Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa had seemed to be in excellent form at the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix as he dominated the event in the tricky conditions on Friday and Saturday, however there was disappointment on Sunday as his smashed out on lap 4 from leading the event.

With the absence of Casey Stoner and with Valentino Rossi claiming his first DNF since 2007, this was definately a missed opportunity for the Spanish challenger.

However, Pedrosa attempted to remain serene and positive when he reflected on the event, apologising to his squad after courageously battling back to tenth place from the final position after the crash.

“This result was a real shame, but sometimes it happens,” he explains. “We did a great job all through practice and qualifying, I was confident for the race and of course I was hoping to win today. I was pushing very hard at the start of the race and perhaps I pushed too much. There was some cloud cover today and maybe the front tyre was a little cooler than before, but whatever the reason, I made a mistake and lost the front. I’m sorry for the team because they’ve worked really hard for me, and also to the fans who’ve given me great support.”

Pedrosa adds, “I wanted to win in American again but it wasn’t to be. There was some damage to the bike - the handlebar was bent inwards and the footpeg was worn away quite badly, but actually I was able to recover and ride at a fast pace to take some points at the end. Looking on the positive side, we’ve been very fast here and that means we can take a lot of confidence to Misano next weekend.”