Dani Pedrosa frustrated as winless run continues

Dani Pedrosa could not hide his frustration after his winless streak in the MotoGP world championship extended to seven races in Catalunya.

Without a win since last October’s Twin Ring Motegi race in Japan, Pedrosa led his home race for long spells, only to be denied by a stunning late charge from fellow Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo.

Pedrosa led for the opening six laps before Lorenzo seized the advantage, only to surrender the lead again on lap 12.

Pedrosa then kept his Repsol Honda RC213V at the front until lap 20 when Lorenzo retaliated again.

This time Pedrosa had no response and he said: “I was pushing all the time and I really wanted to win. At the beginning I had a really tough moment when Jorge passed me for the first time. He almost didn’t leave me space and I had to really find my way in the first turn. I didn’t know if I was going straight or if I could make the corner but I made it and I lost some ground. I recovered and managed to catch him and get back in front and pull away a little bit. The last 10 laps I tried to keep the pace but it was difficult to keep the bike straight on the entry and exit. I tried to be defensive because I knew my corner speed wasn’t so good at that time but he was putting the pressure on and finally I made a mistake.”

Pedrosa’s error came at Turn 10 when he ran wide on the brakes. But he was trying to make up for lost speed on the previous straight when he suffered a big wheelie exiting Turn 9.

He said: “I had a big wheelie so I thought he was right behind and I tried to brake later and it was too late and he passed me. I couldn’t follow him and at the end I was struggling. Second place is a bit disappointing because I really wanted to win.”
Pedrosa denied his choice of Bridgestone’s hard compound rear tyre option had backfired with only team-mate Casey Stoner in the top seven also on the hard option.

Had racing the hard tyre been a mistake?

“The tyre choice for me was a good one. I tried both tyres and it was more up to the bike character. Honda is a little more aggressive on the engine and we have more spinning and with the soft one sometimes you spin more. Normally tyre wear is not an issue but the rear was pumping a lot out of the corners. I chose the hard to stay away from the pumping and get a more stable bike, “added Pedrosa.

For seven pages of coverage from the Catalunya MotoGP race, see the June 6 issue of Motor Cycle News.