Pedrosa looking to cement lead

Pedrosa won last year's MotoGP round at Sachsenring and is looking to repeat that performance to defend his slender four-point lead over Valentino Rossi at the top of the standings.

"We're working very hard trying to improve our performance and we'll do our best to repeat my 2007 win, but we know it won't be easy," said Pedrosa.

"Sachsenring is quite a slow track and set-up is always difficult because it's a long race and you need a harder compound on the left side of the tyres. You need to use quite a static style, riding more gently and making fewer movements than usual on the bike.

"There's always a good atmosphere at this race, too, with a lot of fans and overflowing grandstands."

Pedrosa's Repsol Honda teammate Nicky Hayden is aiming for a podium to make up for Assen, where an electrical problem robbed him of his first rostrum finish in nearly a year.

The American finished third here last year to give the Repsol Honda two bikes on the podium for the first time in the season, and is confident he can do the same again this time.

"The bike is working well, the engine is running plenty good, we just had that little issue at the end of Assen which stopped me getting third," he said. "I'm sure the guys will have the electronics all fixed for this race and I've always gone pretty well there.

"It's a short lap and some people complain it's too tight and twisty but I like the fast left-hand corners and there are a lot of them."