Stoner out to increase MotoGP championship lead in Brno

Stoner heads into this weekend's Czech GP with a 20-point lead over Lorenzo following the Australian's victory over the Spaniard in the US GP last month, and said he went in the summer break boosted by his dominant performance at Laguna Seca.

"Now I feel relaxed and ready for the second half of the season," he said. "I'm looking forward to going to Brno, it's a circuit I've always enjoyed and I believe with the results we've had in the past years we can expect to have a good race there.

"I've seen that the Honda can be very competitive at all circuits this year so I'm sure we will also be strong in Brno."

Stoner hasn't written off the challenge from Lorenzo, who won the event last year which was dominated by Yamaha.

"The fact that it's very fast and flowing has helped the Yamahas in the past seasons and I think Jorge will be strong there, so I will be watching for him," said Stoner. "We'll be working on overcoming some of the issues we've had in the fast corners at circuits this year and we will certainly be looking for the win, or at the very least some more important championship points."

Team-mate Andrea Dovizioso, who lies third in the championship, is also determined to set the record straight with a good result this weekend after a disappointingly distant fourth last time out at Laguna Seca.

"We arrive in Brno very motivated as we want to redeem the disappointing result of Laguna," he said. "Brno is a fast track, the curves have a long range so the speed in the mid corner is high. I'm confident that we can be competitive there, the Honda machine is working very well and the characteristics of the track suit my riding style too.

"It's similar to Mugello and we look for a good result. Casey, Dani [Pedrosa] and Jorge will be strong rivals, but I'm confident that we will be able to fight with them. We are determined to return on the podium. This is our target."