Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) will be going all out to steal a second win of the season at Honda's 'home' track to edge closer to second place overall in the World Champion ship points table. The 21-year-old Spanish master has been Honda's main threat to series leader Casey Stoner (Ducati) this season and here is where he aims to score again.

Motegi is where Dani first rode the RC212V last year and Dani believes Motegi's 4.801km circuit should suit his 800cc machine especially after advances in set-up at Estoril last weekend enabled Pedrosa to fight for a race win after weeks of frustration and hard work. With four rounds left to race and with 188 points to second-placed Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi's 211 and Stoner's 287, Dani has everything still to ride for - and still a mathematical chance of the title.

Now he believes the RC212V is in shape to maintain performance throughout the 24-lap race on Sunday and at the racetrack home of the mighty Honda establishment Dani, Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) and all the Honda riders will be aiming to pull out something extra special to salvage strong results from what has proved to be a difficult season.

Hayden, the defending World Champion has had a torrid time this year, but the American ace has never let his head drop and after notching up three podium finishes in the second half of this season, the genial Kentucky Kid would really like to get back to winning ways with a victory here - where he scored his first ever podium way back in 2003.

Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) has recorded two podium finishes so far in 2007 and the Italian speedster would like nothing more than to show his race winning capability here at Motegi before the end of what has been a difficult season for this tough campaigner. Injury has compromised 2007 for Marco and now he is nearing full fitness a win would be a welcome tonic.

His team-mate Toni Elias (Gresini Honda RC212V) has had a similarly injury-ravaged season with a broken leg at Assen wrecking the second half of the Spanish man's season. But even struggling for full fitness, Toni has never given less than his all and a strong result here at Motegi would be nothing less than he deserves.

The 'Twin Ring' Motegi track, built in 1998, lies 150km north of Tokyo. It is owned by Honda and features an outer 'Indy" style oval with a regular track in the infield. Its 4.801km feature a relatively short 762m main straight, eight right turns, six lefts, with a grippy, smooth and predictable surface.

The largely constant-radius, second and third gear turns are linked by medium-length straights. Set-up requires a bike that's stable both under fierce acceleration and equally severe braking. Front/rear balance and suspension settings are key, and the 800cc machines will require perfect engine management to maximise acceleration out of the turns.

The track also features gradient and a spectacular tunnel, although nothing in the way of camber. The back straight is downhill into a tight right-hand bend. And although the main straight is only 0.762km long, the tunnel between turn five and the 130R turn more than makes up for a long main chute in terms of spectacle - and rarity value. No other MotoGP track boasts subway sections.

Dani said: "For sure the race in Portugal has given us a boost and so I'm really looking forward to going straight to Motegi and hopefully picking up where we left off at Estoril. We made some small changes to the machine during the weekend in Portugal and they helped us improve the speed in the race, so we'll continue with those in Japan. I like this track and it seems to have suited me in previous years so I hope that's going to be the same with the 800s. I rode this bike for the first time after last year's race here so it shouldn't feel totally unfamiliar. Also the weather can be quite unpredictable at Motegi but let's hope for another fine weekend."

Nicky said: "This track has been a bit up and down for me in the past. I've had a few good rides here and also a few that weren't so good. This time it's a short turn around coming straight from Europe into Japan and we had a decent weekend in Portugal so I'm looking forward to the next one. Japan is always an exciting GP because it's in the home country of most of the manufacturers, including Honda, which definitely adds a bit of an edge to it. Plus the Japanese fans are pretty cool and they're always really good to me. The track has a lot of straights and our bike has been running better lately, especially in cooler conditions so hopefully the weather will be kind to us and give us cooler temperatures."

Melandri said: "The feeling with the bike has improved and the Bridgestone tyres should work very well. Bridgestone tyres dominated here in the last 3 years, so I'm confident. We'll work hard to get the best out of the bike and to use all its potential. In Portugal I was still suffering a bit from the consequences of the crash at Misano, so in Japan I should be 100% fit. I've started to train again and I have to confess it wasn't easy after more than 2 months of enforced rest."

Elias said: "I like Motegi and I've had two wins in the 250cc class here. I hope we can finally get some good results and turn this season around. The team is doing a great job and my feeling with the bike is improving. At Motegi it's very important to find a good set-up because of the hard braking, and it's important to have good balance too. The real secret is to find compromise between braking and acceleration."

Carlos Checa (LCR Honda RC212V) said:  "Some of our early season races were difficult but we're notgiving up as the LCR team showed at Estoril and Misano. Motegi is a complicated track, it can be difficulttrying to balance the heavy braking for the hairpins with the need for hard acceleration for the straights - it's basically a stop-go track. But we've found some good compromises with Honda and Michelin recently. And the team is very positive after the Portugal race and looking forward to Japan."

Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda RC212V) said: "As you can imagine I'm very much looking forward to my home race in front of both the fans, the Honda factory and my sponsors. Being a Honda track it's very important to do well here. I like Motegi very much, but it's a stop-and-go circuit with some hard braking and accelerating areas. The overall grip on the circuit isn't too bad, although in the past I've found the circuit pretty tough on tyres, so we'll see what happens with my 2007 package of the Honda RC212V and Michelin tyres.  With the steady improvements we've made over the last few races, I think we'll have a pretty good package here."

Kurtis Roberts (Roberts KR212V) had clutch trouble at Estoril and will be hoping for a glitch-free run here after a toirrid season. He said: "We're expecting a bit of extra help from Honda here and we sure appreciate what the factory's been doing for us all season. Hopefully we can repay that with a decent result after a long season."

from Honda press