MotoGP Motegi Sunday: Repsol Honda

Dani Pedrosa rode to a brilliant podium finish from eleventh on the grid today as the Japanese Grand Prix produced a thrilling race for the Repsol Honda Team at Honda’s home event. Pedrosa’s team-mate Andrea Dovizioso also put in an impressive ride to take fifth place at the flag, having run in fourth for most of the race.

Pedrosa’s result was all the more remarkable considering the lack of dry practice time before today’s 24-lap race. But the warmer conditions this afternoon worked well with the medium compound Bridgestone tyres chosen by both Repsol Honda riders, and for most of the race the pair were able to run at the pace of eventual winner Jorge Lorenzo and his Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi, who finished second after a thrilling mid-race dice with Pedrosa.

Dovizioso was pipped for fourth place on the second-to-last lap by Casey Stoner, but despite this, the Italian was pleased with the pace of his RC212V after a difficult, rain-affected weekend that saw yesterday’s qualifying session cancelled due to heavy rain.

It was also a special day for Honda at Twin Ring Motegi because today’s race was preceded by a moving reunion of legendary Honda Grand Prix riders to mark 50 years since Honda first entered the Road Racing World Championship. Honda’s first World Championship rider, Naomi Taniguchi, rode a specially built replica of the RC142 he rode at the 1959 Isle of Man TT. He was joined by Kunimitsu Takahashi, the first Japanese rider to win a Grand Prix for Honda, who was riding an RC164, and Honda legend and three-time World Champion, Freddie Spencer.

The Repsol Honda Team now dashes back to Europe to set up for the Spanish Grand Prix which takes place at the Jerez circuit in one week’s time.

Dani Pedrosa – 3rd
“I’m very happy with this result. I’ve had injury problems for a long time - since last October - and so to be on the podium in the second race of the season is fantastic for me, and really we didn’t expect this so soon. I got a good start - the start was really the key part of my race - and I was able to get away with the front group. I couldn’t really believe it when I stayed with them because I was expecting to drop back after maybe one or two laps. But then it was lap five or six and I was still there and I was thinking, ‘this is unbelievable’. In the end I was near the front for the whole race, had a good battle for second, and finished on the podium so this is great. We still have to sort out some issues on the machine, but it’s a very positive result going in to the Jerez, and I’d like to say big thanks to the team and the fans.”

Andrea Dovizioso – 5th
“I’m pretty happy after this race because, considering that we struggled a lot during all the practice sessions, we were able to stay near the front for 24 laps. I was pushing really hard for a podium finish for the whole race but in the end I couldn’t make it. It was a tough race and this is a very demanding track, with many hard braking zones so we struggled a lot physically to achieve this result. I think me and Dani just gritted our teeth and got on with it today. It’s promising because we’ve reduced the gap to the guys in the front. I was 27 seconds behind the winner in Qatar and only 9 seconds behind here, so this is a good step forward. But we must keep on working hard. I have to give my compliments to Dani - he did a great race. I made a good start and was able to maintain a good pace during the race, but we still have to fine-tune the machine so that we can be really competitive.”

Kazuhiko Yamano - Team Manager
“This was an exciting race and, with the home crowd cheering them on, it was like both Repsol Honda riders had some extra power today. There were a lot of Honda flags out there and I’m pleased we gave the fans something to cheer about. Both Dani and Andrea pushed really hard today and their performance was very strong, but for the moment the machine is holding them back. In every session they gave the same feedback and we’re still working to improve the performance of the bike so that we can close the gap to our rivals. Finally I’d like to say thank you to Andrea and Dani, and to the fans.”