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HONDA RACING INFORMATION

Preview Phillip Island

2009 MotoGP World Championship
Australian Grand Prix preview, Phillip Island
October 16/17/18 2009

HONDA RIDERS HEAD DOWN UNDER

The 2009 MotoGP World Championship begins the longest road trip of the year with its annual visit to the picturesque and challenging Phillip Island road course for the Australian Grand Prix. Followed a week later by the Malaysian Grand Prix in Kuala Lumpur, these two final flyaways, on different continents on consecutive weekends, could well determine the outcome of the MotoGP World Championship.

Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa will be looking to build on fine third place finishes in the previous two races in Estoril and Misano as he tries to solidify third in the championship. The Estoril result was his eighth podium of the season, three of which came in the last four races, as he gains strength for the final push. Pedrosa had an off day at Phillip Island last year-he crashed on the first lap-but the track is one of Honda's most successful. Of the 15 Australian GP's run at Phillip Island, nine have been won by an eclectic mix of Honda riders, including victories by Australia's 500cc World Champions Wayne Gardner and Mick Doohan, 1999 500cc World Champion Alex Criville, Japanese star Tady Okada, former 250cc World Champion Marco Melandri, and three by Valentino Rossi en route to his three premier class titles for Honda. The fastest lap record of the fastest track on the calendar was also run by a Honda rider.

Only Rossi or teammate Jorge Lorenzo can win the 2009 world title, with Pedrosa locked in a battle for third with Ducati's Casey Stoner, the winner here the past two years. Pedrosa has been successful at Phillip Island in the 250cc class-his 2005 win here helped cement the second of his two 250cc crowns-but he's yet to crack the podium in the premier class.

Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) will look to Phillip Island as a springboard to solidifying fifth place in the championship in his first season as a factory rider. Last year the British GP winner improved on his qualifying position to finish a deceptive seventh. It was deceptive because he was in the mix of a furious four-way fight that might have landed him in fourth. Instead he finished just over a second from the fourth place finisher. Like Pedrosa, he's been successful in the smaller classes; he won the 125cc GP here in 2004 and was on the podium aboard a 250 in 2007.

Aside from individual glory, the teammates from southern Europe are well positioned to take runner-up in the Team championship.

Now that he's been confirmed to stay with the LCR Honda team for a third season in 2010, Frenchman Randy De Puniet can concentrate on racing. De Puniet hasn't been able to build on his lone podium of the season in Great Britain, but lists Phillip Island as one of his favorite tracks. Currently eighth in the championship, De Puniet is among six riders separated by nine points with only three races remaining. There will be fierce competition to finish seventh-sixth place is likely out of reach-which means the veteran will have to call on his vast experience to stay ahead of the pack.

The San Carlo Honda Gresini teammates arrive in Australia separated by only two points, with both Toni Elias and Alex De Angelis aiming for seventh in the championship. Elias has been on the podium in Australia and would like to be there again on Sunday afternoon. But he knows he'll have to improve on his qualifying performance at Portugal-he was 13th on the grid-if he's to give himself a chance at glory Down Under.

Since finishing second at the Indianapolis Grand Prix, Alex De Angelis has hit a patch of bad luck. The San Marinese crashed on the first lap of his home grand prix in Misano, which ended a perfect season of scoring points in every race. Following Misano he was forced out of the Portuguese Grand Prix with a mechanical issue. De Angelis twice visited the Phillip Island podium during his 250cc days.

And the team has history on its side. The San Carlo Gresini Honda team has the distinction of being the only non-factory team to win at Phillip Island. Marco Melandri, who will return to the squad in 2010, enjoyed a spectacular, nearly ten second win in the 2006 race.

Gabor Talmacsi (Scot Honda MotoGP) continues a rookie season of visiting tracks for the first time on the Honda RC212V. Having only ever ridden a 125 at Phillip Island, the Hungarian will quickly discover it's a different track on a MotoGP machine and will be hoping for a dry weekend if he's to get enough track time to properly set the machine up for Sunday's race. It will take a team effort if Talmacsi hopes to crack into the MotoGP top ten for the first time.

Hiroshi Aoyama (Scot Honda) arrives in Australia with the mathematical possibility of winning the 250cc World Championship. Given the quality of the field, it isn't likely. But Aoyama is in control of his own destiny and can secure the title by scoring 50 points over the final three races, regardless of where his competitors finish. This year the Japanese rider has been the model of consistency, with front row starts and top four finishes in all but two races, including six podiums and three wins, a career best.