Jerez (Spain):
Last year in Jerez I had to fight a lot to hold on and finally couldnt finish. No problem with Jerez, the team worked a lot and solved the problems we had. Its a circuit where its difficult to find the limit, but on the other hand its one of the best layouts.
Losail (Qatar):
I quite like this track. Its got a couple of banked corners that are fun and there are some long, long right handers which are pretty cool. Id say my favourite part is the combination of Turn One, Turn Two and Turn Three two banked corners followed by a fast right-hander. But dont take your camera! Its a featureless track and there arent really any cool views that stand out, but that means theres also not a lot of stuff to hit when you crash, so its cool. Ive never seen a track with more run-off for safety. Its kinda funky too because they dont have grass, its all rocks or Astroturf. And because its in the desert the wind blows the sand in and gets the track dirty, so normally on Friday its slippery but by Sunday the grip gets better. Its weird racing there though because there are hardly any spectators
Istanbul (Turkey):
Turkey doesnt remind me of any other track. Its got a lot of elevation changes which means youve got to get a compromise for the bikes suspension set-up – something thats going to work in the flat corners but also be ok for the uphill and downhill corners too. Probably the favourite part for me is turn 11 (CHECK CHECK!!). Its the fastest corner on the calendar – 5th gear with the throttle almost wide open. If you like fast corners it doesnt get a whole lot better than that. The last little bit of the circuit I dont like too much because its a bit too tight for MotoGP first gear and really go-kartish.
Shanghai (China):
My favourite thing about China is that I really like the surface. Im sure the layout is great for Formula One car racing but for motorcycles its too much of a stop-and-go track. Its got some sections that are really cool. The long right-hander heading onto the back straightaway is probably my favourite part. And the back straightaway goes for days, even at 200mph. It just goes and goes and goes, before you hit the hardest braking corner on the circuit. Its also a wide track so there are definitely some different lines you can take. The facility is amazing its ridiculous how much those cats have spent on the place.
Le Mans (France):
Its a very hard track, probably one of the hardest of the championship. The tarmac surface is in bad condition, its very slippery and it gets worse when it rains. The layout isnt bad, but the surface is probably the worst of the championship.
Mugello (Italy):
It was a very difficult track for me to learn, but its surely one of the most incredible circuits Ive ever seen. Its built on an impressive site, on top of a hill, and it needs a very good set-up. Im looking forward to racing in Mugello because I wasnt very good last year. This year I hope to get there and make up.
Catalunya (Spain):
Its a track that combines many things. It has two clearly different sections: a first bumpy section, which should be repaved, and another section in the middle where riding is completely different. The set-up of the bike is very important, you need to find a compromise to make it work on both sections. Together with Mugello its one of the circuits where you reach a higher top speed.
Assen (Holland):
Probably my favourite circuit of the championship. Its very funny. Its completely different to any other circuit of the championship. It has a very fast S-shaped section and its one of the longest circuits of the Championship. Given its special features, you need some time to adapt to the situation to make good use of it.
Donington (Great Britain):
Its a very narrow circuit and it is very bumpy; it makes me remember the American tracks. Its a track where the riding technique is very important because it has some blind corners. You have to ride with confidence and push hard always, without lowering your guard.
Sachsenring (Germany):
Its a left-hand track and with my dirt track experience riding on the left-hand side is quite easy. Its also a track with two different sections. Its very narrow at the beginning but then it becomes wider. Overtaking is quite difficult, especially at the beginning; therefore you need a good place on the grid and to make a good start to avoid staying behind.
Laguna Seca (USA):
I think Lagunas the best track on the calendar for me – its a real riders track. There are parts of the track where youve got to be really smooth but there are spots where youve got to be very aggressive too. Turn One and the Corkscrew are the ones that everybody talks about – those take a lot of guts. I like it because its different. There isnt another track in the world thats got a Corkscrew like that – the drop away is so big. Its a tough track, some people find it a little bit bumpy and its not the widest so its pretty tight on a MotoGP bike. Its no secret they need to work on the safety a bit, but theyre working really hard to make it safer.
Brno (Czech Republic):
One of the best circuits of the world championship. A quite wide track allowing very fluid riding, ideal for racing. Standing out is very important there because its difficult to break away. Its an ideal place to make a good result and overtake, because there are several breaking points to do so.
Sepang (Malaysia):
Ive made many laps on this circuit because weve spent several days testing here. It isnt an easy circuit because its really long and wide. It was hard to get used to it at the beginning but, in general, I think that its a good circuit because it has a bit of everything. Closed corners, fast sections… The grip is very important because the track temperature increases a lot in the afternoon.
Phillip Island (Australia):
Its my favourite circuit. The atmosphere and the location of the circuit on top of a hill, surrounded by the ocean, are fantastic. Its main problem are the wind and the seagulls. Last year I ran into one of them and its really dangerous.
Motegi (Japan):
It has a lot of hard braking points and the surface is extraordinary. I like the tunnels and bridges of the circuit a lot, they make it more fun. The final section is good as well, there are a series of complicated slopes where you have to be ready to brake hard.
Estoril (Portugal):
Its a quite hard track. It has a lot of unevennesses and the layout is a bit different than the rest, with ups and downs and very closed corners. I crashed a couple of times there last year. Its not an easy circuit.
Ricardo Tormo (Valencia):
I also like it a lot because somehow it makes me remember the American tracks, narrow and twisty. I think that its one of those tracks that needs a more aggressive riding style. I like the layout because it favours the show in several points, although overtaking is not easy.
