G.P. de la República Argentina: Following a positive first GP of the season for the Repsol Honda team, with Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa posting podium and top-five results, respectively, the squad now heads to Argentina for round two. This will be the first of two back-to-back flyway races, and the team is ready to tackle the challenges that will be presented at the championship’s sole South American stop.

There was no winter test at Rio Hondo and it will therefore be crucial to make the most of the track time available and quickly understand the right direction to follow with bike setup. Tyre choice will also be a key point at the circuit, which is demanding for tyres; Michelin has never raced at the venue, although they did conduct a testing session with Michele Pirro in 2015. That said, Marc and Dani, together with their crews, significantly expanded their knowledge of the RC213V’s setup in Qatar. Both riders like the Argentine track, where they delivered a Honda 1-2 result during their first visit in 2014, although last year wasn’t as rewarding, with Marc crashing out of the race while fighting for the win and Dani not even racing due to the surgery he had just undergone to solve his arm pump problem.

FP1 will commence Friday morning at 9:55 a.m. local time.

Marc Marquez
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDING: 3RD – 16 POINTS
“We come to Argentina in a positive mood after achieving a third-place finish in Qatar, a result that wasn’t really predictable before the start of the season. We worked very hard and very well with Honda and with the team over the weekend, and on race day I was able to push as hard as is currently possible. Of course we haven’t had a winter test here to count on and we’ll have to see if the setup we found in Qatar will also work here. That would be a good step forward for us, generally speaking, and we could even aim for a little bit better result on Sunday. Of course it will be a question mark until Friday but all in all, Argentina is a circuit that I like. We’ve always been fast here, so I feel positive for the weekend.”

Marc Marquez
Marc Marquez Statistics

Date of Birth 17/02/1993
Birthplace Lleida, (Catalonia) – Spain
Height 168 cm
Weight 59 kg
Hobbies Mountain Biking, Video games
Racing Number 93
First Race 1998 “Enduro per nens”
Grand Prix Debut 2008 125cc Portugal GP (KTM 125 FRR)
GPs raced 133
GP pole positions 58 (14 in 125cc, 14 in 250cc, 30 in MotoGP)
Total GP podiums 79 (14 x 125cc, 25 x Moto2, 40 x MotoGP)
Total GP wins 50 (10 x 125cc, 16 x Moto2, 24 x MotoGP)
First GP Win 2010 125cc Italian GP (Derbi RSA 125)
World titles 4 (1 x 125cc – 2010, 1 x Moto2 – 2012, 2 x MotoGP – 2013, 2014)

Dani Pedrosa
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDING: 5TH – 11 POINTS
“At the Qatar GP, we made a consistent step forward with the setup compared to the winter test. We improved our pace and I was able to maintain it during the race, with good consistency. The positives were that my arm worked well at a track that has proven challenging in that respect in the past, and that we were able to learn more about the new bike. But it’s still not enough; we need to improve the riding position, the way the bike behaves on the track and the setup in general in order to find better speed, because at the moment the gap to the leaders is still too big. That will be our target for Argentina. I didn’t race here last season but I have good memories of the track from 2014, I like the layout and I hope we’ll be able to take another step.”

Dani Pedrosa
Dani Pedrosa Statistics

Date of Birth 29/09/1985
Birthplace Sabadell, (Catalonia) – Spain
Height 160 cm
Weight 51kg
Hobbies Cycling, Motocross, Windsurfing, Cinema
Racing number 26
First race 1997 Pocket bike race
Grand Prix debut 2001. 125cc Japanese GP, Suzuka – (Honda RS125R)
GPs raced 245
GP pole positions 46 (9 in 125cc, 9 in 250cc, 28 in MotoGP)
Total GP podiums 141 (17 x 125cc, 24 x 250cc, 100 x MotoGP)
Total GP wins 51 (8 x 125cc, 15 x 250cc, 28 x MotoGP)
First GP win 2002. 125cc Dutch GP, Assen – (Honda RS125R)
World titles 3 (1 x 125cc – 2003, 2 x 250cc – 2004, 2005)

Rider Standings

Pos. Rider Num Nation Points Team
1 LORENZO
Jorge 99 SPA 25 Movistar Yamaha MotoGP
2 DOVIZIOSO
Andrea 4 ITA 20 Ducati Team
3 MARQUEZ
Marc 93 SPA 16 Repsol Honda Team
4 ROSSI
Valentino 46 ITA 13 Movistar Yamaha MotoGP
5 PEDROSA
Dani 26 SPA 11 Repsol Honda Team
6 VINALES
Maverick 25 SPA 10 Team Suzuki Ecstar
7 ESPARGARO
Pol 44 SPA 9 Monster Yamaha Tech 3
8 SMITH
Bradley 38 GBR 8 Monster Yamaha Tech 3
9 BARBERA
Hector 8 SPA 7 Avintia Racing
10 REDDING
Scott 45 GBR 6 Octo Pramac Racing
11 ESPARGARO
Aleix 41 SPA 5 Team Suzuki Ecstar
12 LAVERTY
Eugene 50 IRE 4 Aspar MotoGP Team
13 BAUTISTA
Alvaro 19 SPA 3 Aprilia Racing Team Gresini
14 MILLER
Jack 43 AUS 2 Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS
15 RABAT
Tito 53 SPA 1 Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS

Team Standings

Pos.  Team  Points
1   Movistar Yamaha MotoGP  38
2  Repsol Honda Team  27
3  Ducati Team  20
4  Monster Yamaha Tech  3 17
5  Team Suzuki Ecstar  15
6  Avintia Racing  7
7 Octo Pramac Racing 6
8 Aspar MotoGP Team 4
9 Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 3
10 Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS 3

Constructor Standings

Pos. Team Points
1  Yamaha  25
2  Ducati  20
3  Honda  16
4  Suzuki  10
5  Aprilia  3

Location Information

 G.P. de la República Argentina. The Termas de Río Hondo Circuit is located 6km from the city which gives the venue its name, in the Province of Santiago del Estero. It was built in a 150 hectare area and officially inaugurated on May 11, 2008, during the visit of Argentina´s Touring Car Racing championship. In… read more.

Length 4.806 kilometres / 2.986 miles
Width 16 metres
Left corners 5
Right corners 9
Longest straight 1.076 kilometres / 0.669 miles
Constructed 2008
Modified 2013
Circuit Records

Pole Position 1m 37.683s (177.1km/h) Marc Marquez (Honda, 2014)
Race Lap 1m 39.019s (174.7 km/h) Valentino Rossi (Yamaha, 2015)
Race Time 41m 35.644s (173.3 km/h) Valentino Rossi (Yamaha, 2015)
2015 Race Winner Valentino Rossi (Yamaha)
Autódromo Provincial Termas de Río Hondo, Termas de Río Hondo, Santiago del Estero Province, Argentina

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