Mugello will be hosting this weekend one of the most contended events in recent times.
Repsol riders arrive in Italy with options in the three classes.
The 2004 World Championship continues its European journey and has reached now Italy. After disembarking in Spain and moving on to France, the opening race in South Africa giving the starting signal for one of the most contended seasons, seems to be far off.
In the MotoGP class, Mugello has turned in the last years into the venue of national duels between Capirossi, Rossi and Biaggi, with the Italian fans unconditionally supporting their local heroes. Last year’s winner, Valentino Rossi, won’t have it easy this weekend if he wants to repeat result. Fourth last weekend in France, Rossi has been watching how his rivals are getting stronger and stronger. He may have a good example this weekend with Alex Barros, who already clinched the victory in 2001 on this spectacular Italian track. The Brazilian rider, who had a bad weekend in France, was very happy with the tests carried out with his team on Monday in Le Mans. We may be able to see the results this weekend. The same will probably happen with his teammate Nicky Hayden who, after a complicated weekend in France, reaches Italy looking forward to a good result and to forget the Le Mans race. Both riders of the Repsol Honda Team, have rather bad memories of last year’s race in Italy: Barros crashed in the second lap after having qualified ninth and Hayden qualified seventeenth and finished twelfth. Rubén Xaus, despite not having raced on this circuit since 1996, knows the Italian track very well giving the fact that Mugello is the testing venue of Ducati. The young Repsol rider will therefore not have the disadvantage of having to get used to a new layout.
In the 250, Fonsi Nieto will arrive in Mugello completely recovered from his strong crash during the warm-up in France, where he fractured a toe. Ready for this new contest, Fonsi will be back on the track where he managed to finish second last year behind Manuel Poggiali. Fonsi feels quite comfortable on this track and that is why the Repsol rider is looking forward to a new podium finish this weekend, using perseverance as his best weapon. His teammate Sebastián Porto, with no doubt one of the fastest riders of the class, will have in Mugello a new chance to fight for the victory and to definitely join the group of those who will be fighting for the title. Porto has the necessary means and qualities for the fight but his extreme eagerness and little luck have set him back to positions or results that do not reflect his real potential. Porto should start to rise again in Mugello, where he finished eighth last year with the other bike.
In the 125, as usual, there are several riders with chances to clinch the victory in Mugello. Pablo Nieto, who has always had good results in his former visits, has two clear aims to be ready for the battle in the lead: good timed practices and good start. Bad starts have been a negative factor in his hopes for good results in the last races. Jorge Martínez Aspar’s pupil had to spend the races working his way up from the back of the pack. His teammate Sergio Gadea, who had a first contact with the Italian track in April during the private tests carried out by Aprilia, knows that he will have a hard weekend, even though the twisty layout and fast sections are something that Sergio likes a lot.
