Red Bull KTM Factory Racing test rider and MotoGP leg-end Dani Pedrosa is coming back for more, three years after his last MotoGP appearance. The Grand Prix of Styria will be where the tiny Spaniard makes his MotoGP comeback aboard the KTM RC16; and it?s only fair really, since he?s put so much into developing it.

And you can expect him to be fairly handy on it, too. Because whilst some remember Dani Pedrosa as being the MotoGP bridesmaid, never the bride (he was always there, but never won a premier class championship), don?t forget the fact that he stood on the top-class podium 112 times, over thirteen years, with 31 wins to his name. In fact, he finished in the top five of the MotoGP championship eleven times. An impressive record in anyone?s book.
So why Austria" Why Styria (or the Red Bull Ring, as most people call it)" Well Austria is the home of Red Bull and KTM, so you can bet your bottom dollar that they?ve got bags of data about the place, and little Dani will have done a million or more laps there. They know exactly the kind of lap times Dani will need to be setting to warrant a wildcard grid-slot. Chances are, he?s been smashing them out the park. Or the ring.

Of his first race in nearly 1,000 days, DP26 said this

?It?s been super-interesting to be part of this project from the beginning with KTM in MotoGP. A being able to share my experience with them. Step-by-step we did the best we could and now it?s interesting again to go into ...