No rest for Marc VDS as Kallio and Redding head to Brno

No rest for Marc VDS as Kallio and Redding head to Brno

Just a few short days after wrapping things up in Indianapolis, the Marc VDS Racing Team will be back on track at Brno in the Czech Republic, venue for this weekend's 11th round of the Moto2 World Championship.

Mika Kallio arrives in Brno confident of continuing the form that saw him finish fourth in Indianapolis just a few days ago. The 5.4km Brno circuit is a firm favourite of the 29-year-old Finn, who has racked up three podium finishes at this track in the past, but is determined to increase that tally to four this weekend.

Kallio can count on stiff competition from the other side of the Marc VDS pit box this weekend. Scott Redding was sixth last time out at Indianapolis, where he was hunting down his Marc VDS teammate in the closing stages of the race. Redding ran out of laps before he could mount a challenge on Kallio, but the 19-year-old Briton is keen to reverse the finishing order this weekend at Brno.

Located 200 kilometres southeast of the Czech capitol, Prague, the current Brno circuit was constructed in 1987. Before that, Grand Prix races were held on a public roads circuit, with literally hundreds of thousands of Czech motorcycle racing fans turning out to watch from the roadside.

While the crowd for this weekend is likely to somewhat smaller, the enthusiasm of the present day Czech race fans can be relied upon to easily match that of their predecessors from the 1970s.

Mika Kallio #36:
“I like this track a lot; it's one of the best on the calendar and I've had some good results here in the past. This is one of the rounds that I identified at the start of the season as being a good one for me, and after the result in Indy I still think the same way. Obviously our plan was to be on the podium last weekend in America, which didn't quite happen, but I was pretty close and that makes me confident I can run at the front here in the Czech Republic. I don't feel any pressure; I'm quite relaxed and I just feel this will be a good weekend for me and for the team.”

Scott Redding #45:
“I'm looking forward to the weekend ahead. We're back in Europe for the second race after a long summer break, so I'm ready to go. The aim here at Brno is for a top five finish and more championship points. This isn't one of my strong tracks, I struggled a lot here with the front end last year, but the Kalex seems to be pretty much sorted in that respect. We've got a few things to try on the bike during practice, nothing big, just a few small things that we think will offer some improvement at this circuit. The track itself is very wide, so you need to be focussed to find the fast lines through each turn. It's tempting to use the whole width of the track, but in some sections that can actually lose you time. We'll see how it goes on Friday, but I'm pretty confident we can put together a good weekend.”

Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“Travelling all the way from Indianapolis to the Czech Republic to race again this weekend has been tough on everyone in the team, but we're all ready to go. Mika didn't have such a good result here last year, despite it being one of his favourite circuits, but this time around he's on the Kalex bike in which he has a lot more confidence. He is pretty sure he can push for a podium this weekend and, after his performance in Indianapolis, I'd have to agree with him. Scott also rode a good race in America and, while I know his aim is for a top five finish this weekend, I think we could also see him pushing for a podium on Sunday. It would be good to see both Marc VDS riders on the podium together. We've not seen it yet, but there's a good chance it could happen this weekend at Brno.”