After a three-week abstinence from MotoGP racing, Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP‘s Maverick Viñales and Valentino Rossi arrive at the Automotodrom Brno itching to be back on track again. They will be going full steam ahead at the tenth round of the championship, as the Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky shares the team‘s title sponsor. Viñales arrives in Brno holding fifth place in the championship standings, after taking a superb win in Assen and a strong second place at the Sachsenring before the summer break. He is 100 points from first, and 36 points from entering the top-3, which he is aiming for.
The Spaniard is full of energy after three weeks of training and spending time with family and friends, and is ready to fight to make a return to the Brno podium. He stood on the Czech rostrum twice before: in 2013, having secured second place in the Moto3 race, and in 2017 when he took third place on his first race there on a Yamaha.
Valentino Rossi is also looking forward to stepping aboard his beloved YZR-M1 again. The Italian is currently in sixth place in the 2019 MotoGP rankings, just five points behind his team-mate, and is looking to build momentum at a track that‘s also special to him because he secured his first ever 125cc win at the Brno track in 1996.
The Doctor holds a stunning record on Czech soil: his 125cc victory in 1996 was followed by a 250cc win in 1999, a 500cc victory in 2001 and modern era premier class Brno victories in 2003, 2005, 2008 and 2009. All combined, the nine-time World Champion stood on the podium there 14 times and is keen on adding another Brno trophy to his collection, having finished just off the rostrum in fourth place in the last two years.
Brno already staged motorcycle racing events as far back as 1930, when racers would ride 500cc bikes through the villages and western parts of the city on a 29-km road track. The first Czech GP was held there in 1950 and became part of the World Grand Prix Championship from 1965 to 1982, until the new circuit was built during the 1980s. In 1987 the modern Brno track hosted its first FIM Czech Grand Prix, which soon became popular with both fans and riders thanks to its great atmosphere and location. The natural bowl in which the circuit is situated offers spectators a perfect view of the action as the second half of the season kicks off.
