Haga's team-mate, Briton Leon Haslam, has been a podium finisher in 2004 (race two at Oschersleben) and will be out to score a similar level of success on his 999RS.
Troy Corser and Chris Walker have one more 2004 adventure to play out on the 900cc, three-cylinder Petronas FP-1. The unique machine, with backwards-slanting cylinder heads, reverse exit exhausts and distinctive engine note has pushed each rider to a single podium finish in 2004 so far. Corser currently sits ninth in the championship battle, Walker 11th. Splitting them is the second DFX Ducati of Marco Borciani.
In a field of interesting entries, machine diversity will be much in evidence in France. The Bertocchi Kawasaki ZX-10 duo of Mauro Sanchini and Ivan Clementi, with Suzuki represented by the privately entered Zongshen team, on GSX-R1000s ridden by Warwick Nowland and Piergiorgio Bontempi.
Sebastien Gimbert, Carl Berthlesen, Berto Camlek, Laurent Brian and Giovanni Bussei will be wild card riders in France, as will Polish duo Pawel Szkopec and Andrzej Pawelec.
