Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso renew HRC contracts

HRC is delighted to confirm that Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso have re-signed for the factory Honda MotoGP team.

After the basic agreement announced by Honda Racing Corporation at Brno last month, the details of the contracts have duly been finalised and both riders have signed the agreements at Misano during the Gran Premio Cinzano di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini weekend.

Pedrosa has agreed a one-year extension to his contract which will see the 23-year-old Spaniard riding for the factory Honda squad for a fifth consecutive season. Dovizioso has signed a deal with HRC for 2010 with options to extend for 2011. With this young and talented pairing, HRC is convinced it has the rider line-up needed to recapture the MotoGP World Championship title.

Tetsuo Suzuki, HRC President

“We are very pleased that both Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso have re-signed for the factory Honda team and we have total confidence that these two riders possess the talent to help us fight for the MotoGP World Championship. They both have long and successful careers with Honda in Grand Prix racing and we are happy this partnership will continue. Although we have struggled this season, we will continue the challenge until the very last Grand Prix. Since this year is the 50th anniversary of the start of Honda’s participation in the World Championships, we must remind ourselves once again that Honda has been striving to compete at the top level in the world since the day of its founding. As HRC we will, of course, reinforce the development of our machine, and together with every team member, we will continue to fight with Honda’s challenging spirit in our hearts.”

Dani Pedrosa

This new agreement with HRC is great news for me and I’m very pleased to be staying with the team that I’ve ridden for since 2006. We have now established an effective way of working and I’m confident that we can become even more competitive in the future. The target has always been to win the World Championship and that of course stays the same. We have proved before that we can be the fastest and beat the best in the world, and I still believe we can get to a level where we are challenging for that at every race. That is what the whole team must work towards. HRC has a very impressive racing heritage and I still have confidence that they can produce a bike that can win the World Championship.

Andrea Dovizioso

I’m very happy to be continuing with HRC in the factory Honda team. The experience of being involved with such a prestigious team has been very important for me and, as soon as we began discussing the future, my target was to continue with Honda. My first year as a factory rider has taught me a lot. I’m confident that with the direction we’ve agreed for machine development we can reach a level where we are fighting for victory every Sunday. Honda is a company that has achieved huge racing success and there are a lot of very talented and passionate people behind this effort. I’m sure we have the potential to fight for the world title.

Dani Pedrosa describes tough Misano race

Dani Pedrosa interview after race in Misano
Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa gave it all he could at round 13 but he could not match the pace of his Fiat Yamaha rivals.

On the day he officially renewed with HRC to continue in the factory Honda team in 2010, Dani Pedrosa gave it his best shot at the Gran Premio Cinzano di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini, but could only manage third place at Misano.

The former 250cc and 125cc World Champion made one of his signature superb starts and led the race in the early laps, but was eventually hunted down by title chasers Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo, who appeared to have an advantage in terms of lap times on their Yamaha M1 machines.

Explaining what had occurred Pedrosa stated, “I gave it my maximum in the race. I tried to do everything I could and I wanted to stay with them (Rossi and Lorenzo) at the beginning, but in the middle of the race I started to go slower and they were just faster. They were braking better and cornering better, so I couldn’t keep up with them.”

At the end of the race the Barcelona rider had to be brought back to the pits by fellow Catalan Toni Elías after his machine cut out on the warm down lap. Pedrosa commented, “From the beginning I had some misfiring on a couple of corners and in the end I was very lucky because my bike stopped on the ‘in-lap’ and it was very strange. I don’t know if it was lack of fuel or something else, but I think I was lucky to finish the race and get third! Anyway, thanks to my team and the people around me.”

Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo ready to hunt down Valentino Rossi

Pedrosa hoping to improve race pace
Spanish pair Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo will both try to prevent another Valentino Rossi victory at Misano on Sunday.

Having qualified on the front row for the fourth GP in succession Dani Pedrosa will try to spoil Valentino Rossi’s party at Misano on Sunday as he goes in search of his second victory of 2009.

Pedrosa looked to have snatched pole position from the illustrious Italian at the end of Saturday’s Gran Premio Cinzano di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini qualifying session, but the Italian immediately grabbed it back with a late lap which was just over two-tenths of a second quicker than that of the Repsol Honda rider.

Reflecting on the session Pedrosa commented, “It’s great to get a front row start here and we weren’t far away from pole position which is a good result from this afternoon because our rivals are very strong again here. During the session we were working on race set-up and we still have a little way to go to improve my race pace and consistency compared to the others. In qualifying I was able to up my speed towards the end and I was pushing really hard because it’s very important to get on the front row here and give yourself the best chance of a clean getaway.”

“It’s sure to be an exciting race tomorrow and I hope we can find that little bit extra so we can challenge for the win again.”

Meanwhile, continuing his incredible run of starting on the front row at every round so far this year, this time in third place, Lorenzo added his perspective, stating, “Unfortunately I wasn't fast enough with the soft tyre right at the end, but we are still on the front row once again and this is the most important thing. My race pace is very good and I did some consistent runs, even though we still have some areas that we need to improve a bit because our setting isn’t perfect yet.”

"I think the race tomorrow is going to be quite painful in this heat and the physical condition is going to be very important! It will be a long race but we are in good shape and I am looking forward to the challenge".

Dani Pedrosa Biography

Full Name: Dani Pedrosa
Height: 158cm
Weight: 43kg
Date of Birth: 29th September 1985
Place of Birth: Castellar del Valles, Barcelona, Spain
First Race: 1996
Grand Prix Debut: 2001

Dani Pedrosa was born in Castellar del Valles, a small village near Sabadell in the province of Barcelona, Spain, although he now lives in London. He is the youngest world champion in the 125cc and 250cc Grands Prix classes.

At the age of four, Pedrosa got his first motocycle, an Italjet 50. He got his first racing bike, a replica of a Kawasaki, at the age of six but it wasn't until he was eleven before he experienced real racing. Pedrosa entered the Spanish Minibike Championship in 1996, finishing the season in second place. In 1997 he entered the Championship again and finished third. He won the Spanish Minibike Championship in 1998.

Pedrosa briefly toyed with mountain bike racing due to a lack of funding, when a friend learned of the Movistar Activa Cup in 1999. Pedrosa entered and, in his first race on a geared bike and on a circuit, finished the race in eighth place. He was selected as one of three riders for Alberto Puig's Team.

In 2000 Pedrosa took part in the 125cc Spanish Championship with the Movistar Junior Team. He managed four finishes (from six races), took four pole positions and finished in fourth place overall.

In 2001, Pedrosa was promoted into the 125cc World Championship. He managed to take two podiums for third places (in Valencia and Motegi). Despite his lack of experience, he battled at the front. He finished in eighth place overall in the Championship.

Pedrosa finished third in the 125cc Championship in 2002.

The following year, in 2003, Pedrosa clinched the title in Malaysia with two GPs remaining. He took a total of five victories and six podium finishes. Unfortunately, just one week after his victory he had a bad accident during the practice session for the Australian GP. The bad accident left Pedrosa with both his ankles broken.

Pedrosa moved into the 250cc class in 2004. In his rookie season he became the 250cc World Champion in Australia, and the youngest racer in history, at the age of 19, to win the title. He only finished off the podium three times all season, twice in fourth place and a crash at Jerez.

Despite struggling during some wet races and several crashes, Pedrosa was able to retain his title in 2005. He won the Championship with two rounds remaining.

Career Highlights
2008: 3rd place - MotoGP World Championship
2007: 2nd place - MotoGP World Championship
2006: 5th place - MotoGP World Championship
2005: 1st place - 250cc Grand Prix World Championship
2004: 1st place - 250cc Grand Prix World Championship
2003: 1st place - 125cc Grand Prix World Championship
2002: 3rd place - 125cc Grand Prix World Championship
2001: 8th place - 125cc Grand Prix World Championship
2000: 4th place - 125cc Grand Prix Spanish Championship
1999: 8th place - MoviStar Activa Joven Honda Cup
1998: 1st place - Spanish Pocket Bike Championship
1997: 3rd place - Spanish Pocket Bike Championship
1996: 2nd place - Spanish Pocket Bike Championship

Having won three titles in a row (125, 250 and then 250cc) Pedrosa remained with Honda and moved into MotoGP for 2006. He started the season strongly, taking second place in his first race and his first win at Shanghai. A low came from Pedrosa when, with an outside chance of the title, he crashed into his team mate, Nicky Hayden, at Estoril. Hayden had been leading the Championship and the crash meant that he was overtaken by Rossi, on the Yamaha, with one round remaining. Under intense scrutiny, Pedrosa vowed to help Hayden win the Championship. As it transpired Rossi crashed during the final race and Hayden was able to comfortably take the title, relieving the pressure on the Spaniard.

For 2007 Pedrosa was again teamed with Nicky Hayden in the Repsol Honda garage on the new capacity 800cc MotoGP machines. On the smaller machines Pedrosa was deemed one of the favourites before the start of the season but, in truth, the Honda never really delivered. The Spaniard was able to snatch second position from Rossi at the final round by taking the win but, along with everyone else, he played second fiddle to an utterly dominant Casey Stoner on the Ducati.

2008 would again see Pedrosa lining up on the Honda together with deposed Champion, and team mate, Nicky Hayden. It was a season of ups and downs. By Assen, round nine of the Championship, he had been on the podium in all but one of the races and he lead the title race by four points from Rossi. The next round, at the Sachsenring, was a turning point. On a wet track Pedrosa flew into the lead from the start and by the end of the first lap had amassed a stunning two second lead. Rather than hold the position he continued to pull away at the front and within six laps he had a seven second lead. Unfortunately for the tiny Spaniard he was obviously pushing too hard and he lost the front of his Honda, crashing heavily into the gravel. The subsequent injuries meant that he scored no meaningful points until Misano, three races later. By that time he had dropped to third in the title race and with Rossi starting a run of six victories in seven races the Championship was out of sight.

Eyebrows were raised when Pedrosa switched from Michelin to Bridgestone tyres mid-season but he was able to adapt to the change very well.

2009 sees Pedrosa remain at Repsol Honda and be joined by Dovizioso, replacing the departed Nicky Hayden.