The Repsol Honda Team will be without the services of Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) this weekend after the American former World Champion injured his foot riding for fun in the Los Angeles X Games last weekend. On a more encouraging note, Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) has recovered from injuries sustained at the German Grand Prix. This is an unwelcome hiccup for the squad as Hayden was spearheading development of the latest pneumatic-valve RCV engine and progress was encouraging. Dani is scheduled to test the new power-plant here at Brno on Monday after the Grand Prix. Hayden has damaged his right heel. The Kentucky Kid sustained the injury landing off a jump while riding a Supermoto specification Honda CR450. He didn’t crash but he did enough damage to his foot to make riding this weekend a step too far too soon. Dani, however, has emerged refreshed from the summer break having enjoyed complete rest and a then a gentle reintroduction to training. This recent regime has revitalised the Spanish ace and Brno offers him a good chance to gradually lever himself back into the title hunt. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) heads the points table after twelve of 18 rounds. The Italian has amassed 212, second-placed Casey Stoner (Ducati) has 187 and Dani lies third with 171 after missing one of this season’s American rounds at Laguna Seca in July. With seven rounds to go the 41-point gap between Rossi and Dani is substantial, but greater points lead than this have been squandered as riders have either succumbed to pressure, or watched helplessly as luck deserted them in the final, crucial races. Dani will be chasing hard and, with the best efforts of his fellow Honda riders sure to relieve both Stoner and Rossi of points at races to come, his 2008 World Championship chase is by no means as long a shot as his rivals might like to imagine. Consistency from now until the final round is key and it is no surprise that neither Rossi nor Stoner has failed to finish a race so far. The only other rider to boast this record is this season is Shinya Nakano (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V). Dani has dropped points at two rounds and it is by no means inconceivable that the same might yet happen to Rossi and Stoner. Andrea Dovizioso (JiR Scot Honda RC212V) has much to be proud of in his rookie season. He lies fifth overall ahead of such seasoned campaigners as Colin Edwards (Yamaha), Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) and even Nicky Hayden. It has been one of the more remarkable 2008 debuts. Following a disappointing mid-season run of results Frenchman Randy De Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) has shown his true mettle in the last two races and aims to continue in the same vein at Brno, where he won the 250cc Grand Prix in 2003. Randy finished eighth in Germany before racing to his best result of the season at the US GP, a superb sixth place, scored in extremely difficult circumstances, has reinforced his confidence for the second half of the season. Alex De Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) spent the summer break recovering from injuries sustained at Laguna Seca. The San Marinese’s fractured thumb and badly bruised back have now healed giving him every chance of repeating the fourth place successes recorded in Italy and Germany earlier this season. His team-mate Nakano has now been entrusted with the satellite team development RC212V from this race on and the evergreen Nakano’s considerable skills will be vital in ensuring the factory gets dependable feedback on the undoubted potential of this machine. HRC and Gresini Honda have strong links where machine development is concerned and Nakano and his technicians will concentrate on chassis work for the 2009 RC212V. Brno is a track where no rider can afford to make a mistake at this stage of the season. This imposing circuit lies 200km south-east of Prague and the area is steeped in the rich history of Grand Prix racing. Races were run on a fearsome closed roads course before the dedicated circuit was built in 1987. The 5.403km track is a spectacular environment for motorcycle racing and its plunging turns and a power-sapping climb demand a maximum from riders and machines. The track drops 74m from its highest to its lowest point and this gradient is felt chiefly by way of downhill corner entries that make huge demands on the front tyre. Some of these tricky entries are compounded by negative camber that further increases the need for dependable front-end grip. And from turn four to turn 11 it’s all downhill. There are fast chicanes requiring a chassis set up for rapid changes of direction. Precise steering is a must here even though the track is exceptionally wide at 15m. Without accurate turn-in at the high, sustained speeds achieved here, not even this super-wide circuit can accommodate wayward exits resulting from inaccurate turn-in. The track has been fully resurfaced for 2008, and not just in sections or even patches. The entire circuit now represents an unknown quantity for all riders and teams and instant appraisal of the tyre requirements this weekend will be paramount. The Czechs love their motorcycle racing and tens of thousands flock to Brno where the viewing facilities are excellent. The event won’t quite attract the crowds of 250,000 who used to watch in the 1970s, but Brno, like the best tracks, always has a charged atmosphere. Dani said: “The hand still hurts but the wrist has good mobility and the fingers are no longer swollen. The foot is still taped, just to avoid rough movements. I started training last week, mostly on my bicycle. I hope I can have a good race at Brno to start the second part of the Championship in the best possible way. Brno is a good circuit, with some interesting uphill and downhill sections, very much in the style of the classic circuits. The atmosphere is always great, with a big and enthusiastic crowd on race day. Getting the set-up right for this track is always a delicate operation, aiming to get the best compromise between cornering ability and braking stability.” Nicky said: “My doctor and other specialists say that if I rode this week I might have to fight the injury for the rest of the year. As hard a decision as it is, and as bad as I feel about it, I think I’m better off staying home doing rehab and physio, then come back fit at Misano and try to finish the season strong. There’s been a lot of guys this year trying to ride less than a hundred per cent and actually making their problems worse. I certainly feel bad about it for my team and I apologise. I had the permission of HRC to do the Supermoto thing. I just wanted to do some riding during the break, have some fun and I thought that maybe it’d give me a little spark for the rest of the season, but it backfired on me.” Dovi said: “This year on the Brno circuit we will have another unknown factor as the Tarmac on the circuit has been re-laid so we will have to see how it affects the degradation of our tyres. It is a technical circuit with a wide variety of curves and turns: the circuit is challenging to go fast on but it’s enjoyable. Over the past two years, with the 250cc machine, I’ve got two second places but with the MotoGP bike it is difficult to make a prediction. I enjoy the track, but it is not one of my favourites.” Nakano said: “My crew and myself have been given a great challenge this weekend, taking a completely new bike to the track. At the start of the season you have all the time you need to set a bike up and adapt it to your riding style whereas now we’ll have to do it against the clock. From the first free practice we’ll have to work flat-out and hope the weather is on our side because we’ll need all four sessions to fully understand the bike. In any case, the chance to ride it at Brno makes me optimistic. On paper the new bike is more powerful than the one we’ve been using so far, which is an important factor at this track.” Alex de Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) said: “Brno is a track I like a lot because it’s so varied, with some fast and winding sections. I stayed at home over the break, training hard to get over the various problems I picked up in the race at Laguna Seca, paying particular attention to the fractured left thumb and sore back. I don’t think they’ll cause me any problems at Brno and I’ll be 100% fit. I’m not worried about the new surface because I’m sure Bridgestone will have worked hard to find the right solution for the tyres.” Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) said: “Brno is one of my favourites and in 2003 I won the 250 race. After the race in Laguna I feel very confident for the rest of the season. I think we found the right set-up to develop the bike on each racetrack. The good place we gained in the US gave us more incentives to be more competitive. in the last weeks I enojoyed my vacation but I also trained a lot to be physically fit for the heat at Brno and at Misano. After the race we will also have two days of testing.” 250cc Yuki Takahashi (JiR Scot Honda RS250RW) currently lies ninth overall in a World Championship headed by Aprilia rider Marco Simoncelli. Ratthapark Wilairot (Thai Honda PTT SAG RS250RW), Honda’s only other competitor in the class sits 14th. Takahashi said: “At the Brno circuit we have done well in testing, but we’ve not got the race results we’ve wanted. This year I want a good race to earn points to put me back up in the Championship standings. I enjoy the track. It’s technical, with many turns, both uphill and downhill. Overtaking isn’t a problem as it’s a wide circuit. We may find that the new track surface may affect the level of grip, but we are determined to put in a good performance.” Wilairot said: “I know Brno is a technical and challenging track, but this weekend I want to bounce back after a disappointing German GP where I didn’t have a good race. Having a few weeks rest back home was great, I spent some time with my relatives, did some media commitments in my country and attended class at my university. Now I’m back to full fitness and eager to ride my Honda RSW again for the second part of the season, I’ll do my best!” 125cc Honda’s sole official representative in the smallest class, Louis Rossi (FFM Racing Honda RS125R), is a talented rookie who has found riding at the highest level a challenge. But he has worked hard at his technique and is now finding more consistent speed both in qualifying and racing. Rossi said: “I’ve learned so much from my team so far this year about what it takes to be competitive in a World Championship. Sometimes it has not been easy but my team has always encouraged me to take the steps I need to improve at every race. I needed this rest and now I’m ready to get back on the learning curve and improve some more.”