Rizla Suzuki has made a trans-European journey to Italy from The Netherlands for the eighth round of the MotoGP Championship to be held at the beautiful Mugello circuit this weekend.
Álvaro Bautista will be looking to find a solution to the grip issues that he struggled with last time out at Assen. He is hoping that warmer weather conditions and the new surface at Mugello will assist him as he aims to make himself and the Suzuki GSV-R more competitive this coming weekend. Mugello sees the MotoGP circus enter the second half of its exhausting run of six Grands Prix in eight weeks and the Italian track will give the Spaniard a chance to move forward at a circuit he has tasted success at before, winning in the 250cc race in 2007 and finishing in a podium position on two other occasions.
Mugello is located just north of Florence in the stunning Tuscan countryside. It is one of the ‘must-see’ events on any motorsport calendar. The fabulous backdrop of the mountains coupled with the natural amphitheatre of the 5,245m long circuit and the always enthusiastic and colourful Italian fans, makes this event a truly memorable occasion. The Mugello circuit is one of the fastest tracks in the world, with average lap speeds of almost 175km/h attainable over its 15 corners and a top speed of 350km/h achievable down the 1.141m long start/finish straight.
Rizla Suzuki, Bautista and the rest of the MotoGP gladiators take to the track on Friday for two 45-minute long free practice sessions, plus a further practice on Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon will then stage the all-important qualifying session, where riders will determine their grid positions for Sunday’s 23-lap race that gets underway at 14.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT) on the 3rd of July.
Álvaro Bautista:
“I really like the Mugello circuit; it is very fast and great fun to ride at. It holds a lot of good memories for me because it is where I won my first 250cc race in 2007 and I have also been on the podium there a couple of times. Last year I was still struggling with my shoulder injury, but I am going there 100% fit this time and determined to do well. The track has a new surface and hopefully that - and hotter weather - will help us to make the bike more competitive, we are all trying hard and the whole crew deserves a bit of a change of luck, so that we can start to move forward.”
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