MotoGP – Preview Sepang – The press conference

The world championship riders participated in the classic Pre-GP press conference. Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa, Aleix Espargarò and the fresh eighth-litre world champion Julian Simon were present in Sepang in Malaysia. We report Rossi's thoughts as reported by SportMediaset and those of Stoner, Pedrosa and Espargarò as reported by Motogp.com.

“You never get used to it – says Rossi – It may be the eve of my ninth match ball, but never get used to it. There is always a special tension, but let's say that here too, as I have always said, my goal is to get on the podium and I won't say more, because with the opponents I have you can't be sure of anything. Frankly, between Lorenzo and Stoner – says Rossi – it is really difficult to understand who is the stronger. It is always risky to make comparisons with the past. When I fought with my old opponents I was younger, but with these two it's always a great effort. Lorenzo is tough, he never gives up, Stoner is all heart and has frightening speed and talent. Stoner won a world championship and proved it, but Lorenzo is also certainly a title-winning rider. They are opponents who give me motivation and stimulation, they give me positive energy, they don't give me fear, on the contrary they push me to continue trying to be better than them."

“The last two races have been fantastic for us – said Casey Stoner – it was the right way to get back into racing. In Portugal we had a great race and at Phillip Island we even won. Things are much better now, including my body, so we are confident for this weekend. I can't wait to race because it was very hard to watch during the forced break.”

“In Sepang I won both 125 and 250, so I'm only missing the premier class – Dani Pedrosa instead expressed his sincerity – It's a place where we've rehearsed a lot so everyone will be very prepared. Last year's race was very tough, but it's normal here.”

“I've had a lot of fun in the two races I've already run – added Aleix Espargarò – I will race with Pramac next year and Niccolò's injury gives me the possibility of a further test on a track that I love.”