Moto GP Teams

Cardion AB Motoracing were initially set up to race in the Moto2 catergory but have now moved into the Moto GP series. They use the Ducati Desmosedici GP11 as their race bike. The Ducati bikes have been off the pace for a while now, so do not expect Abraham to feature much in 2011.

The team is run by Karel Abraham Senior and has his son Karel Abraham as the only rider. They are the first Czech Republic team with a Czech Republic rider in Moto GP.

The Track Engineer is Christian Pupulin, who works for the Ducati factory. He has also previously worked with Nicky Hayden so knows his stuff when it comes to Moto GP.

If you would like to know more about the team members behind the scenes follow this link: Team Members

The Ducati team entered the Moto GP fray in its current form in 2003 with a 990cc bike. It had long been known as the fastest bike but no one could tame the beast. That was until Casey Stoner came along in 2007 and dominated the championship, leading Ducati to their first world championship. Things have changed since then and Casey has left for Honda. The pace of the Ducati has dropped considerably and despite have two former world champions including Hayden and the legendary Rossi, they are unlikely to break the into the podium much this season.

There has been huge hype surrounding Rossi being an Italian, now riding for the Italian team, a sort of expectation and passionate belief that miracles will happen. I personally would love to see it, but with Rossi still not fully fit and the other bikes just being so powerful, it isn't likely to happen.

If you would like to know more about the team members behind the scenes follow this link: Team Members

LCR Honda are the brainchild of Lucio Cecchinello who developed the team so that he could compete in the 125cc championship. Originally riding on his own he then hired other riders, having two bikes in the 125cc championship and a further two in the 250cc. He has had stars such as De Angelis, De Puniet and Stoner all riding in his team at times in their careers. They started off on Hondas, then switched to Aprillas and finally back to Hondas.

The current season sees the LCR Honda team only have one bike in the MotoGP series, its a Honda RC212V 800cc bike, much like the other Hondas, but not being a works bike it struggles for power. Their only rider for this season is Toni Elias who is raining Moto2 champion.

The Mapfre Aspar team were created by Jorge Martínez a former world champion. He formed the team when his competitive career ended in 1997. They had a successful season in 2010 obtaining 2nd place in the 125cc on an Aprilla bike and also a 2nd in the Moto2 category with a Honda powered Suter. In the MotoGP class they have been fielding one rider, Hector Barbera riding the Ducati GP10. He managed a 12th place last season, which isn't too bad for a satellite bike.

Tech 3 are a French racing team based in Bormes Les Mimosas in the south of France. They currently have two riders in the MotoGp division and use the Yamaha YZR-M1 motorcycle. Founded by Poncharal an ex racer, the team began competing in 1990 with a 250cc bike. Up to 1999 they used Honda and Suzuki machines but formed a partnership with they Yamaha factory team and have used their bikes ever since. They entered the MotoGP class in 2001 with Jacque and Nakano as their riders. Alex Barros in 2003 received the teams first silverware in the premier class. They have picked up regular points since signing Mr Consistent Colin Edwards and seem to have another good rider this season in Cal Crutchlow who is in to replace Spies who has gone to the factory Yamaha team.

Find out about the Tech 3 team staff here.

Pramac Racing Team was founded in 2000 by Italian company Pramac. Their best season was in 2004 when Tamada had to race wins. Currently using the Ducati Desmosedici GP9.

Repsol Honda are the only team to have fielded three bikes this season. One other interesting point is that they have also fielded four riders, with Hiroshi Aoyama riding in Dani Pedrosas stead whilst he was out injured.

The Suzuki works team first entered MotoGP in the 500cc days in 1974 with the legendary Barry Sheene on the bike. They had their first victory in 1975 and won the title in 1976. Those were the glory days. Jump forward to the present day and Suzuki have been struggling financially and only fielded one rider for this term. Alvaro Bautista received the only place on the team but the bike isn't as strong as other teams and Bautista has a tendency to fall off, breaking his leg and being replaced by old Suzuki rider John Hopkins for one race.

Good news for Rizla Suzuki fans. They will be running a second bike at Brno in August. This will give John Hopkins a second chance on the bike and add to his points haul. It will be good to see Hopper back on the bike.