Repsol Honda Team hunt home glory in Barcelona

With the lead in the Rider and Constructor World Championships in hand, the Repsol Honda Team arrives in Barcelona ready to fight.

After a scintillating Italian GP, the Repsol Honda Team enters the Catalan GP with renewed vigour after narrowly missing out on victory in Mugello. Both Marc Marquez and Jorge Lorenzo are looking forward to added support from home fans at the 4.6km long Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Marquez has enjoyed a consistent podium record at the Catalan GP, failing to finish in the top three just once in the premier class. This bodes well as Marquez looks to continue building his championship lead over his title rivals, the reigning MotoGP World Champion currently 12 points clear of Dovizioso.

Jorge Lorenzo, current holder of the pole position and fastest race lap records at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, is hoping to rediscover his feeling from Le Mans on the RC213V. With five wins and seven podiums to his name, Lorenzo has enjoyed multiple successes at his home race in the past and arrives optimistic of more progress.

Free Practice 1 begins the weekend at 09:55 local time Friday, June 14 with the 24-lap Catalan GP commencing at 14:00 local time on Sunday, June 16. A one-day in-season test follows the Grand Prix on Monday.

HRC and Puig Hi-Tech Parts to continue successful relationship

Both Repsol Honda Team RC213Vs will continue to feature Puig Hi-Tech Parts on their windscreens.

First appearing on the windscreens of HRC’s factory MotoGP World Championship team in 2016, Puig Hi-Tech Parts and HRC are pleased to announce a two-year extension to their current fruitful collaboration. Having worked together since 2016, Puig and the Repsol Honda Team have taken three MotoGP World Championship titles, including two Triple Crowns in 2016 and 2018, together.

Based in Barcelona, Puig have been designing and manufacturing motorcycle accessories since 1964. One of the largest accessory manufacturers, Puig exports to over 60 countries and remain completely dedicated to maintaining the high standards of design and manufacturing in their accessories for both Grand Prix racers and road riders.

Puig’s use of 3D simulation technology during the development process allows for rapid experimentation to help meet the demands of racing.

“Puig Hi-Tech Parts are one of several important partners we have. They share a very similar philosophy to HRC in always striving to produce the best parts and allowing riders to make the most of their machines,” said Repsol Honda Team Manager Alberto Puig. “Already we have been able to accomplish many things with our partnership. We at HRC are very pleased to continue working together.”

“Working closely with HRC across several seasons has provided us with an opportunity to explore materials, shapes and manufacturing processes which we then apply to our accessories for road motorcycles,” reflected Joan Puig – CEO Puig Hi-Tech Parts upon signing the renewal. “I am sure that we can continue to emulate the success we have already achieved together.”

2019 Repsol Honda Team livery revealed in Madrid

Marc Márquez and Jorge Lorenzo were joined by Repsol Honda Team legends Mick Doohan and Alex Crivillé to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Repsol Honda Team.

The two world champions were joined by the world’s press at Repsol’s headquarters in Madrid to unveil the livery in which they will chase the 2019 crown.

Having taken eight of the last nine world championships in the premier class, Marc Márquez and Jorge Lorenzo form a perfect team to celebrate the 25thanniversary of HRC and Repsol joining forces. The first riders to run in these now iconic colours, Mick Doohan and Alex Crivillé, were also able to join the special presentation to share their memories from 1995 onwards.

The riders were joined on stage by Tetsuhiro Kuwata, Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) Director, and Antonio Brufau, CEO of Repsol who both outlined and emphasized their plans for continual success. Carmelo Ezpleta, the CEO of Dorna and Begoña Elices, the General Director of Communications and board member at Repsol were also in attendance.

From the Honda NSR500 of Doohan and Crivillé to the RC213V of Márquez and now Lorenzo, the HRC machines have taken 168 victories in the premier class, 14 World Championships, 427 podiums, 182 fastest laps and 177 pole positions together with Repsol, forming not only the most iconic pairing in Grand Prix racing, but also the most successful. Among these accolades, the Repsol Honda Team have also produced four dominating titles for Mick Doohan, the first Spanish 500cc World Champion in Alex Crivillé (1999) and the youngest MotoGP™ champion in history – Marc Márquez. Now they celebrate their 25th anniversary and aim for even more success in the future.

Marc Marquez will now begin his final preparations for the Sepang Test (February 6 – 8) where he and the RC213V will debut the 2019 livery for the first time on track. Meanwhile, Jorge Lorenzo is set to commence an intense physical therapy routine in order to be as fit as possible for the Qatar Test (February 23 – 25). Finally the 2019 MotoGP™ season begins in under the floodlights in Qatar (March 07 – 10).

The Repsol Honda Team head to the Red Bull Ring for the Austrian GP

With no rest after the Czech Grand Prix and the one-day post-race test that allowed Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa to carry out positive work on their RC213V, the Repsol Honda Team moved on to Austria for Sunday’s Grand Prix von Österreich.

Before heading to the Red Bull Ring, Marquez took part in a special press conference in Vienna at the Österreichischer Automobil, Motorrad und Touring Club (ÖAMTC), in the presence of Austrian Traffic Minister Mr. Norbert Hofer, to support “No Ride without Training”, a campaign promoting safe motorcycle riding on the roads.

At the Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich

Marc Marquez has 1 podium (2nd in 2017) and 1 pole position (2017).

Dani Pedrosa has 1 podium (3rd in 2017).

Marc Marquez: 

“We come from a good test in Brno, where we found several positive things. We’ll try some of them at the Red Bull Ring and see how everything works. Austria is another track where Dovizioso and Lorenzo are strong, but we were also strong there last year so we’ll see if it comes down to the last corner again! We’ll try to be fast from the start of the weekend and then fight up at the front. Actually, it will be the second time this year for me at the track, after the unbelievable experience we had with the F1 Toro Rosso test run last June! On the way to the Red Bull Ring, we stopped in Vienna to attend an event dedicated to safe motorcycling riding on the roads, which is something I believe very important. People sometimes forget how vital is to wear the proper gear and not drink before riding, and anytime possible I try and give my inputs about the importance of being fit and lucid before riding.”

Dani Pedrosa

“A day of testing after the Czech Grand Prix gave us the chance to work on our bike setup, to try and sort out the issues we’ve experienced in the recent races. We were able to be fast and consistent, and now we’ll see if that was down to the better track conditions, or if the changes we made there have actually improved our base setup. The Red Bull Ring will be good to check that, as it’s usually a demanding track for us, so to have a good feeling there would be very important. We’ll also have a special Michelin rear tyre there, so we’ll see how it goes putting everything together. Weather will also be a key for the race.”

Credit: HRC News