The MotoGP™ World Championship kicks off its European busy-season at the Iveco TT Assen race this Saturday, as the grid prepares for three weekends of action-packed racing in a row. Riders across all classes will look to collect as many points as possible in the coming weeks, to put themselves in the strongest possible position for the second half of the season. Assen, which is a circuit that is generally very popular among riders, is the only venue that has hosted a Grand Prix event every year since the motorcycle World Championship Grand Prix series started back in 1949. Yamaha Factory Racing’s championship leader Jorge Lorenzo will have mixed memories from the Assen circuit, as last year he was taken out by the late Marco Simoncelli on board his San Carlo Honda Gresini bike. Lorenzo did however manage to remount, and charge his way up into sixth. This year, the Spaniard, who holds a 25-point lead in the championship, will be looking for a less eventful race to cement his place at the top of the standings. His win in Silverstone last time out put him equal with Repsol Honda Team’s Casey Stoner on 50 wins a piece in their Grand Prix careers. Stoner, who struggled with tyre issues in Silverstone, will be hoping that his team can help in dial in the chatter that has plagued him all season, to claw back some points on his rival. His teammate Dani Pedrosa, now only 14 points behind the Australian, missed last year’s round due to injury, but looked strong in Silverstone, and will no doubt be looking to put himself in contention for a title shot. Arguably the greatest talking point at present is Cal Crutchlow’s phenomenal effort at his home round, where he fought from the back of the grid with a fractured ankle to take sixth. Whilst still suffering from the injury, the Brit has shown it hasn’t slowed him down, and he will be looking to extend his lead in the tight battle for fourth place. He will be challenged by teammate Andrea Dovizioso, who will look to make amends for his crash at the previous race. Ducati Team pair Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden will both aim to bounce back after a less than ideal race in the UK. Whilst Hayden showed outright pace, he will hope that his tyres can last the distance at Assen, while Rossi admitted that he struggled with the circuit. He has however confessed to being a big fan of the Dutch track and is hoping to regain some of the form that showed promise for the Italian outfit in Catalunya. San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Álvaro Bautista will aim to continue his good run this season, which saw him take pole position at the last race and finish an equal premier-class best in fourth. LCR Honda MotoGP’s Stefan Bradl, who suffered a finger injury at the last race will be taking to the Assen circuit in a little less discomfort this time and will look to take another forward step in his Rookie season. Lorenzo’s teammate Ben Spies, who currently lies 11th in the championship standings, had his best race weekend all season on the UK, and will undoubtedly be trying to rekindle some of the magic he found at Assen last year, where he took his first MotoGP victory. Pramac Racing Team’s Héctor Barberá heads to the race after suffering tyre issues at Silverstone, whilst Cardion AB Racing’s Karel Abraham should be declared race-fit after missing the UK round with multiple breaks in his fingers. The CRT line up is still headed by Power Electronics Pair Aleix Espargaró and Randy de Puniet, with Bautista’s teammate Michele Pirro, Paul Bird Motorsport’s James Ellison and Speed Master’s Mattia Pasini in tow. NGM Mobile Forward Racing’s Colin Edwards will be hoping to find some of his early season pace, while Came IodaRacing Project’s Danilo Petrucci, and Avintia Blusens’ Yonny Hernández and Iván Silva will be looking to challenge the top CRTs. Moto2™ As the Moto2™ contingent descends on the Iveco TT Assen for this weekend’s Saturday race, it is Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol’s Marc Márquez who leads the championship standings ahead of Pons 40 HP Tuenti’s Pol Espargaró and Interwetten-Paddock’s Tom Lüthi. Márquez has fond memories of the Dutch circuit, as he took only his second ever win in the Moto2™ championship at the track, setting off his charge to second in the championship last year. Espargaró and Lüthi will he hoping for a reversal in fortunes, as the Spaniard crashed out of last year’s race, whilst the Swiss rider finished in eighth. Espargaró will be the man to watch after his dominant display at Silverstone last time out. Having closed the deficit to the top somewhat with two spirited rides in the last few rounds, Speed Master’s Andrea Iannone will be hoping to mix it up at the front once more, like he did in 2010 where he won the race. He will undoubtedly be pursued by Marc VDS Racing Team’s Scott Redding, who arrives at Assen fresh from his podium at his home round at Silverstone. His teammate Mika Kallio will be looking to get the better of the Brit this time out, but will face a stiff challenge from Italtrans Racing Team’s Claudio Corti, and Tech 3 Racing Team’s Bradley Smith, who showed much promise on his Mistral 610 in Silverstone. After a string of difficult results, Came IodaRacing Project’s Simone Corsi is showing promise on board his FTR machine, and will no doubt be hoping to get his first podium of the season, while Espargaró’s teammate Esteve Rabat will look to find some of the form his charging teammate is currently displaying, on the eve of his 100th Grand Prix start. Moto3 Moto3™ prepares once again to do battle at the Iveco TT Assen this Saturday with Blusens Avintia’s Maverick Viñales and Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Sandro Cortese neck and neck at the top of the championship. Both riders provided a thrilling battle last time out at Silverstone to narrow the gap at the top to just two points. And it is Viñales who will head into the Assen round as favourite, not only because of his win in the UK, but also because he took his second-ever world championship victory at the Dutch track last year. One rider looking to spoil the party will be RW Racing GP’s Luis Salom, who is currently third in the championship after a stunning ride at Silverstone, where he split the front-runners with a brave move on Cortese in the final turns. Salom will also hold the track in high regard, as it is the place of his first ever world championship podium last year. Team Italia FMI’s Romano Fenati, who has reappeared on the radar again after a short slump will once again be one to watch, as he looks to continue his charge as top rookie. Estrella Galicia’s Alex Rins, who is also gunning for rookie top honours, suffered a fractured 2nd metacarpus in left hand and a fractured 2nd finger in his right hand in a crash at Silverstone, yet will be racing at Assen. Equal on points with the Spaniard is AirAsia-SIC-Ajo’s Zulfahmi Khairuddin, who is still searching for his first ever podium, while behind him San Carlo Gresini Moto3’s Niccolò Antonelli will aim to get his season going with a finish closer to the top. Bankia Aspar Team’s Alberto Moncayo, who recorded his sole podium at Le Mans this season, will undoubtedly be looking to replicate some of that form at the Dutch track. More, from a press release issued by Ducati: Assen to kick off three races in three weeks for Ducati Team From the giant party that is World Ducati Week at Misano, to the Temple of Speed: Valentino Rossi, Nicky Hayden and the Ducati Team are preparing for a three-week, three-race tour de force, beginning on Saturday at Northern Holland’s TT Circuit Assen. The historic track that is home for the famous Dutch TT has been modified in recent years, though it’s still a fascinating circuit, and the event is capable of attracting huge numbers of motorcyclists and passionate fans of two-wheeled racing. Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden count the track amongst their favourites, and it has played host to wins for both riders: one for the American and seven for the Italian. VALENTINO ROSSI, Ducati Team “Assen is a great track. I like it a lot, and it brings to mind a bunch of nice memories. We’ll try to start off with a good feeling with the track in order to improve our results a bit. For the moment, we can only work on the setup to prepare the bike as we try to return to the level that we had attained prior to Silverstone, which was a very difficult race. We were a bit better at Barcelona and during the dry sessions at Le Mans, so we must at least regain that pace. If it should also happen to rain, we know that we can be more competitive.” NICKY HAYDEN, Ducati Team “Assen has changed a bit over the years, but it’s a track that I like. There are some nice, fast sections, like the last bit, coming back to the stadium. A couple of those corners with the banking are pretty fun. Assen is one of those places where you never know what the weather’s going to be like, so you just have to be prepared for anything on Saturday. If you look at the result of my last race, I can’t say that it was really positive, but we learned a couple of things. One of those is that we need to try to come up with something to be easier on the tyre, so we don’t destroy it as quickly. We’ll work on that in the Netherlands and try to get a good result.” VITTORIANO GUARESCHI, Team Manager “The Dutch TT kicks off a very intense period for the team and the riders, because three races in three weeks, the final of which is at Mugello, means we’ll be very busy. Assen is a track that both Valentino and Nicky like, and where both have won and ride well. We must stay focused and work well in order to find a setup that enables them to have a good performance over race distance. We have gotten nearer to that goal at some tracks, whereas others have proven to be more challenging for us, so we have to be more consistent with our efforts, while working on the other aspects of the development.” More, from a press release issued by Power Electronics Aspar: ‘THE CATHEDRAL’ READY TO PLAY HOST TO ROUND SEVEN POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar riders Espargaró and De Puniet aim to continue form at Assen Built in 1955 and originally measuring over ten kilometres, the historic Assen circuit has undergone a series of facelifts and alterations throughout its almost sixty years of history but the legend remains intact. The Dutch racetrack remains the most revered venue on the MotoGP calendar and it retains its traditional date on the final Saturday in June. This year it marks the start of the second third of the championship as the teams and riders tackle round seven with Jorge Lorenzo in the process of opening out a significant points cushion over the chasing Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa at the top of the standings. The POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar Team head for Holland looking to continue their dominance of the new CRT machines, with Aleix Espargaró having finished as the fastest of the new breed machines in four of the opening six rounds so far. With twenty points already to his name the Spaniard is increasing his feeling for the ART machine and looking forward to making further progress over the summer. Just nine points behind him lies his team-mate Randy De Puniet, who has found his best form in recent weeks after a luckless start to the campaign. Aleix Espargaró: “I am really looking forward to going to Assen, one of my favourite circuits after Catalunya. I can’t wait to get there and start having fun because last year we missed out a lot because of the rain. Hopefully we get good weather this time and are able to enjoy a positive weekend. Our objective is the same as every other Grand Prix, which is to work hard to improve the performance of the ART bike and be the fastest CRT rider again. Assen is a pretty long track with a slow section and a very fast section, with flowing corners, and I always enjoy riding there. I preferred the old circuit but the new one is a lot of fun too.” Randy De Puniet: “I love Assen, which is a pretty technical circuit. Even though it has undergone a lot of modifications over the years and is much shorter than it used to be it is still very interesting. There are no long straights so that should benefit us because we will be closer to the factory prototypes than at other circuits. At Silverstone we found a few things that should help us improve the bike and I am looking forward to trying them out here. I hope the weekend goes well and the weather is kind to us so that we can continue our recent run of good results.” More, from a press release issued by Karel Abraham’s publicist: Karel Abraham back on track at Assen after injury After two weeks of therapy the Czech MotoGP rider Karel Abraham is ready for the next MotoGP race at dutch Assen. Double fingertip fracture should not limit him, but Karel is still limited with the left index finger movements due to the healing wounds. Karel Abraham: “I can´t still move my index finger completely. Partly because of the healing wound on the finger and partly because of the pain in the first finger joint. It´s getting better really fast, so I´m pretty sure that I´ll be able to be back on track on Thursday. I do like TT Assen Circuit and I´ve been successful on it in the past. Last year I made seventh time in qualifying practice but unfortunately didn´t finish the race after being pushed off the track by Aoyama. I must forget it now as same as the beginning of this unlucky season. We still have two thirds of this season ahead to make some good results. Although I can´t catch up the riders in championship standing, this season isn´t lost and we have twelve more opportunities to ride perfect race.” More, from a press release issued by Avintia Blusens MotoGP Team: New objective for Avintia Blusens MotoGP at Assen The Avintia Blusens MotoGP riders are going to confront one of the most mythical rounds on the calendar when they take to the Assen track on Thursday. Yonny is already familiar with the track, and so is Iván on this occasion as he has already ridden here in other classes. It is undoubtedly good news for Silva who will be able to focus on his motorbike without previously having to get familiar with the track. A lot of work has been done lately in the Avintia Blusens quarters to get Yonny and Iván as much prepared as possible so they can take a decisive step ahead and obtain the places of honour in the CRT class. As usual at Assen the race will be on Saturday. The free training practices will start on Thursday, 28th whereas the last free practice will be on Friday, 29th and the qualifying practice on Saturday, 30th. Yonny Hernández: “It’s a very fast and difficult track and the climatology can be crucial. Given the amount of rain we have had both in training practices and races so far this year, I would not be surprised if we had another complicated G.P. Anyway I hope I will make a good start, find the right setting-up and be really competitive when the race time comes. I don’t particularly like this track but I am convinced I can make a good job.” Iván Silva: “This time I don’t have to get familiar with the layout and this is an advantage. I know it is a mythical track and I am really excited to ride there. We have been through a few complicated G.P.’s so far we have changed bikes several times, we have tried different things and we have worked a lot. I hope the rain will stay away as much as possible so I can adapt fast and focus on the setting-up and get prepared for the race.” More, from a press release issued by Honda: 2012 FIM ROAD RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIX ROUND07 28/29/30 JULY, ASSEN, THE NETHERLANDS. PREVIEW MOTOGP, MOTO2 AND MOTO3 HISTORIC DUTCH TT WELCOMES HONDA RIDERS 26.6.12 – The 2012 MotoGP World Championship enters its most intense phase with a trio of consecutive races beginning with this weekend’s Dutch TT on the historic Circuit van Drenthe in the north of the Netherlands. The Repsol Honda team arrives in Assen second and third in the championship after the recent British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the sixth of 18 championship races. Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC213V) finished the first third of the season second in the championship in front of team-mate Dani Pedrosa. Both have been consistent, with five podium finishes in six races. Stoner also has a pair of wins and will be looking for his third this weekend. The reigning world champion will be making his final appearance in Assen having earlier this year declared his intention to retire at season’s end. Stoner has had success in Assen, with podium finishes the past five years, including a win in 2008 and a runner-up finish last year. Last year’s race was plagued by cold tyre high-sides, all three Repsol Honda riders were victims- and Stoner’s injuries continue to affect him. As always, tyres, both front and rear, will play an important role in this weekend’s race. The front tyre now mandated for use has a softer construction than its predecessor, around which the Repsol Honda RC213V was developed. Stoner liked the previous tyres for their stiffness, which gave him confidence in the all important corner entry and mid-corner areas. The team has worked hard to adapt the motorcycle to the tyre and are hopeful that the fix will work in Assen. Assen has a number of long corners with sustained lean angles, which will also require set-up time to find the best solution. Pedrosa is looking forward to returning to Assen, having missed last year’s race through injury. On his way to the premier MotoGP class, he won at Assen on Hondas in both the 125cc and 250cc classes. Pedrosa’s first win from pole came aboard an Honda RS125 in 2002. Since joining the MotoGP class, Pedrosa has three podiums, two seconds and a third. Last year he missed the race after breaking his collarbone in a racing incident in Le Mans, France. Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V), like Pedrosa, did well in the smaller classes while rising through the ranks. Following a pair of podiums, first on a 125 in 2006 and again on a 250 in 2007, he broke through with his first win at the track in 2008. Bautista is coming off a fourth place finish in Silverstone, the best of the his MotoGP career having earlier earned his first MotoGP pole position. The Spaniard achieved the pole by wisely making the best use of dry track time, something he will likely have to do in the often rainy Dutch north. Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP RC213V) had a difficult 2011 Moto2 race in Assen. Bradl was in a six-rider pack battling for fifth when he fell in the final hairpin. The German MotoGP rookie is not a fan of Assen, especially the first half of the track. Having been denied valuable dry track set-up time by the inclement weather at most races this season, Bradl is hopeful that the weather will cooperate so that he and his team can spend the maximum amount of time getting his LCR Honda MotoGP RC213V ready for Saturday’s seventh round of the MotoGP World Championship. This will also be Michel Pirro’s (San Carlo Honda Gresini FTR-Honda) first visit to Assen as a MotoGP rider. Pirro has been developing the Honda CBR1000R-powered CRT machine since the start of the season, using the race track as his development grounds. The work is paying off. The Italian equaled his best qualifying effort in the British Grand Prix and registered his best MotoGP finish. He currently sits third in the championship among CRT riders; the two riders ahead of him are racing factory level machinery. The Moto2 World Championship is the closest of the three championships after six rounds. Only six points separate the top three riders pending the outcome of the appeal by Pol Espargaro’s Pons 40 HP Tuenti Kalex team to the FIM decision not to penalise Marc Marquez (Team Catalunya/Caixa Repsol-Suter) following their clash in the Catalunya Grand Prix. A decision on the appeal could be months away. In the meantime Marquez has 102 points to 96 for Espargaro and Thomas Luthi (Interwetten-Paddock Suter) as they head for Assen. Marquez has also been the most consistent, with two wins, a second, two thirds, and a DNF. He has also been the most successful in Assen, having won last year in Moto2 and also in his 2010 125cc World Championship-winning season. Espargaro finished third in the 2010 125cc race won by Marquez, but did not finish last year’s race. The Spaniard is coming off his second victory of the season in the British Grand Prix, a race in which Marquez was a close third. Had he not fallen in the Catalunya clash with Marquez, Espargaro would almost certainly be leading the championship. Luthi was the leader of the championship when he arrived at Silverstone; he left the British circuit tied for second with Espargaro. Luthi is the only rider in the top three to score points in the first six races. Though he has a win in Le Mans, a second and two thirds, he also has a fifth, in Qatar, and eighth in Silverstone, which cost him his points lead. The top Swiss rider in the championship has not been on the Moto2 podium, but he was second while coming up through the ranks in the 125cc class. Maverick Vinales (Blusens Avintia FTR Honda) returns to Assen, where he won his second 125cc race of 2011, as the Moto3 championship leader. Vinales has three wins in the past three races, the most recent of which was a thrilling victory in the British Grand Prix. He has fond memories of Assen, he circuit he likes, and hopes to continue his recent string of success. Team Italia FMI FTR-Honda’s Romano Fenati continues his rookie season in the World Championships with his first visit to Assen. Fenati has proven himself adept at learning new circuits, finishing second in his first race and winning his second. There were missteps in the next two races, after which Fenati began the process of returning to the podium. Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0.0 Suter-Honda), like Fenati, started strongly before slipping. Following his best finish of the season, a third in the French Grand Prix in Le Mans, Rins has not scored a point. Included in that string is a crash on the second lap in Silverstone where he broke bones in both hands. Still, the young Spaniard is hopeful of riding in Assen and turning his season around. The ‘Cathedral of Racing’ holds the distinction of being the only venue to host a round of the World Championships ever year since the series inception in 1949. Uniquely held on a Saturday in late June, the Dutch TT takes place on the Circuit van Drenthe, a track that has undergone a number of changes over the past 60-plus years, while still retaining the flavor of the original layout, which surrounded a working farm well into the 80s. The two signature corners remain. The first is the left hand Strubben hairpin that sends riders down the Veenslang back straight. The second is the finishing sequence, a right-left-right chicane within sight of the finish line. An untold number of races have been both won and lost in the final chicane, situated in front of the largest grandstands on the circuit. The most recent dramatic change to the venue came in 2006 when the length was reduced from over 6000m to 4542m. The changes were not met with praise by the riders, who had always like Assen for its fast, flowing corners. The 2010 race brought more changes, with Ruskenhoek kink on the back straight being re-shaped and shortened by 13 metres, a change that had a dramatic effect on lap times. Last year’s MotoGP race in Assen was the third fastest of the year. The trend of inclement weather affecting races will certainly be in evidence this weekend. Showers are certain to fall at some point, but the track drains well and has an abundance of run-off. The surface of the layout irregular, with varying degrees of adhesion, having undergone so many changes. Honda’s history of senior class success in Assen began in 1966 when Rhodesian Jim Redman won Honda’s second 500cc grand prix aboard an RC181 four-stroke. The following year Mike “The Bike” Hailwood won the race, also on an RC181 on the old 7704m layout. Randy Mamola was the first Honda rider of the two-stroke era to win in Assen. The four-time 500cc runner-up won in 1984 and ’85 on the shorter 6134m layout. Other Honda riders to have won in Assen include premier class world champions Mick Doohan, Wayne Gardner, Alex Criville, Valentino Rossi, and Nicky Hayden. Tady Okada, Sete Gibernau, and Alex Barros also rode Hondas to victory in Holland. Honda’s most dominant period came from 1984 through 2006 when Honda riders won 15 of the premier class races. Nicky Hayden posted Honda’s most recent win in 2006 on the 4555 track. Hayden would go on to win the 2006 MotoGP World Championship. MotoGP Rider Quotes: Repsol Honda rider Casey Stoner says: “We’ve had some great results in Assen, but also some pretty bad ones, so hopefully we can go there this weekend, be competitive and avoid any injury like last year when I hurt my neck, which followed us for the season and still causes me problems now. You spend a lot of the time on the edge of the tyre in Assen and unfortunately on our bike at the moment this is a weak point, so we will need to work on Thursday and Friday to improve before we can consider ourselves competitive there. I really hope the weather is good for us, as we need as much track time as possible to work on various issues on the bike. With three races back to back, it’s important to get some good results at Assen, Sachsenring and Mugello, so we need to remain focused.” Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa says: “I wasn’t there last year due to the injury, but it’s a circuit we know well. Assen has changeable weather so I hope we can have some dry sessions to continue setting up the bike and making it more rideable. We need some more experience with the new front tyre and hopefully we can make another step forward this week. In Assen is important to have a good feeling with the tyres because there are several fast corners. I am really looking forward to this race and aiming to ride at my best.” San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Alvaro Bautista says: “Silverstone was definitely a very positive weekend for us. After the changes we made in Barcelona my feeling with the bike improved a lot and at Silverstone we were able to confirm it. I felt comfortable and safe on the bike from the start and I was able to have fun, which showed through with the pole position on Saturday, my first in MotoGP, and in the fact I ran with the front group throughout the race on Sunday. It was an important race for me and I was able to learn a lot from running with them. It was a very significant fourth place because it is my best result in MotoGP and it was a nice reward for the team. I was able to celebrate a little after Silverstone with my friends, but I have been training hard because we have three back-to-back races coming up and fitness will be crucial. At Assen I will try to confirm my good form from Silverstone, run with the front pack again and continue making progress. The next objective is obviously the podium, but we can’t become obsessed with chasing it because I am sure that if we continue working as we are then sooner or later it will come. Assen is a legendary track with a mixture of fast and slow corners and a lot of fast direction changes. Obviously the weather always plays an important role with the cold temperatures and constant threat of rain. The old circuit was definitely more interesting and I really liked it but the new layout has some nice corners too. The atmosphere is always incredible at Assen and it’s just a big motorcycling festival.” San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Michele Pirro says: “At Silverstone we were able to confirm that we are on the right path. We made significant progress at the tests in Barcelona and Aragon and in England we were able to have a good race and run with the best of the CRTs. The work that the guys in the team are doing is so important and I think that if we can take another step than we can make a strong challenge to be the top CRT. We have some updates on the way that I think will help us move forward and I am very optimistic about the future. Over the week off I made a quick trip home to Puglia to catch up with friends and family and now I am ready for Assen. The circuit is one of my favourites and I am sure we can have another strong race. Obviously the question mark will be over the weather because you never know what you will get in Holland and it can change very quickly.” LCR Honda MotoGP rider Stefan Bradl says: “Hopefully we can have some better weather condition and improve our bike in Assen. The Assen race track is not one of my favourite race tracks, especially the first part is not really good for me, but I think it’s completely different with a MotoGP bike. But I’m looking forward to a nice and sunny weekend in Assen.” Moto2 Rider Quotes: Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol Suter rider Marc Marquez says: “Assen is a fast circuit which is similar to Silverstone in certain respects, but I think that it is a better track for me. We will be focusing on finding a good setting, because at the British GP we suffered a bit with that. We will be giving 100% and keeping calm over the weekend, as we may perhaps be facing unstable weather conditions again. Last year I felt very comfortable at the track; we had a wet race and I took the win. This year we have a completely different bike and will have to work hard.” Pons 40 HP Tuenti Kalex rider Pol Espargaro says: “Last year for me in Assen was a disaster, as the first four or five races. I was not 100% with the motorbike. The feeling was not so good. But it was last year. So we have to be confident. We have an incredible motorbike now with an incredible setting. Kalex is working so hard with us and I think we will be quite good to be in front there.” Interwetten-Paddock Suter rider Thomas Luthi says: “In England I had a high-side on the first lap and lost a lot of time. After that the leading group was gone. But as Márquez got beaten the points are still looking good. Of course we try to stay in the top three of the championship. My goal for Assen is to be up front already in the first session Thursday. My team got bigger this year, one more mechanic, so my crew chief Alfred Willeke can work more relaxed.” Moto3 Rider Quotes: Blusens Avintia FTR Honda rider Maverick Vinales says: “Assen is a circuit that suits my riding style very well, in addition to bringing back some fond memories. I won for the second time in the World Championship there, so I am excited about going back to Assen. The fast section is where I go best, but we will work on the engine and the chassis in order to go all-out in every part.” Team Italia FMI FTR Honda rider Romano Fenati says: “Silverstone was fun, and I hope people at home had fun too. I got off a good start and never lost contact with the front. This goes to show how with good teamwork we can always be competitive. Next race is Assen, a sacred temple for us riders. I can’t wait to get there and race on such a historic track.” Estrella Galicia 0.0 Suter-Honda rider Alex Rins says: “Going to the Netherlands really excites me, because Assen is a classic circuit at which everyone wants to ride. I’ve been recovering over the past few days and will be motivated, although the crash at Silverstone means that I won’t be at 100%. It’s going to be a new track for me, which means a lot of work together with my team to earn a good result, leaving behind the bad luck of recent races. We have three consecutive race weekends coming up, and we are very motivated.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing: SEVENTH ROUND OF THE 2012 SEASON : TT ASSEN GRAND PRIX Just days after the difficult race in the United Kingdom, the Pramac Ducati Team continues its adventure this week with a trip across the North Sea to Holland, in preparation for the seventh round of the 2012 MotoGP World Championship. The White and Green Team arrived at Assen to setup for the TT Assen Grand Prix, which, as tradition dictates, is always held on the last Saturday in June and it is the first GP in a row of three races. Héctor Barberá heads to Holland in high spirits. The Pramac Team’s sole rider has fond memories of the circuit, having scored the first podium of his career there and, after a disappointing race at Silverstone, he is ready to kick off his new challenge. The Assen circuit, sometimes referred to as the ‘cathedral’ by race fans due to its status and historical significance in racing, is the only circuit to have been part of the Grand Prix World Championship calendar since its inception. The circuit has undergone many changes over that time. Initially runs on public roads it has evolved into one of the most physically demanding and technical tracks in Grand Prix with high-speed chicanes and varied camber changes. Hèctor Barberà Pramac Racing Team Rider “The good thing about having races so close together is that you don’t lose your rhythm and if things don’t go your way in one race you quickly have the opportunity to make things right. That is the case for us because Sunday at Silverstone was a bit of a disaster. Now we can keep working hard and I am sure that at Assen, one of my favourite circuits, I can be fast with my Ducati. I had my first podium here and I always like it. Assen has some fast corners like Silverstone and I can adapt well. We had a good feeling at Silverstone during the practices, so hopefully we can recreate that this weekend.” Francesco Guidotti Pramac Racing Team Manager – “The TT Assen Grand Prix will be a difficult campaign, a treacherous track due to the tricky and unpredictable weather conditions. We are indeed ready to fight head-strongly with the other riders in order to achieve a brilliant result.”