This weekend sees the end of an era in the FIM MotoGP World Championship, as the series makes its final visit to Donington Park for the British Grand Prix. The venue has played host to some great racing in all classes and, with competition at a breathtaking level in 2009, another thriller can be expected on Sunday 26th July. Standings leader Valentino Rossi has his own fond memories of Donington Park, the scene of his first premier class victory back in 2000. He has not won at the track since 2005, but is undoubtedly capable of ending the drought in front of a crowd that have always been heavily behind the MotoGP World Champion. Rossi holds a 14 point advantage at the head of the standings, adding a fourth win to his 2009 tally with victory in Germany just days ago. His principal challenger so far this year has been Fiat Yamaha teammate Jorge Lorenzo, whom he ousted for the triumph in Sachsenring by just 0.099s. Lorenzo has won once at Donington Park, in the 2006 250cc race, and placed sixth at the track last year, although previous form counts for little when talking about the flying Spaniard this season, as he seeks to extend a run of six consecutive podium finishes. A further 14 points separates Ducati Marlboro’s Casey Stoner from the head of the overall classification. The Australian is still out of sorts with illness, but has kept up his title challenge with some gritty performances over the past month. Off the podium for the past two races, a return to Donington Park gives Stoner the chance to win his third Grand Prix in as many years on British soil. Dani Pedrosa’s bid for the MotoGP crown has picked up as his own physical problems have healed, but the Repsol Honda man is still very much the outside bet of the top four. He needs to pull back forty points just to catch up with third-placed Stoner. Pedrosa’s last win in Britain came back in his rookie season of 2006, riding the 990cc RC211V. The British Grand Prix is a home race for James Toseland, who has double motivation to get a good result on race day. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider is racing for his future in the MotoGP World Championship, and also has some demons to exorcise following his first lap crash in last year’s race. Although Marco Melandri has since relocated to Italy, the former MotoGP runner-up can also count this weekend’s round as a ‘home’ race. He spent a handful of years living just a stone’s throw from the track before the start of this year. He is currently sixth in the standings, behind Toseland’s teammate Colin Edwards. 250cc Hiroshi Aoyama leads the 250cc class upon arrival in Great Britain, ten points ahead of Spanish rival Álvaro Bautista. The category will see a new Donington Park racewinner on Sunday afternoon, as nobody on the current grid has ever taken victory at the track in quarter-litre competition. With the title in the balance, such an honour would be a huge boost to either the Japanese Scot Racing Honda rider or the Mapfre Aspar man. Whilst Aoyama and Bautista have breathing space at the top of the standings, behind them some dark horses are looming. Héctor Barberá is just eighteen points behind Bautista midway through one of his most consistent campaigns, riding for the PepeWorld team and targeting a move up to MotoGP in 2009. Confirmed for a spot in the premier class lineup next year, Marco Simoncelli is remounting his title defence in the 250cc class. The Metis Gilera rider won the last round at Sachsenring in Germany from pole position, and has thirty-two points to make up in order to catch leader Aoyama. Home representation in Great Britain will come from a selection of wildcards, headed by semi-regular participant Toby Markham. The local rider has two points from five appearances in 2009. 125cc The 125cc race at the 2008 British Grand Prix saw a memorable home victory for Scott Redding, ending a long run without reason for local cheer. Redding is back for more in 2009, although he is some way outside the title picture. The previously almost inseparable top two in the lower cylinder category were split by two contrasting results in Germany. A win for Julián Simón and a first DNF of the year for Bradley Smith extended the gap between the two to 30.5 points, and put the duo’s Bancaja Aspar teammate Sergio Gadea between them for good measure. Simón has great memories of Donington Park from his first stint in 125cc, as it was at the British venue that he took a first Grand Prix victory in 2005. Gadea has been just off the podium for the past two seasons at the track, whereas Smith has not had much joy at his home circuit. The Oxfordshire rider has never qualified higher than the third row in the Midlands, and has yet to take to the podium in four appearances there. Experiencing his best season to date, could this be Smith’s year to shine in front of his dedicated supporters? Also stating their case for title contention are Andrea Iannone and Nico Terol, riding for the Ongetta I.S.P.A and Jack&Jones WRB teams, respectively. The British Grand Prix takes place on Sunday 26th July, with practice sessions beginning on Friday. More, from a press release issued by Honda: HHONDA MARKS 50 YEARS OF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RACING ON BRITISH TARMAC This weekend’s British Grand Prix is a historic event both for Honda and for MotoGP. It was 50 years ago this summer that Honda made its World Championship debut in the British round of the 1959 world series and it was in Britain 60 years ago that the first-ever World Championship event was staged. Both those events were held over the notorious Isle of Man TT circuit, which was finally deemed too dangerous for World Championship competition in the mid-1970s. The British round moved to Silverstone in 1977 and then to Donington Park in 1987. Next year MotoGP moves back to Silverstone, swapping venues with the Formula 1 car series. Honda has enjoyed victories at all three British World Championship venues and this weekend the fourth MotoGP round in just five weeks the company’s MotoGP riders and engineers will focus on more success at Donington, round ten of this year’s 17-round MotoGP series. Honda has won ten premier-class races at the Midlands venue over the past two decades. Repsol Honda ace Dani Pedrosa has high hopes for Donington, where he scored a runaway victory in his maiden MotoGP season in 2006. The Spaniard was a much-deserved winner of the US GP earlier this month and scored a close-run third-place finish in Germany last Sunday so he’s got every reason to be in with a chance of more success this weekend. The factory Repsol Honda team has benefitted from engine and chassis upgrades in recent weeks that have helped Pedrosa regain his strong early season form. Team-mate Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) has had a more difficult last few races, but until last month’s Dutch TT the Italian had been on an excellent run of results, always getting closer to scoring his first podium finish of the year. Dovi goes well at Donington and has won two GPs there the 2004 125 race and the 2007 250 race. His intelligent riding style suits the complex layout, so he’ll be aiming to get back on track during MotoGP’s final visit to the track. Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) won the 2005 British 250 GP at Donington but, unlike Dovizioso the Frenchman isn’t a fan of the circuit. That won’t hamper him this weekend, however. De Puniet obviously knows the fast way around Donington and that’s all that matters. Last weekend in Germany he looked all set for another great result on his non-factory RC212V until a high-speed fall put him out of the race Team-mates Alex De Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini) and Toni Elias (San Carlo Honda Gresini) cross the English Channel in high spirits following their rousing fifth- and sixth-place finish at the Sachsenring. That result went some way to repaying Fausto Gresini’s squad for all the hard work they’ve put in so far this year, but Germany could so easily have been better because Elias had to start from 17th on the grid after a tumble in qualifying. Elias and De Angelis have both stood on the 250 podium at Donington and if they have a good two days of practice there’s no reason why they shouldn’t be in with a chance of a top-three result on Sunday. Gabor Talmacsi (Scot Honda) continues his baptism-by-fire MotoGP apprenticeship at Donington. The former 125 World Champion graduated to the elite class at last month’s Catalan GP and has the huge task of learning to ride a 200-plus horsepower RC212V during official MotoGP practice sessions. Last Sunday Talmacsi recorded his first MotoGP points, this weekend he will continue improving step by step. 250 World Championship leader Hiroshi Aoyama (Scot Honda) finished off the podium last Sunday after a thrilling battle with title-rival Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia) in the restarted 250 German GP. The pair will resume their title duel at Donington, a circuit Aoyama claims as his favourite; the Japanese ace is also convinced that his rider-friendly RS250RW will be perfect for the British track’s challenging curves. Aoyama made the 250 British GP podium in 2006 and 2007 and knows that every point from now on will be vital. Hector Faubel (Valencia CF-Honda SAG) is also looking forward to using his sweet-handling Honda this weekend. The Spaniard has shown impressive speed in the last few races after making major advances on chassis set-up. Team-mate Ratthapark Wilairot (Thai Honda PTT-SAG) had a painful fall at the first turn of the German 250 GP but believes he will be fully fit for this weekend’s action. Shoya Tomizawa (Team CIP Honda) scored his first points in a while in Germany despite tricky conditions following the rain shower that brought out the red flags and forced a restart. Swiss rider Bastien Chesaux (Racing Team Germany Honda) scored the first GP points of his career in the same race, which has only made him hungry for more. Donington Park has hosted Britain’s motorcycling GP very year since 1987. Honda riders have won ten of those 22 premier-class races: Wayne Gardner (Rothmans Honda NSR500) was Honda’s first Donington winner in 1992, then fellow Aussie Mick Doohan (Repsol Honda NSR500) won a hat-trick of victories between 1995 and 1997. Valentino Rossi (Nastro Azzurro Honda NSR500/Repsol Honda RC211V) won the last two British 500 GPs in 2000 and 2001 and then the track’s first MotoGP event in 2002. The following year it was Max Biaggi (Camel Honda RC211V) who was declared the winner. Honda’s most recent Donington success came in 2006 when Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC211V) took a dominant victory. Honda has also won eight Donington 250 GPs, the most recent with Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Honda RS250RW) in 2007, and nine Donington 125 GPs. Donington is one of Britain’s oldest race circuits. The first event at the venue was staged over a gravel course around the estate of the Donington Park stately home in 1931. The track was closed down during World War Two and only reopened in the late 1970s. Donington has two very contrasting sections. The first, from Redgate to Coppice, is fast and flowing. The second, from Foggy’s Esses to the final Goddard’s Hairpin (added in 1986 to bring the track up to minimum GP length), is tight and slow. These two sections demand larger-than-usual compromises in machine set-up and riding style, requiring engineers and riders to work hard to link the whole lap together. This year’s British GP completes MotoGP’s busiest period of four races over five weekends in the Netherlands, the USA, Germany and Britain. The GP circus now enjoys a two-weekend break before reconvening at Brno for the Czech GP on August 16. Donington is round ten of this year’s MotoGP World Championship which climaxes at Valencia in Spain on November 8. HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) says: “We’ve built some momentum with our good results in the last two races and we’ll be looking to take that to Donington this weekend. It’s a circuit I like and I’ve had some good results there so I’m confident we can have a strong weekend. To be honest, while the podium in Germany wasn’t a bad finish and we weren’t far behind the winners, we thought another win was possible last weekend. So our motivation is high to fight hard for that in Britain before the summer break. Naturally, the weather is always a consideration at Donington so we need to be prepared for anything. We gained some valuable experience on the Bridgestones in the wet in Germany so we’ll be working to make maximum use of the practice sessions, whatever the conditions. It’ll be sad to see the back of Donington because the track itself is very good to ride and one I like. I hope I can sign off there with a good result.” Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) says: “Unfortunately this year will be the last time that we race at Donington Park and it’s a pity because the circuit is fascinating to ride. I like it, in particular the first section which is very fast, and of course the Craner Curves which plunge down hill and take your breath away every time your ride them. Last year I had a good race at Donington and I have always liked this track. We arrive this time after two difficult races where I had the pace to fight with the leaders but for different reasons, we didn’t get the results. But our motivation is high and everybody in the team is working hard. Honda is working hard too and we’ve had machine updates recently which are moving us in the right direction. So I arrive in Britain determined to get a good result at out last visit to Donington and to prove our real potential.” Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) says: “I had a positive week end in Germany until the first lap of the race and my machine was almost perfect so I just want to forget that ‘zero’ and start again in Donington. I think that the English track is very interesting and very technical: we could win some tenths as the straight (564m) isn’t very long. My overall package is getting better race by race but honestly I do not like the layout of Donington Park very much. Last year I got 12th place there, this weekend I hope for a top-ten finish.” Alex De Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini) says: “I’m really pleased that after the progress we have been making during practice in recent weeks I was finally able to back it up with a result at Sachsenring and the target for Donington is a repeat performance on every level. It was important that we showed our pace in both wet and dry conditions in Germany because that gives us confidence going into a Grand Prix where the weather is similarly unpredictable. Donington is a circuit I like a lot so it is a shame this time is the last for MotoGP. I have always gone well there, up until my crash last year, so we have nothing to fear and I’m confident and excited about this weekend.” Toni Elias (San Carlo Honda Gresini) says: “The performance and result were good at Sachsenring but we want more. If it wasn’t for my crash in qualifying we would have started from a position that would have allowed us to get to a better finish in the race so that is the objective from Donington onwards. We need to look at how we can qualify better and that way target even better results than sixth place. The track surface at Donington can be very slippery especially if the temperatures are low so it will be crucial for us to find good grip from day one and progress from there. Hopefully the weather is kind to us!” Gabor Talmacsi (Scot Honda) says: “I travelled to Donington Park straight from the Sachsenring without going home to Budapest. The team did the same driving direct to the UK from Germany. We have had a technical meeting to discuss how to approach this next race and we will see how things go on Friday. In the past I’ve never really had too much luck at Donington Park. On this visit the crux of the matter is to find a good feeling with the bike and to take another step forward.” HONDA 250cc RIDER QUOTES Hiroshi Aoyama (Scot Honda) says: “Donington is my favourite track so I am looking forward to this race. The layout is technical and difficult: it has a layout with flowing parts of the track and hard-braking zones, so it seems like it should be good for our Honda. As always, I’ll try to get a great result. The weather always plays an important role at Donington. All I hope is that the conditions are constant, whether it’s sunny or raining.” Hector Faubel (Valencia CF-Honda SAG): says: “I’ve not had too much chance to rest since the last race, but I’ve been able to relax a bit and enjoy some sun. I am really happy with my ride at the Sachsenring because it showed that we have moved one step forward with the set-up of the engine and the chassis. I showed in Germany that with good settings I can fight for the top places. I hope that at Donington we can once again demonstrate the excellent work my team does. Also, there are some similarities between Donington and the Sachsenring; both are good circuits for Honda, and hopefully that will help us to run up front.” Raffaele De Rosa (Scot Honda) says: “I love the Donington Park circuit. I had my first ride on a Honda there and I believe that it’s a track that really fits our bike. For sure the weather can cause some problems it usually rains quite a lot. I would prefer a dry weekend because this is my first season in 250s, so I always have much to learn and to test.” Ratthapark Wilairot (Thai Honda PTT-SAG) says: “I am currently recovering from my first lap crash in Germany, which left me with a very sore back. But I am sure that I will be in good condition for the British GP. What happened in Germany was a pity because we could have had a good result. Nevertheless, we can take some positives from the weekend. I feel a lot of confidence with the bike and I think that with the same settings we can get a good result at Donington. Like always, I will push hard for a great result.” Shoya Tomizawa (Team CIP Honda) says: “I was very happy to score some points in Germany. It had been a long time since my last points and the team had told me I really needed to finish that race. You only learn by doing laps, so it’s important not to waste races by falling down. Last weekend was difficult for us because the weather was always changing, which makes it difficult to learn the track’s secrets and to work on getting the bike right. I’ll be hoping for a dry track all weekend at Donington.” Valentin Debise (Team CIP Honda) says: “I’ve raced at Donington before, so I know the track layout, but last time I went there I was racing a 125, so I expect it will be like a new track on a 250. What we really want is two days of dry practice; otherwise the weekend could be quite tough for us.” Bastien Chesaux (Racing Team Germany Honda) says: “Getting my first World Championship point in Germany last Sunday was a really great feeling, so I go to Donington hoping to continue the good work with my team and to keep improving. I’ve never been there before but the track looks very impressive on TV, so I’m looking forward to Friday practice, learning the layout and working on bike set-up. My Honda is going really well at the moment, so I want more points.” onda: More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda: REPSOL HONDA TEAM LOOKING FOR TRIUMPHANT FAREWELL AT DONINGTON The Repsol Honda Team jumps from Germany to the UK this week in readiness for the final British Grand Prix to be held at Donington Park before the event switches to Silverstone from 2010. The factory Honda squad will be looking to bid farewell to the popular circuit with strong performances from riders Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso aboard their ever-improving RC212Vs race machines. Pedrosa will be satisfied with nothing less than victory at a circuit he likes and is sad to see dropped from the MotoGP calendar. His recent form – a podium in Germany, where he came within three seconds of victory, and a win at the previous race in the US – indicates that his aspirations are not misplaced. The Spaniard won at Donington in his MotoGP debut year in 2006, and before that took victory in 2004 on his way to back-to-back 250cc world championships. Underlining his affinity with the track, Pedrosa’s race and qualifying lap records at Donington, set on the 990cc Honda RC211V in 2006, still stand. Dovizioso also has winning form at Donington with a victory there during his 2004 world championship year in the 125 class, and a win again for Honda in the 250 class in 2007. The Italian comes into 2009 British Grand Prix looking to put a three-race run of bad luck behind him and carve out the kind of result his undoubted talent and pace deserve. Using the Honda RC212V’s recently updated chassis and new-spec engine to maximum effect, Dovizioso had front-running pace in the German Grand Prix last weekend before grip issues forced him to drop back through the field. Though disappointed with his recent results, the Italian is a fan of Donington Park and his motivation for the next race is as high as ever. As it enters its second half, the 2009 season has already seen its fair share of what many in the MotoGP paddock refer to as “British weather”. The Qatar Grand Prix was postponed by a day, qualifying in Japan was cancelled altogether and there have been two flag-to-flag races caused by ill-timed rain. Donington Park, 10 miles from Nottingham in the heart of England, also offers few guarantees of unbroken sunshine and so the Repsol Honda Team and riders will be fully prepared to tailor the RC212V for a wide range of track conditions this weekend. Weather aside, Donington is a popular challenge with the riders, featuring the fast and flowing Craner Curves, elevation changes, and the stop-start Melbourne Loop at the end of the lap. Repsol Honda is determined to leave Donington on a high after Sunday’s 30-lap race, which begins at 15.30. DANI PEDROSA World championship position: 4th, 108 points “We’ve built some momentum with our good results in the last two races and we’ll be looking to take that to Donington this weekend. It’s a circuit I like and I’ve had some good results there so I’m confident we can have a strong weekend. To be honest, while the podium in Germany wasn’t a bad finish and we weren’t far behind the winners, we thought another win was possible last weekend. So our motivation is high to fight hard for that in Britain before the summer break. Naturally, the weather is always a consideration at Donington so we need to be prepared for anything. We gained some valuable experience on the Bridgestones in the wet in Germany so we’ll be working to make maximum use of the practice sessions, whatever the conditions. It’ll be sad to see the back of Donington because the track itself is very good to ride and one I like. I hope I can sign off there with a good result.” ANDREA DOVIZIOSO World championship position: 7th, 69 points “Unfortunately this year will be the last time that we race at Donington Park and it’s a pity because the circuit is fascinating to ride. I like it, in particular the first section which is very fast, and of course the Craner Curves which plunge down hill and take your breath away every time your ride them. Last year I had a good race at Donington and I have always liked this track. We arrive this time after two difficult races where I had the pace to fight with the leaders but for different reasons, we didn’t get the results. But our motivation is high and everybody in the team is working hard. Honda is working hard too and we’ve had machine updates recently which are moving us in the right direction. So I arrive in Britain determined to get a good result at out last visit to Donington and to prove our real potential.” More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati: DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM TACKLE FOURTH RACE IN FIVE WEEKS AT DONINGTON The MotoGP teams and riders complete a veritable tour de force this weekend as they contest the fourth race in five weekends. The event at Donington Park also signifies the end of an era for the East Midlands track, which has played host to the British Grand Prix since 1987 but will be replaced on the 2010 calendar by Silverstone, previously home to the historic event from 1977 to 1986. The Ducati Marlboro Team have worked intensively in recent weeks to improve the overall performance of the GP9 and with two riders in Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden prepared to make the best of any situation, hopes are high of a good result at a circuit where the Australian has celebrated victory for the past two seasons. Stoner has been unfortunate to encounter physical problems during one of the most intensive periods of the season but through sheer determination he has come through it with two podium finishes and two fourth places so far. The Australian hopes he can try to make a stronger challenge at the front this time before signing off for a well-earned break. Nicky Hayden, who has worked tirelessly alongside his team to make a breakthrough with his GP9, cannot wait to get back on track at Donington following a disappointing race in Germany where he was unable to take advantage of his best practice and qualifying performances of the season. LIVIO SUPPO, MotoGP Project Director “We have great memories from Donington and it’s a bit of a shame that this will be the last time we race at this wonderful circuit. The GP9 has been making great progress since Barcelona and now we hope to gather the fruit of all this hard work, given that there have been ups and downs in the last few races. On the positive side is a significant overall improvement for Nicky and the fact that Casey has managed to limit the damage to his championship hopes despite not being fully fit. The negative side is that we haven’t been on the podium for two races now and Nicky came away from Germany with less than he should have given his excellent form in practice.” CASEY STONER, Ducati Marlboro Team (3rd in the championship on 148 points) “We did the best job we could at Sachsenring and now I’m a bit more confident about going to Donington. The best thing for us would be to have similar weather and temperature as in Germany because I think the conditions there played into my hands, as did the circuit, which has some long corners where I was able to relax a little on the bike. I’ll be happy if we can have another weekend in similar temperatures at Donington. The track has never been one of my favourites but I have had good results there. The first part is really demanding, with the long section through Craner Curves up to the Old Hairpin”¦ but it’s actually in the slow sections where you can make passes. The bike has been going really well for the last few races even though we could do with a little more traction. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens this weekend and bring home as many points as possible.” NICKY HAYDEN, Ducati Marlboro Team (13th in the championship on 46 points) “I’ve never had amazing results at Donington but I can’t wait to get back out on track because I’m not happy with the way the last race went after the really positive practice we had. My bike is really stable under braking and that should be a real bonus at this circuit. Things have been going well lately, I’m having fun and last weekend was the first time in a long while that I’ve been up front in practice. Seeing P1 unchanged on my pit board for such a long time was a nice feeling. We’ll see what the weather is like because you never know what to expect at Donington and the track conditions are totally dependent on it.” THE TRACK Set to be replaced on the calendar by Silverstone next season, Donington Park hosts its 23rd and final British Grand Prix this weekend. It is a circuit of contrasting characteristics. After two high speed splits, the second half of the circuit becomes slow and tortuous. The first part, made up of the famous “Craner Curves”, a super-fast right-left-right sequence requires a smooth approach from the rider and puts machine importance more on handling than outright speed. The back section, meanwhile, was added in 1986 to bring the track up to the minimum length to host a Grand Prix. It consists of three short straights, a chicane and two sharp hairpins that put huge emphasis on braking and acceleration. Setting a bike up is always a question of making compromises but at Donington Park this is the case more than ever and it puts the riders and the bikes to the test.