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MotoGP, Sepang - Build Up |
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published:-
Oct 20 2009 11:29PM
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 Riders' comments in the build up to the penultimate round of the 2009 MotoGP season, at Sepang in Malaysia.
Valentino Rossi, Fiat Yamaha - 1st in the Championship:
"Phillip Island was like gold dust for us in terms of points and now we go to Malaysia, another of my favourite tracks, with our first 'match point'. Of course anything can happen but it's a great track for me and generally the Yamaha works well there so we have a good chance. We worked brilliantly in Australia and we know that if we can do the same at Sepang then we can have another good weekend. There is no chance to relax - everyone is focused, motivated and excited now that we are at this stage and our number one target for the weekend is to try to close out the championship. We will do our best and see where we are on Sunday night."
Jorge Lorenzo, Fiat Yamaha - 2nd in the Championship:
"After the disappointment in Australia I am glad to have the chance to be back on the bike so soon. I am not hurt and I will be in good shape to race. We don't think about the championship now; my target is to confirm the second place in the championship and, in just my second season in MotoGP, I think that this is a great achievement and I will be happy if I can do it. I like Sepang a lot, I know it well from testing and I have some great memories, especially in 2007 when I took the 250 title there. This time my team and I will just be focused on having a good weekend and getting as many points as we can in order to achieve our target."
Casey Stoner, Marlboro Ducati - 3rd in the Championship:
“In the past I used to like racing in the heat but last year in Malaysia I was racing with a wrist injury and I’ve had the physical problems everybody knows about so I suppose it’s a combination of factors that I have suffered with in recent hot races. But at Phillip Island things went so well from a physical point of view that I feel reasonably confident. It will definitely be a tough race as being fast and consistent in those conditions is always difficult regardless. It is not easy to find the perfect set-up here but that’s always been the case and with every day that passes I feel stronger and more confident that I can be competitive in both of the two races that remain. The track has become a little… boring for me I suppose you could say – just because we have done so many laps here in testing – but the races are usually fun and I like the place. It has a kind of holiday feel to it and it puts you in a good mood.”
Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda - 4th in the Championship:
“Sepang is a good circuit and I always look forward to this race. I’ve won here previously with Honda in the 125 and 250 classes, and I’d really like to add a MotoGP win to those victories. It could be tough because we know how fast our rivals have been recently, but still, the win is what we’ll be aiming for as always - and also to challenge Casey for third in the championship. The track has a fast and challenging layout - plus the hot, humid conditions we encounter here always mean this is a physically demanding race for the riders, although we’re well prepared for it. It will certainly be a big contrast to the cold weather conditions we rode in at Phillip Island last weekend. At the moment we are looking to improve the stability of our machine and it’s important that from the first moments of practice we use all the preparation time available to us to arrive at the best possible package for this race.”
Andrea Dovizioso, Repsol Honda - 5th in the Championship:
“I really look forward to racing in Malaysia as this is my favourite track and I have good memories there. Last year I had a strong race at Sepang and scored my first podium in MotoGP on the RC212V for the Scot Honda team. I’m also confident about this weekend because, during the last part of the race in Australia, my feeling with the bike improved a lot, and if we make a good start in practice on Friday I think we can go on to be competitive in the race. As we saw in Australia, it’s so important to secure a good position on the grid if you want to fight for the leading positions. Sepang is an excellent circuit and because of this I enjoy the Malaysian Grand Prix very much. It’s a complete track, with a good combination of fast and slow sections, and also the circuit is wide, which lets you try different lines. With a MotoGP bike, it is really fun and it’ll be great to get back out there on Friday.”
Alex De Angelis, Gresini Honda - 7th in the Championship:
“In theory Malaysia will be more difficult for us because our strength all season has been in the fast corners, which there are a lot of at Phillip Island but not so many at Sepang. There are a lot of hairpins where you need good acceleration and drive out of the corners and this has been a weak point for us. Having said that, I am in great form at the moment, the bike is working well and we are full of confidence. I'm going there seventh in the championship, with a smile on my face and really looking forward to competing again."
Loris Capirossi, Rizla Suzuki - 9th in the Championship:
"Sepang is a good track for the bike and for me because we did a very good winter test there and we are very optimistic about going there. The bike is very different now to the one we tested back then, but we want to try to go well - like we did in the winter - and I really believe we can push hard for a good result."
Toni Elias, Gresini Honda - 11th in the Championship:
"Australia was a difficult weekend for us but we knew it would be and there were no surprises. The good thing was that we stayed well in touch with seventh place in the championship and my goal over the final two races is to achieve that position. We had problems with rear traction at Phillip Island and it has been our Achilles heel all season but we are very confident it won't be a problem in Malaysia. I love the track and the conditions will suit us much better, so hopefully the race is more like the others we have experienced in the second half of this championship, with a competitive weekend fighting for a top six finish."
Chris Vermeulen, Rizla Suzuki - 12th in the Championship:
"I'm looking forward to getting to Sepang and putting last weekend behind us. It's a circuit we all know very well because we do a lot of testing there. It's going to be very hot and humid - a lot different to Phillip Island - and the GSV-R has performed well there in the past so that's what we'll be looking to aim for. We have a good base setting so hopefully it will work out for us and we can be competitive from the start."
Nicky Hayden, Marlboro Ducati - 14th in the Championship:
“I wouldn’t say that Malaysia is one of my favourite circuits and it’s almost as if I’ve got ownership on fourth place there because I finished in that position five times out of six! Having said that if I were to manage fourth place this year I’d probably be more than happy. We’ve arrived here on the back of a disappointing weekend in terms of what might have been but that’s over now and we have to look forward. I’m expecting the usual heat – having suffered from the cold in Australia it will be the opposite here – but it will be interesting to get back on track at a place we have tested at. Sepang is one of the circuits where I have ridden the bike the most, back in January, and we have made a lot of progress since then. Fortunately I’m faster now so it will be interesting to see where we’re at.”
Gabor Talmacsi, Scot Racing - 17th in the Championship:
“I'm very positive about Sepang. I love the track. I've got two victories, there, in the 125cc class. We analysed the data from Phillip Island to have a better performance next weekend, because I feel I can fight for a better position. It will be hot, but I'm not worried: if I can have an easier bike, there will be no problems.”
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