Pedrosa pulled off pole position at the last two races but needs to translate them into wins. The 22-year-old Spaniard has winning form at Sepang having taken victory in the 125cc race in 2003 and the 250cc race in 2004.

Making his debut in MotoGP last year an injured Pedrosa produced an extraordinary performance by taking the lead from the start and finishing in a pain-defying third. The two-time 250cc World Champion sustained a knee injury in Friday practice and was doubtful for the race right until the lights went out on Sunday. A fully fit Pedrosa should be a real threat this weekend.

“It really feels like it's time to get a good result because we've been knocking on the door for a few races now,” said Pedrosa, “The weather has affected many races this year and it also played a part at the last one in Phillip Island because the rain meant we didn't have much dry practice time ahead of the race. In Malaysia weather is often a factor too – it can rain very hard in the afternoon as we saw last year when qualifying was cancelled.”

Although qualifying was cancelled it didn't stop Pedrosa doing well in the race, “Last year's race here went quite well for me, especially after crashing in practice and not being sure that I would even be able to race. For this year I hope things go more smoothly and we can arrive at a good set-up and tyre selection so that we can be competitive right to the final lap. This is our target for the weekend. The Sepang track is quite demanding to ride and the high temperatures add to the challenge. I'm really looking forward to getting a strong result here.”

Hayden comes to Sepang with unfinished business and is hoping for a change of fortune. The 26-year-old American has an immensely consistent record at the Malaysian Grand Prix having finished the race in fourth place on his four previous visits to Sepang. Hayden will be satisfied with nothing less than a podium finish on Sunday.

“Last week's result at Phillip Island definitely stung,” said Hayden of his engine failure, “But at least I was fighting for the lead when I went out rather than 12th place – that would have hurt even more. It's disappointing but I've just got to get over it.”

Hayden commented on the resurfacing saying, “At the other tracks we've been to that have been repaved for this year we've either gone really well or really badly so let's hope this one works out for us. We really need a good result and time is running out this season. There's only two more chances so we'll go all out this weekend.”