Engine start on the Tuscany hills

Fifteen corners, 5.245 metres of length, a layout which goes up and down on the hills of Tuscany: the Mugello circuit is one of the most difficult, but also most loved, tracks of the world championship. So loved that almost all riders - also the foreigners - calls the corners with the Italian names (old, beautiful names: Correntaio, Poggio Secco, Arrabbiata, Bucine) and not with numbers (corner one, corner two, and so on) as they do in the majority of the venues.
In the most recent years, 250 class, the Team Scot duo Dovizioso-Takahashi provided Honda with a third and a fourth place (2006). In the 125 class it was again Dovizioso who got the best result of the last five years, for Honda, brushing the podium in both 2004 (season in which he won the title) and 2003. In MotoGP Andrea in 2008 classified 8th. It as the first season for the Italian squad in the higher class.

Raffaele De Rosa (250cc): "Mugello, at last... it is my favourite track. And I'm not the only one to love it. At the same time, it is very demanding, as to set properly up a bike, here, is not easy. I got the pole position last season, with the 125: I'm really looking forward to racing there on a 250. I'm going to drive my camper from Naples to Mugello, and a few friends of mine will come and enjoy the race".

Hiroshi Aoyama (250cc): "Mugello is one of the most difficult tracks scheduled for the championship. Anyway I like it, and every time I race there I do better and better. About the season, not much changed - I'm just one point behind the leader. The game is wide open, but I will continue to focus on each race, not thinking too much to the Championship. Having said that, it is clear that when I can be one point ahead of Bautista instead of one point behind, I prefer".

Yuki Takahashi (MotoGP): "I loved this circuit, when I was a 250 rider. It has everything you want to enjoy a ride: uphills, downhills, fast corners, flowing layout. Last season I crashed four laps to the end, when I was in fourth position.
I never had a ride on it with a MotoGP bike; nevertheless, I think it should suit our Honda better than Le Mans. I would really like to get a good result, next Sunday, as Mugello is our team's home race".

Emanuele Ventura (Technical Director): "Mugello is a track where finding quickly a good set-up is of the greatest importance, as to achieve it is not easy at all. In 250, where we already have a good engine, our activity will be mainly centered on the frame. At Mugello, the capability to keep the throttle full open as long as you can, is a key factor to get fast laps. To do that, a rider must be confident in his frame.
Moreover, a good result here anticipate often a technical condition equally good also at Catalunya and Brno. In all the classes.
Yuki likes the circuit, and at Le Mans we got an interesting basic condition. We believe we can develop it into a good bike for the Italian GP".