Randy de Puniet, Aliex Espargo, Hector Barbera, and Stefen Bradl all talk about their aspirations for the race.
Among the CRT teams The Power Electronics Aspar Team return to a track that they are familiar with as the Italian-made ART machine has already put in hundreds of laps during preseason testing around a circuit that is more favourable to the bikes characteristics.
After the mistake I made in Losail, which forced me to lose some places as final result
Randy de Puniet
"I have finished on the podium here in the 250cc class but never in MotoGP™, even though I have always been fast in practice. We had some good tests with the CRT bike here in the winter and our objective this weekend is to be the first of the new bikes home. I was lacking a little confidence in Qatar, mainly because of the characteristics of the track, but it should be a different scenario at Jerez. I even think we could be very close to some of the factory MotoGP™ guys and the new Bridgestone front will definitely help us. If it rains I won't be bothered because our bike is easy on the wet tyres."
Aleix Espargar
"I am very motivated for this weekend. I left Qatar feeling disappointed that we'd been unable to make progress all weekend and didn't achieve anything in the race. Bridgestone have the new 'tyre 21' for us here, which should solve our chattering problem completely. We were faster than our rivals at Jerez during the IRTA tests so we'll be looking to confirm that this weekend."
Pramac Racing Team rider, Hector Barbera, is at Jerez for the second Grand Prix hoping to avoid any repeat of his errors at Losail.
Hector Barbera
"After the mistake I made in Losail, which forced me to lose some places as final result, I will start off this first European race seeking redemption. The Andalusian circuit layout doesn´t fit my riding style, but, during this weekend I will work together with the White and Green Team, concentrating primarily on the set-up of our Ducati to get faster and be more consistent. I will certainly work tirelessly to be the first Ducati rider to cross the finishing line in the Sunday’s race, using more wit and less instinct, compared to the Qatar race."
Newcomer to the MotoGP scene this season after moving up from Moto2 Stefan Bradl is hoping he will be able to get the best out of the bike after initially struggling in Qatar with the power and the wieght of the 1000cc machine.
Stefan Bradl
"I am really looking forward to the first round in Europe. We have tested the bike there in March gathering useful data for the race weekend and I was comfortable with the bike’s overall package. I am happy to be back in Europe because we return to the standard time schedule and the atmosphere especially in Spain is very warm. I like the track even if I feel the difference between the lower classes and the MotoGP™ bike: it seems that the track is smaller because the riding style is different. The race will be also harder (physically speaking) as there are no long straights and just a few "relax points" along the track but I feel ready."
