Despite a runaway victory by over thirteen seconds in last year´s German race, Dani Pedrosa is not expecting a routine win in 2008.
The leader of the MotoGP World Championship and the winner of last year´s race at the famed Sachsenring circuit, Dani Pedrosa is one of the heavy favourites for victory at the Alice Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland this weekend. The Repsol Honda rider is not taking a win for granted, however, fully aware that his rivals also have a strong history at the German track.
`We are working very hard at the moment, trying to improve our performance. We will do our best to repeat my 2007 win but we know it won´t be easy,´ says Pedrosa, currently four points clear of Valentino Rossi at the head of the overall classification.
`Sachsenring is quite a slow track, most of the corners aren´t so fast. My favourite section is the final, faster part: the fast, downhill right-hander near the end of the lap and then the uphill run into the final corner. There is always a good atmosphere at this race with a lot of fans and overflowing grandstands. The track was resurfaced for last year´s race which made it a lot better because before it was very bumpy.´
Michelin have identified the stress placed on the left of the rear tyre as their main obstacle at the track, and their focus on harder compounds is one shared by their Spanish star.
`Set-up is always difficult at Sachsenring because it´s a long race, so you need a harder-than-normal compound on the left side of the tyres,´ he notes. `You use quite a static riding style here, riding more gently and making fewer movements than usual on the bike.´
Pedrosa will once again be using the standard spring-valve version of the RC212V engine, having used the motor to take podium finishes at all but one race thus far in 2008. Team-mate Nicky Hayden is using the pneumatic valve engine that Pedrosa has only briefly tested in preseason and post-race runs.
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