Yamaha Factory rider Spies looking to challenge Rossi for fifth place in championship – MotoGP news
Yamaha Factory Racing rider Ben Spies is ready for the upcoming MotoGP Brno event this weekend in Czech Republic.
The Texan is ready to challenge Valentino Rossi and gain a fifth position in the 2011 MotoGP world championship standings.
Spies said, “It's been really cool to hang out at home with my friends and family in Texas and take a break from the racing. I'm looking forward to getting back on the bike now, especially at Brno which is a track I really enjoy.”
The American rider will also test the new 1000cc Yamaha at the Brno circuit following the race day. His teammate Jorge Lorenzo will also be testing the 2012 machine.
In the 2010 Brno event, the American rider was able to score a second position on the grid. He struggled in the qualifying and on the race day was hampered by a front end issue with his Tech3 M1 which dropped him to finish fourth in the race.
Spies added, “It was good to me in Superbike and we showed a lot of potential there last year, I nearly had pole position and think I could have challenged for a podium if I hadn't suffered a front end grip issue early in the race.”
Now with a win at Assen, Spies is charged to jump up on the points table. Valentino Rossi who holds the fifth position has been neat and steady through the first half of the season, scoring points in each race but no win except a third place finish.
On the other side, the young American rider has scored his maiden GP win at Netherlands and has also retired from three races due to incidents. However, the last four events have been very promising for him which is why Spies thinks he is in with a shot
at the fifth place.
It is also expected that Spies will recreate the magic he displayed in the 2010 Brno event and be successful.
Meanwhile, Rossi seems to be struggling with his confusion of GP11 and GP11.1 and has dropped his performance chart.
Let’s see how the upcoming MotoGP event fares for both of the riders.
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