Terol “Really Motivated” For Jerez
The fuse is ready to be lit on the first of four firecracking Grand Prix weekends on Spanish soil this weekend as the Jerez circuit prepares to host the second round of the MotoGP World Championship. The target for the 125cc riders is a win at all cost, with the vociferous local crowd baying for a repeat of the Spanish victory hat-trick from last season. There are plenty of Spanish stars amongst the favourites for the win in the minor category this weekend after a dominant opening round in Qatar but home advantage doesn’t necessarily play to their favour here, with the majority of 125cc competitors having come through the Spanish Championship regardless of their country of origin.
BANKIA Aspar Team rider Nico Terol took his own hat-trick of pole position, fastest lap and race victory at Losail two weeks ago and the man from Alcoy is keen to maintain his strong start to the season. Taking the 125cc World Championship lead to Jerez is not a new experience for him, having done so last year, although this time he is aiming to improve on second place and tale victory. His BANKIA Aspar Team colleague Héctor Faubel left the winter tests at Jerez with the fastest lap time and the experienced Valencian is a former winner here. His season didn’t get off to the smoothest of starts in Qatar but he is calm and confident of a strong challenge this weekend. The team’s third rider Adrián MartÃn is looking forward to racing on home soil after crashing out in the desert and the youngster is targeting a top ten finish.
Nico Terol:
“I am really motivated about Jerez and to arrive there as series leader is an extra boost. I am sure we are going to have a great weekend along with the fans. It has been a very long winter but all the hard work was worth it as we saw in Qatar. I scored my first ever Grand Prix podium at Jerez so I have great memories of that. It is a demanding circuit with a bit of everything and you have to push in every corner to get a good set-up. I feel I’m in incredible shape and my objective is to fight for the victory again even though I know it won’t be easy. It will be a tough race and there are a lot of guys out to win it, especially the Spanish riders. The team is working exceptionally well but we can’t take our eye off the ball because every weekend is huge.”
Héctor Faubel:
“I can’t wait to get to Jerez. At the last test we finished fastest and that makes me excited for the weekend ahead. If we do things the right way we can be setting the pace again and that is the target to get rid of the bad taste in our mouths from Qatar. The racing is always special at Jerez, the fans really get behind us all weekend and that gives you a lot of strength. Jerez is a circuit where I have always been able to ride fast but my best result is a third place so I want to improve on that and fight for the win.”
Adrián MartÃn:
“My objective next weekend is to be fighting in the top ten. I know Jerez quite well, which is important for us to be performing at our best and as near to the front as possible. We tested at Jerez not long ago so all the work we did back then should be useful and help us to find our references. We have a good set-up from the test. The key will be the fast corners.”
Source: Aspar Media
