MotoGP heads west to Laguna Seca

This weekend's Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Laguna Seca is the first of two world championship visits to America this year, and is the second of four GPs in a five-week period as the 2009 season really begins to gather pace.

With Indianapolis to come in August the MotoGP riders will this weekend enjoy their first Stateside trip of the campaign as they head to California, with visits to Sachsenring and Donington Park still to come on the busy schedule before the summer break.

After seven rounds so far this year things are tight at the top, with three main protagonists emerging as the title candidates. Heading to Assen in the Netherlands last weekend, Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo and Casey Stoner were all square on points at the head of the standings and even though Rossi has pushed ahead with the superb 100th GP victory of his career at the Dutch track his young rivals are still snapping at his heels.

Last year at Laguna Rossi took a hugely important win over Stoner, passing him brilliantly on infamous Corkscrew corner and scoring a significant psychological blow against the Australian. This year, however, he has two key rivals to contend with.

World champion Rossi goes into round eight in great from, with a 5pt lead over Lorenzo in the general classification, having relegated his Yamaha teammate to second place in the last two races at Catalunya and Assen. The Italian looks as strong as ever, with his Yamaha M1 machine working brilliantly as he looks to turn up the heat on his rivals.

"The wonderful memory of the 100th win is still fresh, but now we have just a few days to recover before the next race, which is hard for everyone," said Rossi. "We have tried to relax as much as possible and recharge the batteries a little, because Laguna is always a tough weekend and often very hot.

"Last year I had a great battle with Stoner and for me it was for sure one of the turning points of the championship and a very important win; I have some good memories. I think this year it will be hard again because Lorenzo is in brilliant form and I am sure Stoner will also be back to his best.

"Laguna is a great place to race and an exciting track, I also have a little trip to Los Angeles and Yamaha US first which I am looking forward to. The championship is very open at this point so we need to keep focus, get back to normal after Assen and try to get another good result this weekend."

Lorenzo, meanwhile, has never completed a race at Laguna having crashed out on the first lap on his debut at the Californian track last year. He insists however that this year he is finding things more comfortable at tracks which did not favour him in the past and can be expected to be pushing Rossi hard at the front again this weekend.

Fitness doubts for Stoner could be the major factor hindering the Ducati star following another grueling race in The Netherlands, where for the second round in succession he finished third, but was totally exhausted on the podium. If he can recover full strength he will be confident of another good performance on Sunday, at a track where he won in 2007 and finished second in 2008.

"We have had some setbacks over the past couple of races that have prevented us from showing our full potential," said Stoner. "We have done a lot of work on the bike and found a great set-up for the race on both occasions, but I have not been in good shape when it was the moment to take advantage of that work.

"We have come straight to America from Assen and there hasn't been much time to recover, although I do feel better already. What we learned from last weekend is not to underestimate the symptoms. I have always liked Laguna, with its natural elevation changes, I love racing in America and the Ducati has always gone well here. We have the potential to challenge for a good result again but we'll wait until we get out on track and see how things shape up."

The biggest threat to the top three could come from Queenslander Chris Vermeulen, who is looking to make it three podiums in a row at Laguna Seca.

"I'm really looking forward to Laguna Seca, it's certainly one of my favourite circuits and I've been on the podium there for the last two years, as well as a pole position in 2006," said Vermeulen. "I certainly want to try and repeat those performances and get the Suzuki on the podium for the first time in 2009.

"I hope it is a good race for all the fans and that the weather is as nice as it usually is. I am sure we can be competitive from day one and put on a good show."

The Honda duo of Andrea Dovizioso and Dani Pedrosa will be desperate to bounce straight back from their Assen disappointments having both crashed out of the Dutch contest, in separate incidents at the same corner, when well positioned to earn some decent points.

Dovizioso is currently fourth in the standings, some distance behind the top three, but with just a 2pt advantage over Pedrosa and Colin Edwards (Yamaha).

Edwards arrives for his home race in good form following his fourth place at Assen and is hoping for another good result as he seeks to extend his MotoGP career. The Texan was on the podium at Laguna Seca in 2005, but since then has struggled for good results there and will aim to correct that pattern on Sunday.

His compatriot Nicky Hayden, the only other American rider in the premier class at present, boasts two of his three MotoGP career wins at Laguna and would love nothing more than to get his first top five result of 2009 on his Stateside debut for Ducati this weekend.

The 250cc and 125cc classes do not compete at Laguna and will be back in action at Sachsenring on the 17th-19th July weekend.

Television coverage from Laguna Seca will begin on Fox Sports 3 at 6.30am on July 6, and on Channel Ten at 6.45am.