From a press release issued by d’Antin Ducati:

CHAMPIONSHIP REACHES HALFWAY POINT IN GERMANY

The MotoGP World Championship reaches the halfway point this weekend at the German Sachsenring circuit, 15 kilometres away from the city of Chemnitz. This was a particularly popular event during the sixties, when the country was divided, but barely anything remains of the street track used back then, and the current circuit has constantly been adapted to get in line with safety measures required by the championship ever since it returned to the calendar in 1998

It is now a short and twisty track, where outright power is less important than other areas of the machine, but it is still one of the most popular Grands Prix, with crowds flocking in their masses to the area to create a particularly special atmosphere, and which the d´Antin MotoGP riders will get their first chance to experience this weekend.

Rubén Xaus and Neil Hodgson have never competed at the Sachsenring and they will begin a tough learning process when they take to the track for first practice on Friday on their Ducati Desmosedici.

RUBÉN XAUS has been one of the riders to stand out in this first half of the series, and he comes to Germany currently leading the Rookie of the Year standings, “Things didn’t go so well in Rio, but despite all that, we finished the race and picked up some more points. I think that up until now we can say that the work we have done has been positive overall.

“I’m always excited about every single track we go to, even if we don’t know it well, and Sachsenring is one of those we don’t know at all, because I’ve never even been there. It is narrow and winding and I think that it will be important to get good grid position because there are very few places to overtake, although the most important thing always is to get yourself prepared well for the race, and to enjoy yourself to the full.”

For NEIL HODGSON, completing the Brazilian race was a tough challenge, but the tenacious British rider didn’t let the side down, bringing the bike home albeit just outside the points, “Rio was a weekend to forget for me, but I think that it’s always important to finish races because you can learn from all that, and from then on I’ve been thinking about this German Grand Prix. I had a little rest over the last few days and I was also invited to the British Formula 1 Grand Prix at Silverstone.

I can’t say too much about Sachsenring because the last time I did GP in Germany in 1995, the race was at the Nürburgring, so this is a complete unknown for me. It doesn’t look too easy for the MotoGP bikes, but I’m confident that we can get the most out of what we have and can finish the weekend in a positive manner.”