The Tech3 duo keenly await the forthcoming Monster Energy Grand Prix de France at the legendary Le Mans circuit with both riders fully confident of clinching two strong finishes at the team’s home round.

Pol Espargaro will once again be targeting to finish as close as possible to the factory MotoGP riders as he intends to seal the leading satellite placement in the race for the third time this year. The Spaniard, who currently sits in 5th in the Championship standings, undertook a successful test after the Spanish GP and he now intends to use the findings to aid his fight to snatch a notable result.

Whilst Bradley Smith aims to turn around his tricky season so far and battle with his teammate for the top independent position aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1. After making progress at the Jerez test, the 25-year-old British will be gunning to repeat his strong performance in last year’s race at Le Mans, where he seized 6th.

Pol Espargaro -  Championship: 5th Points: 36 

"Next up is Le Mans and I am looking forward to doing my best there plus making the team proud at their home Grand Prix. The circuit is one of the most famous in the world and I do enjoy riding it every year. I have some fond memories such as finishing in 4th in my rookie season with the Tech3 team after qualifying in 2nd. Of course, I’m not under any illusion that it will be easy to achieve this result again as the competition level has risen this year, yet I will give it everything I’ve got. After the Spanish GP, we had a useful test where we made some positive steps forwards with regards to the suspension and the setup. Therefore, I’m excited to see what we can achieve with these changes in France as I feel that we made some valuable discoveries in Jerez. The weather is always a tricky factor in Le Mans because we have often had rain in the past but I hope that the skies stay clear for this weekend! In any case, I am excited and ready to get the show going in France."

Bradley Smith -  Championship: 12th Points: 20 

"Although this season has been quite challenging for me, I am determined to turn things around in Le Mans, especially as it’s the Tech3 team’s home race, plus the Grand Prix is sponsored by Monster Energy who are the team’s title backers. Le Mans is always interesting and the weather there is similar to what we get in England so we all have to be prepared for rain, even if I am keeping my fingers crossed for a dry weekend. However, despite the fact whether it’s wet or not, I am going to do my absolute best and hopefully, we get the bike set up well on the opening day in order to be in a good position to fight for the top independent placement on Sunday. This is what I’ll be aiming for but we will have to work hard to be able to get there. Anyway, we ran well at Le Mans last year and we made some progress at the test in Jerez so we will see what happens. Yet, I am keen to get going and give the Tech3 fans something to cheer about."

Hervé Poncharal - Team manager :

“This weekend will be a very busy one for the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team but it’s an event that we all love because it’s our home Grand Prix. The fans are always fantastic at Le Mans and the circuit is legendary so it’s great that we can compete there. In addition, the GP is backed by our lead sponsor Monster Energy which makes the event even more special for us. In terms of results, we hope that Pol can keep his head down and ride to another strong position at a track that we know he likes. He made some good steps forward at Jerez, therefore, we are sure that he can show everyone what he is capable of in France. As for Brad, he has had a challenging start to the season and is finishing in places that he can’t be satisfied with. However, he is trying his absolute hardest and we are supporting him as much as we can, so I hope that he can fight with his teammate for the top independent placement in Sunday’s race. We are all excited about the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France and we fully aim to do our best for the fans.”