Yamaha Factory Racing riders Jorge Lorenzo, Ben Spies head to Japan with high hopes – MotoGP news
Yamaha Factory Racing riders Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies are heading to Japan with high hopes to perform well at the home event for Yamaha.
The 15th MotoGP event will take place at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit on October 2, 2011.
The Spanish rider holds the second seat in the championship with a 44-point difference from chart’s leader Casey Stoner. There will be only three rounds left after the Grand Prix of Japan from which Lorenzo has to make an effort to cover his points’ gap.
Lorenzo said, “Japan is a home race for Yamaha and for us it is always a pleasure to ride here. Motegi is a track where I have won before and last year I had a nice fight for the podium. I would like to win again here, so that is my aim this weekend.”
After the nuclear radiation concerns from the Fukushima nuclear plant, the MotoGP world has arrived at Motegi with full strength. A doubtful Lorenzo agreed to race in Japan and his teammate Spies is also ready to hit the track.
This season being the 50th Grand Prix racing anniversary year for Yamaha, both riders are steamed up to perform at their best.
Ben Spies said, “I really enjoyed the race here last year once I got over the frustration of losing so many places in the opening laps. I managed to overtake quite a few riders on my way back up to eighth which always makes the race more exciting.”
In the 2010 Motegi event, Spies lost a few points after avoiding a collision with a rider. The young Texan had to run wide while dropping to 15th position in the race shortly after the start. However, he managed to pass several
riders ahead and settled for an eighth position in the event.
This time he aims to start the race from a better position on the grid, which will help him stay in the top squad with less effort for chasing a podium finish.
Reliving the Yamaha anniversary celebrations, the factory team will be racing with a bright red-white livery at its home event in Motegi.
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