Following on from the dramatic opening encounter in Qatar, the 2013 MotoGP™ roller-coaster now rumbles on into Texas for the first time. The maiden Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas marks the first of three races to be staged in the United States this year.

Back at floodlit Losail, it was Jorge Lorenzo who delivered a convincing start to his second ever season of title defence as he and Yamaha Factory Racing very much dispelled any thoughts that Repsol Honda Team would be enjoying an easy run to the top this year. Backing him up, returning teammate Valentino Rossi shot through the field to seize a dramatic second place in an inspired recovery ride.

So where does this leave Honda? That comes down to opinion. The facts are that Marc Márquez has just enjoyed the best rookie performance for half a decade whereas Dani Pedrosa was unusually off the pace for most of the weekend; even though he was concentrating on race pace in the preceding sessions, the championship runner-up of 2012 still struggled with a distinct lack of rear grip and was overhauled by both Rossi and new teammate Márquez when it came to the race on Sunday night. He is now in need of a convincing comeback, but is likely to have a good chance of that – not least as he is one of few riders to have already sampled the new venue.

Adding to the general pressure of the occasion is the fact that Circuit of the Americas is a huge unknown to most. The factory representatives of Honda and Yamaha conducted a private test there last month, at which they were joined by LCR Honda MotoGP’s Stefan Bradl as well as American CRT wildcard riders Blake Young (Attack Performance) and Michael Barnes (GPTech). That group apart, the field will be sampling the track on Grand Prix machinery for the first time as sweeping curves, constant direction changes and tight hairpins are interspersed by several, high-speed straight sections.

Smaller only than Alaska, Texas is the USA’s second-largest state. Circuit of the Americas, located just off the suitably named Circuit of the Americas Boulevard and around 25 minutes’ drive outside state capital city Austin, will offer the MotoGP field a new confrontation as it contrasts with California’s ever-challenging Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Curiously, the current trio of American MotoGP tracks are all of an anti-clockwise nature.

As the race starts at the more usual time of 2pm, the Grand Prix of Americas brings our first three-day weekend of the campaign (as Qatar’s event is spread across four days in order to have all track activity at night). Perhaps more importantly, the community will witness for the first time the prospect of the crucial third practice session taking place just hours before Qualifying. Back at Losail, there was a flurry of lap times as the favoured runners looked to confirm their positions in Q2. As this weekend’s second practice will occur amid cooler temperatures on Friday evening, it is almost certain that the late FP3 rush - when bike setups will be more suited to the circuit - will be a cause for excitement once again.

One man striving to make the pole position shootout, perhaps more than anybody, will be Ben Spies as he enjoys the privilege of riding in such familiar territory for the first time. The Ignite Pramac Racing rider - still nursing a shoulder injury - is one of five Americans contesting this weekend’s race, which will be a good reason in itself for crowds to flock to the scene. As well as sharing the track with the aforementioned Young and Barnes, Spies will also be racing alongside 2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) and Colin Edwards (NGM Mobile Forward Racing). An American rider is yet to win a MotoGP race in his home country since Hayden took the chequered flag for Repsol Honda Team at Laguna Seca seven years ago.

Opening practice for the 2013 Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas begins at 9am local time (GMT -5) on Friday. All of the action can be watched live on motogp.com.



The Circuit Of The Americas is the first purpose-built Grand Prix facility in the U.S. near Austin, Texas, with a 5.513km track and a capacity for 120,000 fans. Construction of the impressive 1000-acre facility was completed late in 2012, with MotoGP lining up at the track for the first time in 2013.

One of its more distinctive features is near 41m-elevation change with an impressive incline at the end of the home-straight followed by a sharp left. The circuit is one of the most varied on the GP circuit, with a mix of fast straights and tight hairpins, with most sections mirroring at least some part of a famous track around the world.

It was designed by well-known German architect and circuit designer Hermann Tilke. The driving direction is counter clockwise and has a total of 20 corners with 9 right turns and 11 left turns.

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