Repsol Honda duo Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso will arrive to Le Mans this weekend for the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France, both racers are preparing to continue their fine form made at the previous round of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship.

Pedrosa began from pole position at Jerez and ended in second place. The Spaniard will incur his 150th Grand Prix beginning over all sessions, allowing him to be the youngest competitor passing the landmark.

The 24 year old has a good presence at Le Mans, where he has been able to begin from pole position in three of his four events so far.  ”After the Jerez race I’m looking forward to arriving in Le Mans and continuing with our recent progress,” says Pedrosa. “We were able to complete a good weekend in Spain, being fast from the first practice and building up to the best set-up possible for the race. This is the pattern we have to achieve again in France.”

“Le Mans is one of those circuits where you need to be prepared for any track conditions because the weather can play a big part during the weekend. In fact, last year’s wet-dry race was a good example of this. So it will be very important to make maximum use of the practice sessions and be ready to set the bike up for a wide range of weather conditions and temperatures.”

Pedrosa adds, “Le Mans will also be my 150th Grand Prix in the World Championship, and I would really like to mark this with another great result there.”

Dovizioso is also aiming for his second stage appearance of the season after placing third in Qatar.

“I’m looking forward to racing at Le Mans this weekend. It’s a circuit that I like and where I always tend to get good results so I’m confident for this race,” says Dovizioso, who ended on the podium five times in the 250cc and 125cc sessions.

“After the improvements we found during the Monday Test in Jerez, I think we will be very competitive. In fact we will use the new chassis we tested in Jerez and I’m very positive about our potential. Le Mans is a slow racetrack. It looks easy on paper but in reality it’s quite a tricky place to interpret, and riding at maximum pace is a good challenge.”

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Hiroshi Aoyama prepares for a circuit well known to him this weekend as the Japanese competitor looks to race the Le Mans track for the initial time as a premier class racer.

The Interwetten Honda MotoGP Team competitor has vast experience of the French track going back from his time as a 250cc racer, and following a pleasing day of testing after the GP at Jerez, he is excited about the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France.

“I expect a lot from Le Mans. I know the track and it seems to suit the Japanese riders well,” states Aoyama. “The layout is quite similar to that of the Twin Ring in Motegi with its stop and go sections, and I like this layout.”

Aoyama is hoping the weather will be fine, particuluarly after last season’s event was so heavily affected by rain. “Unfortunately the weather is critical in Le Mans. It changes between wet and dry all the time and it never stays all dry or all wet, so it can happen that the set-up work of the weekend has to start from zero on race day,” he explains. “Therefore I hope I will have a good feeling with the bike from the first practice and that I can improve each day.”

Aoyama is due to be completely fit following a routine operation on his left hand for stiffness

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The Gran Premio bwin de España weekend was very successful for the Pramac Racing squad, who claimed seventh spot in the MotoGP event with Mika Kallio also gaining the benefits of their Green Energy campaign for environmental duties.

At Jerez the trucks being used over the year ahead were easily located in their full gloss, each incorporating 12 solar panels manufactured by Pramac Solar Division. Each panel is able to generate 2.8 kW of electric energy, allowing a saving of approximately 3.36 MW of energy. The biggest figure will be the 2.3 tonnes of CO2 that is saved over the use of the panels, preventing emissions into the atmosphere.

Another interesting details shown in the paddock were the two RevolutionAir wind turbines on the vehicles that were designed for Pramac by Philippe Starck. These generated plenty of electricity over the weekend to power screens and equipment inside the box, almost independently. The turbines can generate 0.8 kW, saving 650kg of CO2 emissions.

With extra assistance from the sun and wind, the Pramac Racing squad can create as much energy as possible, increasing the supply of their needs from this innovative progress.

"“We got to see that the facilities we have installed on our trucks are able to cover part of our energy needs in the pits,” explains Pramac boss Paolo Campinoti.

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