This afternoon, the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid hosted the presentation of the Repsol Honda Team in a festive atmosphere. Rider Dani Pedrosa, who appeared on stage on a trail bike, was the focus of the attention of the spectators, due to the absence of his team mate, the Italian Andrea Dovizioso, who dropped out last minute due to illness.
The highlight of the show coincided with the presentation of the Repsol Honda RC212V 2010. The bike came down from the roof of the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid amid a light and music show, to the surprise of the audience. The official Honda HRC factory machine will wear the colours of Repsol for another year.
The Repsol Honda Team presentation was held just before the start of the fourth trial in the Indoor Trial World Championship, in which Repsol riders Toni Bou and Takahisa Fujinami are competing. Both riders, accompanied by Laia Sanz, nine-time trial world champion, supported Dani Pedrosa during the Repsol Honda Team presentation and offered words of encouragement to the Castellar del Vallès (Barcelona) rider, with just one month to go before the MotoGP World Championship starts.
The fans gathered in the Palacio de Deportes heard the opinions of their idols first hand and listened to their expectations for the exciting season that is about to start.
For the first time, 24 lucky followers of the Box_Repsol page on Facebook were able to enjoy the Repsol Honda Team presentation free and acted as reporters for a day thanks to Repsol. These were the ones chosen to broadcast everything that was happening at the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad de Madrid live on Facebook and Twitter.
This season, the repsol.com portal will support, more than ever, going out to meet motorcycling and Repsol Honda Team fans. To do this, it will intensify the team’s presence on social networks. As well as Dani Pedrosa’s pioneering blog, Marc Márquez, one of the contenders for the 125cc title, will also have a blog. Fans will be able to follow the latest news from the riders and Repsol’s competition from Box_Repsol, on both Facebook and Twitter.
Pedrosa and Dovizioso will be back in action next week at the Losail circuit (Qatar), where the last pre-season test will be held. The new MotoGP season will start on 11 April at this circuit, which is expected to be more tightly-fought than ever.
Dani Pedrosa >> Audio
“To be here for the Repsol Honda Team launch and to see the support of all our fans is a great feeling. I’m feeling really motivated for the coming season and our targets are clear – to improve in every area and consistently fight for race wins. It’s especially good to be here today because last year I couldn’t be at the team presentation because I was injured – and that was a strange feeling, sitting at home watching it. So I’m starting this season in a really positive mood. In general it has been a very good winter for me and much better than the last one. I have been able to do a lot of physical training and work on my fitness levels. Also I was able to rest after the end of the last season and, even though I had a small operation to remove a screw from my wrist, the recovery period after this was very short and I can begin the year in very good shape. The training will help me a lot throughout the season to maintain my maximum performance. At the last test in Sepang we couldn’t make all the progress we would have like to have done, but we still have two more days of testing ahead of us and we will take the maximum profit from them to prepare for the first race. In Qatar we will be working to improve a few more areas with the machine and I’m sure that when we solve these issues we will take a big step forward – and I hope to do it in Qatar. I’m looking forward to this season”.
Andrea Dovizioso
“I’m really sorry not to able to attend the Repsol Team Launch but unfortunately high fever and flu are keeping me in bed, and at this moment of the season with the Qatar test taking place next week, our priority is to be fit and ready for the last test of the winter. Our common goal is to be competitive from round one – we all want to see the Repsol Honda machines fighting at the front every Sunday. We have all worked hard during the winter: Honda has improved all aspects of the package, and from our side we have been committed in training as well as giving direction to the development team. We know that it won’t be easy but we will give our best to fight with the fastest riders every race weekend.
I’d like to thank Honda. I have raced for all my career on their bikes. Together we won the 125 championship, we came close to taking the 250cc title for three years in a row, and now I’m very happy to be in the factory Repsol Honda Team for a second year. I’d also like to thank Repsol for their support. The partnership with Honda is long and solid and I hope that we can share a lot of success this season. I like continuity and so I appreciate Repsol’s involvement very much. I can also boast one Repsol machine in my garage: I used to race with Repsol colours in pocket bikes. I was only a child and I was so happy with my Repsol bike. Now that I have grown up I’m wearing the same colours riding for the Repsol Honda team. This is where I want to be and I can’t wait to get to the first race in Qatar”.
