After back-to-back races in the USA at Laguna Seca and Indianapolis either side of a month-long summer break the MotoGP World Championship returns to Europe this week for the eleventh round of the season in the Czech Republic. It is the second leg of a triple-header that sees the series move on to Silverstone the following week and it takes place at one of seven tracks on the calendar to measure longer than 5km. Brno is well known for its length and width but also for its beauty, located in thick forests and following the dramatic natural topography of the land. Marc Márquez returns from the USA as a race winner for the third time this season and now it is up to Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa to react as the youngster threatens to disappear at the top of the championship.
POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar Team riders Aleix Espargaró and Randy De Puniet are looking forward to returning to Europe after a difficult couple of races across the Atlantic. After crashing out at Laguna Aleix was back to being the first CRT across the line at Indianapolis but he was frustrated that he wasn't as competitive as he had been at recent races such as Assen or Sachsenring. On the other side of the garage Randy continues to search for a comfortable set-up with his ART machine and he is determined to get back to the form he showed last season as soon as possible.
Aleix Espargaró:
“I really like the Brno circuit but if we are realistic we know it doesn't really suit the characteristics of our bike very well. With so many long straights and fast corners we will definitely lose out more than usual to the factory prototypes but we will work as hard as we can anyway to be in the best possible shape for the race. Hopefully it is a more straightforward weekend than Indianapolis without any setbacks. We haven't had much chance for a rest but I have done my best to try and get over the injuries I picked up on Saturday and now I am looking forward to getting back on the bike, having fun and trying to get back to the level we know we can perform at.”
Randy De Puniet:
“The last round was a tough one for us and we were hoping to kick off the second half of the season with a better result but ran into a lot of problems. Luckily the team worked tirelessly to solve them and we were in good shape for the race but we ran out of luck and couldn't finish. So the next race in the Czech Republic is an opportunity for us to turn the page quickly and do whatever it takes to flip the situation around. I really like Brno, I know I can be fast there and I will work to make sure that's the case.”
Power Electronics Aspar Press Release
