After celebrating the first two races of the season on the other side of the planet this weekend the 2009 World Championship arrives in Europe. It does so triumphantly and at one of the venues with the best atmosphere: the circuit of Jerez. The Spanish GP is once again shaping up to be a very special race, however you look at it.
For the Repsol riders it is a race on home soil, in front of a home crowd, and after their performances in Japan they will go to Jerez at a time when they are improving. Dani Pedrosa, who gave an authentic exhibition here last year winning the race after showing complete domination of the circuit and his rivals, took a big step forward in Japan and he is once again in the group of title contenders. Expectations are high but the work is nowhere near completed as he is still not one hundred percent fit and the evolution of the Repsol Honda RC212V 2009 must go on.
Andrea Dovizioso, just like Pedrosa, was also much more competitive in Japan than he was in Qatar. The Repsol rider finished the race in the same position but much closer to the fastest on the day when he was given the chequered flag, being as consistent as he has always been, one of his strongpoints. Adapting little by little to the factory bike, Dovizioso is getting closer to a podium finish, and when the moment of truth arrives and the race starts he will soon be able to show the public all his potential.
In 125cc the race in Jerez is also one of the most longed for by Marc Márquez and Esteve Rabat, who know all about the two sides of the coin that a race at home can have. Although they always bring a bit more motivation a rider has to find a balance and not get too nervous because the pressure of racing in front of a home crowd and not wanting to disappoint them, can sometimes work against them. The good sensations that they both had at this very circuit during the pre-season means that they are optimistic.
For Scott Redding and Cameron Beaubier the race in Jerez also has some special added value. The British rider has had two GP races where, for different reasons, he has not been able to finish the race. In Qatar, rain did not give him time to fight back after a bad start, and in Japan a mechanical problem forced him to retire. The youngest rider ever to win a race in the World Championship will therefore go to Jerez with the intention of finishing, and demonstrating that he is among the best riders in this category.
The young American goes to Jerez with the comforting knowledge that he has ridden there before. The Repsol rider will gain more experience here, and will take advantage of the fact that he does not have to learn all about a new circuit. Beaubier was here in last year`s Spanish Championship – CEV – and two years ago in the Rookies Cup. He was also able to check himself against his rivals in the World Championship during pre-season practice, where he improved his times lap after lap.
Dani Pedrosa
“It was great to get such an encouraging result in Japan right before we go to Jerez because now we have some momentum which we must try to maintain. Still, despite getting on the podium at Motegi, which I was really pleased with, we mustn’t kid ourselves that we are fully competitive just yet. We struggled quite a lot in the practice sessions at Motegi and we’re under no illusions that we have to keep working hard to bring our package up to its full potential. Still, I’m really looking forward to Jerez and it’s always a very special experience for me to race there. The fans are so passionate and give me and all the Spanish riders great support. I like the Jerez track and have had some great moments there. Having got that result in Motegi, and now that my physical condition is improving, I hope I can give the fans and the team something to celebrate this weekend.”
Andrea Dovizioso
“After the race in Japan we arrive in Jerez with more confidence. At Motegi we proved that we can fight hard for the whole race and run at the frontrunners’ pace. I was happy about the race result in Japan because we succeeded in closing the gap to first place, but we still have to work to improve the machine package. In Japan we couldn’t actually do any development work on the bike because of the bad weather conditions which affected most of the sessions. So there’s still a lot of things we need to test including some new parts. Obviously we’ll have to see what we can get done at Jerez, while also working on the set-up for the race. The Jerez circuit is not one of my favourite tracks, but I will still give it my all this weekend. The atmosphere here is always incredible – there are so many spectators and they have a great passion for bikes, so it’s always a great experience to race in front of them. The Spanish GP is also the home GP for Repsol so I’ll be doing my best to get a good result for them too.”
Marc Márquez
“Jerez is a race that I really look forward to, because all the fans cheer you and last year I was not able to race there. It is a circuit that has always suited me and in pre-season practice we did some good work, so I think that we can have a good weekend. It is on the fast corners where you have to look for a good line – this is where you mark the differences – although there are other lines and you can use your brakes to try and overtake. This is a circuit that I like a lot, and the fact that we race in front of our fans is always a plus, although you have to take care with your motivation as nerves can work against you.”
Esteve Rabat
“The circuit of Jerez is one of my favourites, I like it a lot, although the truth is that I have not had any good races there. Once again I will go there dying to do things well, and if we push hard, as we have been doing so far, we will make progress. No doubt we will have a good race, because we are racing on home ground and we will carry on working hard. One of the characteristics of this circuit are the fast corners, and these are what I most like.”
Scott Redding
“In Jerez I am going to push as hard as I can, it will be an important race because it is the first in Europe. I hope the bike works well and then we can see where I am and what I can do. This is a circuit that I like, it is not bad at all, and the atmosphere is really crazy. The fans are some of the most enthusiastic around, so we will have to try and make them happy. I hope that the weather is good too so that we can get a good set up and then things should go better. We`ll see how things go.”
Cameron Beaubier
“In Jerez we will continue to take things step by step, it is a circuit that I already know and we will see how things work out for us. After the weekend in Japan I feel fine, so what I need is to gain more experience, because it is my first year. Fortunately, when we arrive in Jerez it is a circuit I know, one we have our own references for and where I feel comfortable. From the beginning I will be able to concentrate on improving, going fast, not like in the races far away, where the beginning is the most difficult and I race at a disadvantage. In Jerez and other races in Europe we will be in the same conditions and able to ride fast.”
