Date : 01/05/2012
Repsol Honda Team targeting another strong result in Portugal
This week the MotoGP family head to Estoril for the last time after visiting the circuit since 2000. The Grand Prix of Portugal is the third race of the season and the Repsol Honda Team arrives there only four days after celebrating the victory of Casey Stoner and the third position finish of Dani Pedrosa in Jerez.
Casey and Dani, second and third respectively in the MotoGP World Championship standings, will be aiming for another strong result at the Portuguese track, always a challenge for its combination of long corners and heavy braking and an unpredictable weather, even more this year with the powerful 1000cc machines.
Stoner, who took his first ever GP victory at Jerez last week, will try to do the same now in Estoril, the only track on the calendar where victory eludes him in the premier class.
Dani was the last winner here having won in 2011 and holds the circuit record from 2009 with a lap time of 1'36.937. He has achieved 4 podiums out of 6 races in MotoGP class in Portugal, while Casey won in 250cc (2005) and has 3 podiums finishes in MotoGP.
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| DANI PEDROSA –World Championship Position: 3rd with 36 points |
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| "I'm happy with our performance in the first two races, the results were good, but still not perfect. So, I will try to do the extra push in Estoril, where we achieved the first victory of the season last year after a very good weekend. It will be important to set up the bike well in a tricky circuit like this, with long corners and hard braking. It is the first time we go there with the 1000cc RC213V and a good position on the grid is always crucial in Estoril. We have to keep working hard like we did in Qatar and Jerez. Hopefully we can have good weather and the grandstands are full of Spanish fans as we had in Jerez on Sunday, especially being the last season we race in Estoril". |
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| Rider Statistics - Dani Pedrosa |
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Age
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26
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Racing number
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26
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Race machine
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Honda RC213V
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Date of birth
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September 29, 1985
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Birthplace
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Sabadell - Spain |
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Height
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1.60m
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Weight
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51kg
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Hobbies
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Cycling, Music
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Grand Prix debut
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2001, 125cc Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka
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First GP win
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2002, 125cc Dutch Grand Prix, Assen
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GP wins
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38: 8 x 125cc, 15 x 250cc, 15 x MotoGP
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GP podiums
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98: 17 x 125cc, 24 x 250cc, 57 x MotoGP
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GP pole positions
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37: 9 x 125cc, 9 x 250cc, 19 x MotoGP
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World Championships
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3: 1 x 125cc (2003); 2 x 250cc (2004, 2005)
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Previous results at Jerez
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2011 2nd (MotoGP), 2010 2nd (MotoGP), 2009 2nd (MotoGP), 2008 1st (MotoGP), 2007 2nd (MotoGP), 2006 2nd (MotoGP), 2005 1st (250cc.), 2004 DNF (250cc.), 2003 4th (125cc), 2002 4th (125cc), 2001 10th (125cc)
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| Rider Statistics - Casey Stoner |
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Age
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26 |
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Racing number
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1
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Race machine
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Honda RC213V
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Date of birth
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October 16th, 1985 |
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Birthplace
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Southport, Australia |
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Height
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171cm |
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Weight
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58kg
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Hobbies
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Fishing |
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Grand Prix debut
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2001, 125cc British Grand Prix, Donington Park |
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First GP win
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2003, 125cc Valencia Grand Prix, Valencia |
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GP wins
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40: 2 x 125cc, 5 x 250cc, 33 x MotoGP |
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GP podiums
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80: 10 x 125cc, 10 x 250cc, 60 x MotoGP |
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GP pole positions
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38: 2 x 125cc, 2 x 250cc, 34 x MotoGP |
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World Championships
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2: MotoGP (2011, 2007) |
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Previous results at Jerez
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2011 DNF (MotoG), 2010 5th (MotoGP), 2009 3rd (MotoGP), 2008 11th (MotoGP), 2007 5th (MotoGP), 2006 6th (MotoGP), 2005 DNF (250cc), 2004 5th (125cc.), 2003 6th (125cc), 2002 6th (250cc)
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| Circuit information |
| First race |
2000 |
| GPs held |
12 |
| Laps |
28 |
| Race distance |
117.096km / 72.772miles |
| Track length |
4.182km / 2.599miles |
| Track width |
14m |
| Longest straight |
0.986km / 0.613miles |
| Corners |
13 (4 left, 9 right) |
| Pole position |
Left |
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| Circuit records |
| Pole position |
1m35.715m (157.291Km/h) Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha, 2008) |
| Race lap |
1m36.937m (155.309Km/h) Dani Pedrosa (Honda, 2009) |
| Race time |
45m35.522s (154.100Km/h) Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha, 2009) |
| MotoGP Wins |
5 (Valentino Rossi 2001-04, 2007) |
| 2011 Winner |
Dani Pedrosa (Honda) |
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