Dani Pedrosa signs new Repsol Honda contract

Spaniard Dani Pedrosa has signed a new two-year deal to remain with Honda’s official factory MotoGP squad until the end of 2014.

As MCN reported two weeks ago, HRC announced Pedrosa’s new deal during the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello this morning.

Pedrosa, who claimed his first victory of 2012 during last weekend’s Sachsenring race in Germany, will be joined by rising Spanish star Marc Marquez on a factory Honda RC213V after the rookie rule was abolished for next season.

Pedrosa’s new deal would certainly have almost never happened if Jorge Lorenzo had accepted a big money offer to quit Yamaha and join HRC as replacement for Casey Stoner.

Aussie Stoner will retire at the end of 2012 but Honda failed to prise Lorenzo away from Japanese rivals Yamaha and he signed a new two-year deal to remain with Yamaha just before last month’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

HRC said it wouldn’t have paired Lorenzo and Pedrosa together because it would have been bad for competition in MotoGP, which strongly suggests that Pedrosa would have been released.

Before Lorenzo committed his future to Yamaha, Pedrosa briefly negotiated with Yamaha but by the end of his new deal he will have spent nine years as an official HRC rider, having joined back in 2006 after winning 125GP and 250GP world titles.

Pedrosa has spent his entire MotoGP career with Honda’s official factory squad and won 16 times in 106 appearances.

He said: “I’m very happy to be able to announce my renewal with the Repsol Honda Team for the next two years. It’s been a very long relationship with Honda and I had a strong desire to stay here.

“The fight for the Championship this year is still open and the next two seasons will be very interesting for me. My whole career has been linked to Honda, since I entered into the World Championship in 125cc, then in 250cc and since 2006 in MotoGP.

“I’m perhaps one of the riders with the longest history with Honda, which makes me feel very proud. I want to thank HRC once again for their support; I’m sure that we have great things to do together”.