Repsol MotoGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP EVENT PREVIEW
SAN MARINO GRAND PRIX, MISANO
August 29/30/31 2008, round 13 of 18
REPSOL HONDA BACK TO FULL STRENGTH
The Repsol Honda Team will be back to full strength for
the San Marino Grand Prix, with Nicky Hayden coming back from
injury to rejoin team-mate Dani Pedrosa.
Hayden missed the recent Czech GP due to a foot injury sustained
during an X Games Supermoto event in Los Angeles on August
1. Doctors told the 2006 MotoGP World Champion that a hasty
return to racing might complicate the right-heel injury, advising
him to delay his comeback until Misano.
Pedrosa and Hayden will race their usual RC212V machines
at Italy’s second MotoGP event of the year, the Spaniard
using his valve-spring engine, while the American rides the
pneumatic-valve machine he first raced at June’s British
GP. Pedrosa is hoping that the grip issues that consigned
him to a 15th place finish at Brno will have been resolved
for the San Marino event. The team will stay on to test at
Misano, when it’s likely that Pedrosa will try the pneumatic-valve
engine.
Misano hosted its first Grand Prix event in 1980 and staged
the Italian world round (then called the Grand Prix of Nations)
on and off throughout the decade. Last year the circuit returned
to the World Championship calendar after an absence of 14
years, having undergone major changes, most importantly a
change of direction that transformed the circuit from anti-clockwise
to clockwise. Misano, situated just inland from Italy’s
Adriatic holiday coast, is mostly dominated by tight, slow-speed
turns that give MotoGP riders a tough time on their 220 horsepower
machines. Last year the Repsol Honda team had an unlucky race
at the venue. Pedrosa and Hayden were the innocent victims
of a turn-one melee which took out Pedrosa and left Hayden
to battle back from last position.
Dani Pedrosa
“I am hoping that we can have a better weekend at Misano,
though I had bad luck there last year, another rider knocked
me off at the very first corner. The Misano circuit is quite
fast but it feels tight and narrow. The grip level is okay;
last year we used medium-compound tyres because it was quite
hot. The track was also very bumpy last year, which was probably
its worst feature. From a set-up point of view the most important
thing at Misano is having good braking power and good stability
when accelerating out of the corners. It’s the kind
of track that requires you to ride aggressively. My favourite
section is the final part, though the most important section
for good lap times is the first. The atmosphere is great and
it can get quite intense. You get a lot of Valentino Rossi
fans there because his hometown is nearby.”
Nicky Hayden
“I’m certainly excited to be getting back out
there with the boys, because I hated missing Brno. I’ve
been doing all the old ‘voodoo’ stuff they tell
you to do: bone stimulators, lasers, ultrasound, all that
stuff, I’m doing everything possible to get back. I
had hoped my progress would be quicker. I still need crutches
at this stage, but unless something goes south I definitely
plan on trying to ride. I’ve been seeing doctors, and
I’m going to get something moulded to wear in my boot.
I’ve been doing some training in the pool and a few
things at the gym, nothing too crazy. Misano is almost a Laguna
without the hills, it’s a tight little scrappy track
where you need a bike you can be aggressive with. I enjoyed
it last year but I’d just as soon they flipped it back
around and go the old direction for those big lefts that used
to go on to the back straightaway, I remember seeing the old
500s guys riding those on TV.”
MISANO - THE TRACK
Constructed: 1972
Latest modification: 2007
Length: 4,180m
Width: 4 m
Pole position: left
Right corners: 9
Left corners: 5
Longest straight: 565 m
2007 Motogp race: 1st C.Stoner (Ducati), 2nd C.Vermeulen (Suzuki),
3rd J.Hopkins (Suzuki)
RECORD
Circuit fastest lap (new record): C.Stoner (Ducati): 1'34.649
Circuit best lap: C.Stoner (Ducati) 1'33.918
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Valentino ROSSI ITA Fiat Yamaha Team 237
2 Casey STONER AUS Ducati Marlboro Team 187
3 Dani PEDROSA SPA Repsol Honda Team 172
4 Jorge LORENZO SPA Fiat Yamaha Team 120
5 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA JiR Team Scot MotoGP 110
6 Colin EDWARDS USA Tech 3 Yamaha 102
7 Chris VERMEULEN AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 99
8 Nicky HAYDEN USA Repsol Honda Team 84
9 Shinya NAKANO JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini 83
10 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 77
11 James TOSELAND GBR Tech 3 Yamaha 75
12 Toni ELIAS SPA Alice Team 66
13 Alex DE ANGELIS RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini 49
14 Sylvain GUINTOLI FRA Alice Team 42
15 Marco MELANDRI ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 41
16 Randy DE PUNIET FRA LCR Honda MotoGP 40
17 John HOPKINS USA Kawasaki Racing Team 37
18 Anthony WEST AUS Kawasaki Racing Team 33
19 Ben SPIES USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 10
20 Jamie HACKING USA Kawasaki Racing Team 5
21 Tadayuki OKADA JPN Repsol Honda Team
Constructor Points
1 YAMAHA 266
2 HONDA 212
3 DUCATI 210
4 SUZUKI 128
5 KAWASAKI 63
Team Points
1 FIAT YAMAHA TEAM 357
2 REPSOL HONDA TEAM 256
3 DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM 228
4 RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP 178 5 TECH 3 YAMAHA 177
6 SAN CARLO HONDA GRESINI 132
7 JIR TEAM SCOT MOTOGP 110
8 ALICE TEAM 108
9 KAWASAKI RACING TEAM 75
10 LCR HONDA MOTOGP 40
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