Repsol Honda raring to go at Estoril

After a three-week break riders Dani Pedrosa, Andrea Dovizioso and Casey Stoner are all more than ready to get back to action at the bwin Grande Prémio de Portugal this weekend.

Dani Pedrosa, second in the Championship and nine points behind leader Jorge Lorenzo, will get back aboard his Honda RC212V after his surgery on April 6th. Last week the Spaniard had the stitches removed from his left collarbone and despite not being 100% physically will fight for another podium, as will team-mates Casey Stoner and Andrea Dovizioso who are both aiming to score points after a hard race in Jerez.

Dani Pedrosa:
“I did what I had to do in these three weeks off and I look forward to getting back on the bike after this period, which has been good for me to undergo surgery and start rehabilitation. Last week I had the stitches removed, so everything is still very fresh and I don’t know how I will feel in Estoril, but I’m excited to see if everything went well and if I can put the issues aside once on the bike. I want to make the most of the four practice sessions to prepare for the race. It would help if we have good weather, as this year we race in April, but you can never trust the weather there having the Atlantic Ocean so close. With regards to the circuit, Estoril has heavy braking zones and it will be important to find traction to take advantage of the good acceleration we have.”

Andrea Dovizioso:
“I am looking forward to the race in Estoril, it’s a track where I have had very good results in my career. I arrive motivated, and want to get back to form after the Jerez weekend with a good race and to show the results of all the positive work done with the team. I think that we will be competitive at Estoril. The circuit is very slow and it’s not the best to ride with a MotoGP machine, in fact, one of the more difficult tasks is to manage the power of the RC212V on this slow track. We will have four practice sessions to work on the set-up and it's important to start well from the first day. After this long break, I’m happy to return on track. I have enjoyed this period at home with my family, having time to relax but also time to dedicate to training and to prepare for the coming races. Now it’s time to jump on the bike.”

Casey Stoner:
"I had a good rest in Switzerland and I feel very good at the moment. I'm looking forward to Portugal after a difficult last race in Jerez, we were looking for a good result in Spain after positive practice sessions and qualifying so we are happy to get back on track. Estoril is not one of my favourite tracks but we have had good success there in the past. We will be looking to get back some points against Lorenzo as he has been the strongest there in the past three years. I think our bike should work quite well at this circuit as it has some tight turns with exits onto big straights so I hope to find some good traction in these points and be competitive from the first day.”