Japanese Grand Prix, Motegi: Bridgestone Race Review

Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa continued his imperious form in the MotoGP™ World Championship by setting a new circuit lap record on course to claiming his fifth victory of the season.

Pedrosa’s main challenger once again was Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo with the two riders closely matched for the first half of the race before Pedrosa passed his rival on lap eleven and went on to win by 4.275 seconds. Lorenzo’s second place secures a valuable twenty points for his championship challenge while San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Alvaro Bautista took third place to ensure an all-Spanish MotoGP™ podium.

Tyre choice for the race was the same for every rider with the combination of the harder front and softer asymmetric rear slick best suiting the numerous acceleration and braking zones at Motegi. Weather conditions today were dry yet slightly cooler than yesterday due to some cloud cover in the afternoon with a peak track temperature of 29°C recorded during the race.

Pedrosa’s win at Motegi means he closes the gap to Lorenzo in the championship table to twenty-eight points with three rounds remaining. On the other Repsol Honda, Casey Stoner remains third overall in the riders classification after a valiant fifth place in his comeback race following an ankle injury.

Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft, Medium, Hard. Rear: Soft, Medium (Asymmetric)
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Soft (Main), Hard (Alternative)

Weather: Dry. Ambient 19-19°C; Track 29-27°C (Bridgestone measurement)

Yuichiro Takenami – Vice President and Senior Officer, Corporate Communications and Motorsport
“My warmest congratulations to Dani and Repsol Honda for their victory at Motegi today. This was a very enjoyable weekend for the fans with the nice weather, various paddock activities and an exciting race combining to create a pleasant atmosphere, and I am pleased that Bridgestone is able to take part in such a wonderful activity. We are proud of our partnership with MotoGP as it provides the best possible environment for us to develop motorcycle tyre technology for the racetrack and road, and we are committed to continuing our fair and equal support of every rider and team in the paddock with the highest level of service.”

Shinichi Yamashita – General Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department
“Today’s race was held under cooler conditions than those experienced on Friday and Saturday, though this didn’t have any effect on tyre choice. All riders selected the same tyre combination of the harder front and softer rear slick as high levels of rear grip and front-end stability are important at Motegi due to its stop-and-go layout. The tyres performed well during the race with a new circuit lap record being set and the top three riders completing the race faster than last year’s total race time. Overall, it was a positive showing for our 2012 specification MotoGP tyres at Bridgestone’s home Grand Prix.”

Source: Bridgestone Motorsport Press Release