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Over the last four years, the Repsol rider has ridden the latest 990cc developed by Honda and three evolutions of the 800cc RC212V, always wearing the colours of the Spanish company.
In the 2006 season, Dani Pedrosa makes a dream come true: reach the premier-class of the Motorcycling World Championship in the heart of the Repsol Honda Team. He immediately became one of the favourites in his class, taking second place in his first race, precisely in Jerez. His first win came just a little later in the Chinese Grand Prix. Runner-up in the 2007 World Championship and third in both 2008 and 2009, Pedrosa has been one of the leading players since he reached MotoGP. Four years, during which he has ridden Honda’s latest evolutions, starting with the 2006 990cc RC211V, through the different evolutions of the Honda RC212V between 2007 and 2009, up to the 2010 version, on which he is competing this season. With these bikes, Dani has experienced the switch from 990cc engines to 800cc and on them; he has had some difficult times as well as some unforgettable victories.
Repsol Honda RC211V 2006
“It’s the first MotoGP I rode and I remember it fondly. Since you are small, you dream of riding a bike like this one day and what’s more, in this team, so achieving it was like a dream come true. The bike went very well, I had a lot of fun that year and we had good races. It was a big bike but from the first day, it ran very precisely and didn’t cause any problems. That year turned out very well because we won the championship with Hayden and I was second almost all year. I didn’t do very well in the end because in many races we were both on the podium. The team had a great season”.
• 5th MotoGP World Championship (215 points)
• Wins in the Chinese Grand Prix (4th race) and in the British Grand Prix (9th Race)
• Eight podiums (Jerez, China, France, Great Britain, Holland, Laguna Seca, Czech Republic, Malaysia)
• 17-race season
Repsol Honda RC212V 2007
“It was the first 800cc. We were very hopeful and to tell you the truth, we finished a little frustrated because it wasn’t what we expected. We had to fight hard and what’s more, we had a lot of problems with the tyres. However, the truth is we learnt a lot from the experience. It was a tough year, we fought to the death and in the end, I finished second, but we wanted more. It was a year of constant battling with the bike, trying to improve. I had a good personal experience on a technical level of bikes, of technology”.
• Runner-up World Championship (242 points)
• Wins in the German GP and the Comunitat Valenciana GP
• Eight podiums (Qatar, Spain, Italy, Catalunya, Germany, Portugal, Malaysia, Valencia)
• 18-race season
Repsol Honda RC212V 2008, Special edition for Respol’s 40th anniversary in motor racing, Comunitat Valenciana Grand Prix
“For me, it’s the most beautiful bike that Repsol has ever done, it’s a shame that I didn’t win that race, I came second. On the outside, the bike is practically the same as the one I have now. When I saw the design of the bike, I loved it because I like special bikes and above all, the more traditional lines; it’s a shame that it was only one race. It has a very classic design, with Repsol’s old logo and I had very simple designs on my helmet. After my rookie year, 2008 was the best season I’ve had. I was battling as hard as possible and had an excellent first half of the season”.
• 3rd MotoGP World Championship (249 points)
• Wins in the Spanish GP and the Catalunya GP
• 11 podiums (Qatar, Spain, Portugal, China, Italy, Catalunya, Great Britain, Holland, Japan, Malaysia, Valencia)
• 17-race season
Repsol Honda RC212V 2009
“Last year’s bike also gave us a few headaches, really. It had very good and bad moments. It was a difficult bike to ride and I would even say, a little treacherous. It was easy for it to throw you to the floor. It was difficult to find a confident spot where you could let yourself go. It went really fast on the straight and accelerated very well in the turns but I had to battle hard physically. What’s more, I injured myself and had to go on racing, without stopping and I couldn’t rest. In the end, we found a bit of the consistency we needed, we made quite a few podiums in a row and I finished third. When something ends well, the memory that you are left with is also good”.
• 3rd MotoGP World Championship (234 points)
• Wins in the United States GP (Laguna Seca) and in the Comunitat Valenciana GP
• 11 podiums (Japan, Spain, France, United States, Germany, Czech Republic, San Marino, Portugal, Australia, Malaysia, Valencia)
• 17-race season
Repsol Honda RC212V 2010
“To tell you the truth, the last tests and the first race in Qatar were not what I expected. We are working on it, thinking and trying to improve, but we still have a few problems. In Japan, they have been looking into it and have pinpointed some faults, so we are trying to improve. We have entered the season very eager and on top form. I have gone back to the number 26 for my fans and I’m still wearing the same colours. It’s my fifth Repsol bike in MotoGP, so I’m going to give it my all. Over the last few years, I’ve had good things and bad things, so we’ll see if this season I manage to keep the balance and do it even better”.
