After the blaze of passion and adrenalin seen at the Catalunya Grand Prix, the Motorcycle World Championship moves on to the eighth meeting of the 2010 season next weekend. This will be the German Grand Prix which, since 1998 has been held at the Sachsenring circuit, at which Dani Pedrosa already knows what it is like to be on the highest step of the podium and, where Marc Márquez and Andrea Dovizioso will also be fighting for the win.
The Repsol Honda Team’s Spanish rider has already won in Germany in 2007, suffered a chilling fall while leading the 2008 race and, was third last season. He also won on two other occasions while competing in the now extinct 250cc class. Although not one of the most spectacular tracks in the world championship calendar, the revered German track has become a lucky circuit for Pedrosa, who, after taking second place ten days ago at the Circuit de Catalunya, will be looking for his second win of the season.
For Andrea Dovizioso, the German race will be the perfect opportunity to move on from his last race, when, while battling for the win, he hit the floor ten laps from the finish. However, the Repsol rider is optimistic: sure to position himself once again up amongst the favourites of the class and be able to return to battle for what would be his second win in this class. Dovizioso has made an upward progression throughout the season, which has allowed him to now start competing for the win. Tenacious and consistent as always, in Germany the challenge will be to repeat his performance of ten days ago, this time with a more positive result.
In the 125cc’s, the inexhaustible work of Marc Márquez and his team has taken the Repsol rider to the highest echelons of the class. The Emilio Alzamora pupil managed, with his fourth consecutive win, to position himself as the leader of the lower cylinder class, proving that hard work pays off sooner or later. With his morale high after some very positive test sessions at the Motorland Aragón Circuit, Márquez will once again be one of the main contenders for the win. However, the maturity he has demonstrated so far will make him cautious ahead of a new circuit and a new challenge, which kicks off on Friday with the first free practices.
Dani Pedrosa
“It’s been nice to have some rest after three races in a row, but I’m already looking forward to facing the last two races before the summer break. The race at Catalunya was very positive for us, for me personally because I was able to give my friends and fans a good result, and for my team because they worked very hard again and we ended up with a second place – another podium after the one we got in Assen. I want to maintain this momentum and keep moving forward, and fight for the victory in the two next races. In addition, the three races on consecutive weekends we’ve just had helped me to achieve a very good physical condition and I feel really confident now. Sachsenring is a circuit where I enjoy racing and we’ve normally had a good performance there; even in 2008 when I crashed I was leading the race with a good gap, so it makes me feel that we can do well again this weekend. I want to be totally concentrated on not making any mistakes and be to ready to fight for the win. Finally, I want to congratulate the Spanish national football team for winning the World Cup. I watched the match on TV and it was very emotional!”
Andrea Dovizioso
“I’m look forward to racing in Germany again and I believe we can get a strong result this weekend. In Barcelona we had a very good race pace that allowed us to stay with the leader for two thirds of the race – and this was really positive. At every race this season we are improving – we take one step forward at a time – and now we have to take the final step and really challenge for the win. At the last race in Catalunya we had the pace to fight for the top position and, even though the final result was not good, we can say that we improved a lot and proved that we are almost where we need to be. So, we will continue working towards being able to fight for the win, starting this weekend in Germany. The Sachsenring racetrack is quite short, with a very slow first section followed by a very fast second half. Usually there are so many spectators all the way through the weekend. The y are truly passionate about motorsport and the atmosphere is really good”.
Marc Márquez
“After the Catalunya Grand Prix, we had a test in Aragón which went very well because I felt very confident, as in the last few races and this reflects that we are in good shape at the moment and, above all, that we are working well. This allows us to go to Germany feeling confident but I don’t want to say that it’s going to be easy nor that the win is a sure thing. Once again in testing we’ll take it step by step to try to make progress throughout the weekend, as it is a very technical and difficult circuit, especially the first part. It appears to be a very slow section but, if you don’t ride it well, you get to the fast corners separated from the other riders and it’s hard then to make up the ground.”
