DANI GOING ALL OUT TO REPEAT HISTORY IN FRANCE

2007-05-16 07:41
The MotoGP season now enters its most intense phase with seven races over the next ten weeks and no one will be more focused on getting the most out of this gruelling period of racing than Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V).

Dani has triumphed here at Le Mans on a 125cc machine in 2003 and the Spanish idol achieved two 250cc wins at the Bugatti circuit in 2004 and 2005. He also set the pole position here with a lap time of 1m 33.990 seconds in his debut MotoGP season and will be looking to achieve even more this weekend as he starts his 100th Grand Prix

He currently lies third in the overall points
standings after achieving two podium finishes and
a fourth place so far. He was deprived of a
finish in Turkey after getting knocked off in a
first lap incident. Amazingly, he has now gone 12
races without a win - and in terms of Dani's
incredible success rate - this represents something of a barren spell.

But Dani is nothing if not determined and this
weekend represents a perfect chance for him to
get back on terms with the series points leaders
Casey Stoner (Ducati) and Valentino Rossi (Yamaha).

His team-mate and reigning World Champion Nicky
Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) will be equally keen
to get his season back on the rails after a
troubled start to his title defence. But the
genial American, although currently ninth
overall, knows he has the skill and the means to hit back here.

He said, "I really need get a good result for
myself and for the team in France, and we'll
definitely be going all out for that. I wouldn't
say Le Mans is one of my favourite tracks, but
that's just because I've never had a very good
result here, which can take the fun out of any
track I guess. So I hope all that changes this
weekend. We've still got some distance to go to
get the bike working for me and put ourselves in
a position to fight for wins, but the guys are
right behind me and I know Honda's pushing hard
to improve the performance - and Michelin too."

Nicky is not alone in describing the Bugatti
circuit at Le Mans as 'not a favourite' in the
way that say Mugello, Assen or Brno might be, but
some riders like it. A 'name' track with a rich
recent history, it's a racing environment capable
of producing entertainingly close racing. And
with no winter testing conducted here pre-season,
all riders will face a fresh challenge.

The 4.180km track is a compact circuit and
although few riders claim to enjoy riding here,
they all have huge respect for it. Le Mans
requires courage in parts, a delicate throttle
hand in others and absolute commitment in the
many heavy braking areas. The track was built in
1965, modified and shortened in 2003 and then
totally resurfaced in 2004 to the general relief of most riders.

Located 150 miles south-west of Paris, the
Bugatti circuit at Le Mans employs some elements
from the longer public roads circuit but remains
modestly within its own confines. Turn one is a
blisteringly fast uphill right with a following
chicane that requires expert judgement to get
right. Many rookie riders overshoot or brake too early allowing rivals past.

Much of the rest of the track is a succession of
hard braking and tight exits that put a premium
on machine balance. It might not be that
technical - but it is a challenge. In all it
comprises nine right hand turns and four lefts
with two tight complexes before the flat out
start/finish straight into turn one, which was modified last year.

Machine set-up requires stability on the brakes
and chassis settings that allow quick turn-in but
not at the expense of having to tame a
wheelie-prone machine on the throttle out of the
many slow turns. Many of the overtaking
opportunities here are afforded under braking and
the longest straight is only 450m long.

Dani said, "Le Mans is a circuit where I've had
some good races in previous years so I'm hoping
this visit will be the same. Since it's the first
time we will ride the new 800cc machines at Le
Mans, our primary target will be to find the
right way to set up the bike - especially the
gearing because there are many sections of
acceleration out of slow corners and it's very
important to have the best possible drive at
these points. Let's hope the weather stays clear
and gives us enough dry track time to do this."

Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) won here
last year and needs a win again to stay in touch
in the World Championship standings. He said, "I
like it here and it should suit our bike a little
more. It's a little early to be making
predictions and we'll have to wait until we get
there to check out the weather conditions, which
can change quickly. The Bugatti track is full of
hard braking and it needs a riding style that
favours braking and opening the gas with perfect
timing according to each particular corner. There
are a couple of hard acceleration points but
there are no really long straights and that should help."

Marco's team-mate Toni Elias (Gresini Honda
RC212V) said, "I've had some good results here in
the past. I actually scored my first podium here
back in 2001 when I finished third in the 125cc
race and I also won the 250cc race in 2003. Last
year we suffered a lot with tyres because I
couldn't get them up to the right temperature.
This year the tyre situation is completely
different and we should be in the right shape to
challenge at the front of the field again. This
could be a decent chance to register a good result."

"I've had good results here before," said Carlos
Checa (LCR Honda RC212V). "The engine power is
not so important like in Istanbul and Shanghai so
we have more chance of finishing near the front.
I hope the weather's good and we find the best
solutions for the tyres because Bridgestone is
very strong now. Michelin is working hard
together with my technicians and I am pretty
confident for the weekend. All the RC212V riders
are suffering the same problems with the engine
power and the front chatter and I'm sure that HRC can find a solution soon."

Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda RC212V) said,
"We didn't have a good weekend last time out in
China, but I know the team and I will bounce back
for Le Mans. I'm hoping we'll be much stronger on
race tyres here as I really enjoy the circuit
layout. Last year at the French Grand Prix I
almost got pole, but was eventually bumped back
to second. This shows I can do it, so I'm very
much looking forward to getting on the pace from
the very first practice session."

Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR212V) who has been
struggling with chassis trouble so far this
season said, "We've an updated version of the
chassis we've been running and this one is nearer
to the original centre position we started with -
nothing drastic, only adjustments. Tyres have
been an issue at some races but this week we are
racing in Michelin's back yard so we hope they'll have something for us."

In the 250cc class Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Honda RS250RW)
is on the hunt for another win to take him closer
to series points leader Jorge Lorenzo (Aprilia)
who has scored three pole-to-flag wins this year
to Dovi's one. Just like in 2006 these men are
the pre-eminent riders in the class.

Dovi currently has 68 points to Lorenzo's 95, but
this is a track that might well suit the nimble
handling characteristics of the 2007 Honda
RS250RW. The Italian former 125cc World Champion
has the riding skills and racecraft to capitalise
on any advantage. Dovi won here on a 125 in 2004
and was second here on a 250 last year.

"Le Mans should suit the Honda and we need to get
the gearing absolutely right to make sure we have
maximum acceleration out of the turns, then we
can use our chassis to best effect on the brakes
into the turns too. We've done OK here in the
past and we've got to take maximum advantage of
any chances we get this season."

Dovi's team-mate Yuki Takahashi (Scot Honda
RS250RW) will not ride here this weekend as his
wretched run of luck continues. He has just
undergone an operation on his broken left arm,
while still not fully recovered from a broken leg
sustained at the end of last season.

Julian Simon (Repsol Honda RS250RW), currently
seventh overall, said, "I think the race in
France may favour the Hondas. It has fewer long
straights and the technical aspect has a lot of
influence. It's a layout with a lot of braking
sections in which the riding style is very
important. I think even though we're racing here
for the first time with a 250cc machine, if we
work hard and well during the practices, we'll be
able to achieve a good result."

His team-mate Shuhei Aoyama (Repsol Honda
RS250RW) said, "I like the French Grand Prix
because I took my first podium in the World
Championship last year at Le Mans. It's a very
technical circuit, with a lot of corners, which I
like. You could say it's a 'Honda track' too."

The 125cc class is currently the domain of
Aprilia and Derbi riders, but again Le Mans
represents a chance for Honda's young lions
Esteve Rabat (Repsol Honda RS125R) and Bradley
Smith (Repsol Honda RS125R) to break into the top
places as Rabat managed so determinedly in China
two weeks ago with a fighting third.

He said, "I'll try to do the best I can as
always. And we'll try to continue learning and
evolving. I don't know anything about the track,
I've only played it on Play Station, so the
information I've got is minimal. I'll have to
learn the layout, to start from zero again and it
will be hard work. But let's see if the twisty layout fits my riding style."

Smith said, "I've already been here before so
that's a positive for us and last year I had no
experience with the bike's settings. I think I
even managed to be second fastest in wet
conditions last year and I believe I can even do
a good job if it's dry. I'm really looking forward to this race."

Source: Honda Pro Image

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