher – with six podiums so far – but has yet to stand on the top step of a Moto2 podium. The Swiss rider’s time will surely come.
Sepang – situated 40km outside the capital Kuala Lumpur and right next to KL international airport – is arguably the most demanding race of the year for riders, bikes and tyres. High temperatures and sweltering humidity are the norm at this tropical venue, which is MotoGP’s second longest track (after Silverstone) and one of its fastest venues, with a challenging variety of medium-speed and high-speed corners. Sepang hosted its first GP in 1999, taking over from Malaysia’s original GP venue Shah Alam, which joined the calendar in 1991. Honda has won eight premier-class Malaysia GPs, at both tracks and with both two-stroke and four-stroke machinery.
HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES
Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa says: “I am still very stiff in my neck and across the back of my shoulders, so the target is to get back to racing in Australia. There is a very small possibility of going to Malaysia, but the realistic target is Australia. I had another check-up today [Wednesday] and it shows clearly that the plate on my collarbone is very well fixed and the progress has been good after the operation. My condition has improved over the last two days and I’m doing passive rehabilitation with my physiotherapist at the moment. I am still not able to move the arm by myself but with massage it’s getting better. It’s a real pity that this happened when we had such a lot of momentum with our results, but we simply have to deal with it.”
Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso says: “I really look forward to the Malaysian GP. We arrive strong thanks to an important podium finish at Motegi last Sunday and especially a very good race weekend where we were fast and consistent in all the sessions. We have improved the electronics and the set-up, and we arrive at Sepang stronger than Motegi. Last race weekend was the result of a hard and good job, it was not by chance; in Malaysia we can do even better. I really like the Malaysian racetrack, it’s one of my favourites and I have had good results here, including my first MotoGP podium in 2008.
I like Sepang because it’s a complete circuit with a good combination of fast and slow sections, and also the circuit is wide so you can use different lines.”
LCR Honda rider Randy de Puniet says: “The tropical weather always makes Malaysia a tough weekend for everyone, not only the riders, but also for the whole team, so we will have to work hard to stay focused on the job, especially in this busy period of three races on consecutive Sundays. My leg injury still isn’t perfect – the reason I ran off the track during the Motegi race was that I couldn’t downshift properly – but we still proved that I can get good results despite that. I am looking forward to racing at Sepang – it’s a really great track which I like a lot. In 2007 I finished fourth there, so we will be doing our best to have another good result.”
San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli says: “I was happy with my performance at Motegi and I might have been able to manage fifth place but Edwards was faster than me at the end of the race. Anyway, I was still pleased because we showed that we have improved again and I hope to continue in the same way from here. Now we go to a track that I have never particularly liked but where I have managed to have some good races. I will go into it with full confidence in my ability and the hope that things can be very different and much more positive than our time here in the winter tests.”
San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Melandri says: “Motegi went from bad to worse when I tried to follow Spies and made a mistake that cost me places even though I had a comfortable advantage over the guys behind. The problems we have are the same as the ones we’ve been struggling with since the start of the season with the electronics. I am hoping for something from Honda that can sort it out over the final four races. We are in slightly better shape traveling to Malaysia than we were for the preseason tests here because we have improved the suspension set-up but as I said before our big problem right now is with the electronics.”
Interwetten Honda MotoGP rider Hiroshi Aoyama says: “Malaysia is my favourite track and I’ve had a lot of success there. Last year I rode from pole position to victory and I hope that this year I can do better than my tenth place at Motegi. I am looking forward to Sepang as now that I know my bike better I want to improve my results.”
Moto2 RIDER QUOTES
Gresini Racing Moto2 rider Toni Elias says: “I was really happy to win at Motegi because it was another small but important step towards the title although nothing is for certain just yet. Now I feel even calmer and I go to Sepang, a circuit I love, with the intention of having fun and working hard from the first session towards another win. We have to make sure we are close to Simon to make mathematically certain of the title but we can’t afford to become obsessed by that. At Motegi there was always the high risk of a crash but we won and there is no reason to change our strategy this weekend in Malaysia. Hopefully we can work well because I love the track and to win the title there would be a dream come true for me and the team. ”
Mapfre Aspar Team rider Julian Simon says: “We are going to try something new in Malaysia that we hope will give us more rear traction, one of the biggest handicaps for our bike. We are being very consistent in this last part of the championship and I think we can be fighting for the podium or even the win once again this weekend. I feel strong both physically and mentally and I think all of the remaining races can be good for us. They will be tough because they are very close together but the objective is to keep going as we are and finish second in the championship. So far we are on the right line. Like Motegi, Sepang is a circuit I love, I won there last year and I know I can do it again. I won’t drop my guard and I’ll fight to make sure it happens.”
Fimmco Speed Up rider Andrea Iannone says: “The title is now gone after our tough weekend at Motegi, but I will be doing everything in my power to win another race at Sepang. It’s a great track – very interesting – so I hope we can make a good job of set-up, get a good grid position and then have a strong race.”
Interwetten Moriwaki Moto2 rider Thomas Luthi says: “The racetrack in Malaysia is completely different to Motegi and I like it. We will have to concentrate on qualifying because this is my weak point. I need a better starting position, then I can be back in the front group and that is my target for Sepang.”
HONDA 125 RIDER QUOTES
Interwetten Honda 125 Team rider Marcel Schrötter says: “I hope I will be able to continue in Malaysia like I did in Motegi. I had a strong race and I want to repeat that at Sepang. Again this is a new track for me and also this is another country I haven’t visited before. Points will be my target again.”