MotoGP riders get ready to rumble in Misano

The MotoGP riders strike a happy pose at the pre-event press conference

Misano, September 7: Bikes will soon be on track for the San MarinoGP at the Marco Simoncelli World Circuit after it was confirmed that Misano would remain on the the FIM MotoGP World Championship calendar at least till 2021.

Reigning world champion and points leader Marc Marquez of Repsol Honda Team, who is upbeat after meeting the Pope at Vatican and his frosty relationship with local hero Valentino Rossi of Movistar Yamaha MotoGP was the talking point at the pre-event press conference.

They were joined on the dais by three-time Misano MotoGP winner Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team), his Ducati team-mate Andrea Dovizioso, Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Moto2 championship leader Francesco Bagnaia (Sky Racing Team VR46) as the grid got ready to rumble.

Talking point

After some recent sounds from Marquez to the effect that he would like to 'make peace' with Rossi, there has been renewed talk about the relationship between the two. The Italian was asked if he would make said peace.

"It sounds a bit strange to me because in reality there are no problems between Marc and I, so I don't know why we have to make peace."

Later, a similar question was asked - whether it's necessary.

"For me it's nice," says Marquez. "Of course it's no problem for me, let's shake hands...a second time. It's not a problem for me."

Rossi's reply: "We don't need to shake hands. It's ok. We don't have any problems."

Three-time Misano winner

The weather could be better from what we saw in Silverstone when the British GP had to be cancelled. Three-time Misano winner Lorenzo is trying to move on from the loss of 25 possible points as he pushes to try and move up in the championship.

"At Silverstone with the conditions, if we raced we could have competed for it...anything could have happened,Now we have one race less but at the moment we're not thinking about the championship. We're thinking about momentum, small changes on the bike and trying to win as many races as possible."

What's the target?

Team-mate Dovizioso has a poor record at Misano - which so far has been one of the more difficult circuits for 'DesmoDovi.

The Ducati rider had set some specific targets though.

"Every year, every race, every weekend you have to try and improve yourself and the bike, always. That's our target and I think it's what we're doing now. I feel good on the bike at each track, our pace is good and we're fast from the beginning. That makes the difference."

Difficult race

Iannone, who had a difficult race last season, hopes for more in 2018, as he prepares to also change team at the end of the year.

"Racing at home is a special race for us, it's big motivation for me and for the team because most people in the garage are Italian guys - for sure it's an important weekend for us. When a rider comes to the end of a relationship with a team or factory, it's a bad moment. But at the moment I have a good relationship with the team, the guys and the management."

The track action at the Marco Simoncelli Circuit circuit begins with the free practice on Friday (September 7). The race will be held on Sunday (September 9) at 2pm local time (5.30pm IST).