This weekend, the MotoGP riders will head to the Sachsenring circuit for the 9th round of the 2011 MotoGP season. Casey Stoner leads the way into the German GP, the halfway mark of the season, with a 19 point lead over Jorge Lorenzo.
The Honda RC212V has been the most dominant bike on the track this season, giving Stoner 4 wins this season, but the Yamaha M1 has been at the top of the podium for the last two races. Ben Spies took his first MotoGP win at Assen, and Jorge Lorenzo took his second win of the season at the last round at Mugello.
But Lorenzo will have his work cut out for him this weekend. Not only is the competition pretty intense at the top, but Lorenzo one of only two circuits where he has never found victory.
"I feel very good after our victory in Mugello; an amazing victory that we needed for our confidence," Lorenzo said. "Now it's time for Germany. Sachsenring is a unique track which I've 
ridden since 2002 and still have not won! I would like to do it, it's an interesting challenge in front my German fans. The team and I are ready to again try to reduce the gap to Casey, our aim is the podium, but we will try to push for the win."
Andrea Dovizioso, who is currently third in the standings, has yet to find a race win this weekend.
"We arrive in Germany strong and competitive," Dovizioso said. "The second place in front of the Italian crowd at Mugello gave us an extra boost to continue working and improving race after race... I'm very motivated, we are third in Championship and we want to continue gaining important points for the season."
The third Repsol Honda rider, Dani Pedrosa, is currently 7th in the standings. Pedrosa was running at the top of the pack, but a season full of injuries has kept Pedrosa from participating in three races this year.
We're halfway through the season now, and Valentino Rossi still hasn't found a race win. Rossi is fourth in the standings, but he is confident heading into Sachsenring. Rossi has four GP wins at the German track, and says that the Ducati team is working on a new set up for the bike, which should help his chances this weekend.
"At Mugello we started working with the set-up in a direction that we had never tried before," Rossi said. "We still need to experiment more with these settings, so at the Sachsenring we'll see if they might be a good starting point. The track is tricky in some spots, but it's a circuit that I like."
Marco Simoncelli should also have an impact on the German GP. Simoncelli has been a strong force during the qualifying rounds this season, but Simoncelli hasn't been able to find the podium yet.
The MotoGP riders will hit the track on Sunday for their first free practice sessions. The race will be on Sunday.
MOTOGP STANDINGS
- Stoner - 152
- Lorenzo - 133
- Dovizioso - 119
- Rossi - 91
- Hayden - 77
