After a lull in the local racing scene, Sepang International Circuit (SIC), will once again be rocked by the roar of deafening engines as the MotoGP teams and riders converge for their annual pre-season tests from tomorrow (31st January) until the 2nd of February.

The 3 day tests will give a first glimpse of the new 1000cc MotoGP bikes as manufacturers initiate their first official test of the year on the 2012 machinery. It will be a step into unchartered territory for all the riders as they get to grips with their new 1000 cc machines, replacing the now defunct 800 cc bikes starting from this year in the MotoGP.

It will be also mean an emotional return for all the MotoGP riders as this will be first time the riders will return to Sepang Circuit after the tragic death of San Carlo Honda Gresini rider, Marco Simoncelli last October during the Malaysian MotoGP.

Simoncelli, from Italy, suffered a serious accident where he sustained critical injuries after being involved in a collision with Colin Edwards and Valentino Rossi at Turn 11 while the race was still in its infancy.

Teams and riders will have to make the most of the three, 3-day testing sessions, with a first test from 31st January to 2nd February in Sepang with another test scheduled from 28th February to 1st March, before a final test in Jerez from 23rd March to 25th March, just two weeks before the start of the season in Qatar on the 8th of April.

The key factory teams will see their riders' line-up unchanged, with Casey Stoner set to defend his world title alongside Repsol Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa; the Yamaha Factory team will again be represented by Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies, while Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden will be hard at work with the Ducati team in order to push the Italian outfit at the front of the MotoGP pack.

Currently recovering from a broken left shoulder blade and two broken ribs from a flat track crash during the last week of December, Hayden has been working on his fitness from his California home that he shares with his brothers in preparation for his debut on the Ducati GP12 at Sepang next week.

The American hasn’t ridden the new GP12 yet, nor was he able to test the version of it Valentino Rossi rode at the Valencia test in early November, as he broke his wrist in a crash at the final race of 2011. And while he is working hard, undergoing physical therapy and engaging in his daily training activities, Hayden said in a tweet on January 25th that he is getting better, but that Malaysia is going to be difficult.

The winter months are normally used for intensive training, as an 18 race schedule supplemented by testing and public relations events and does not allow for work on building a base level of fitness, and while the winters are not bad in his hometown of Owensboro in Kentucky, California allows him the choice of which type of two-wheeled training he will engage in day to day, whether it’s road cycling, mountain biking or dirt bike riding, all of which are his preferred method of training.

"I love motorcycles, off-road, on-road…anything. I grew up flat tracking and I still follow it and do it for training," he recently said in an interview.

And should he need to defend his choice of using flat-track to train despite the obvious risk of injury, Hayden said, "I believe riding any kind of motorbike is the best training. You can do as many push-ups as you want at the gym, but there is nothing like using the muscles and the brain when you are on two-wheels."

The off-season saw some major migrations including that of Andrea Dovizioso, who will make his debut on a Yamaha with Tech3 alongside Cal Crutchlow, and Alvaro Bautista, who will spearhead the Honda Gresini team effort. Hector Barbera will now be the sole rider of the Pramac Racing Team while Karel Abraham will continue his career with Cardion AB Racing Team.

Colin Edwards and Randy de Puniet joined the ranks of Forward Racing and Aspar Team respectively, for which they will ride the new CRT-spec machines. With the new CRT entries, a total of 21 riders will form the MotoGP grid this year, giving newcomers such as Danilo Petrucci, Ivan Silva, Michele Pirro and Yonny Hernandez a chance to shine in the premier class, and also a path back into MotoGP for the likes of Anthony West, Aleix Espargaro and James Ellison.

In conjunction with the MotoGP pre-season test session in SIC, the main grandstand will be opened for fans to watch it for free while enjoying special early bird ticket promotion for the 2012 Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix. Additional to that, for every MotoGP ticket purchase during the testing session, fans are entitled to a 50% discount on 2012 Formula 1 PETRONAS Malaysia Grand Prix hillstand tickets from as low as RM30.

“For the test, we will be opening the Main Grandstand for Malaysian fans to come and see their idols in action. There will no charge and fans could take advantage of their trip to buy the discounted tickets from only RM40 for MotoGP race on the 21st to 23rd October, and a special 50% discount on hillstand tickets for F1. Fans get to enjoy both international events such as F1 and MotoGP for less than RM100.” said Razlan.

The MotoGP season starts on the 6th to 8th in Losail, Qatar with the season finale scheduled in Valencia on the 9th to 11th November in Valencia, Spain.

Testing calendar:

MotoGP

- Sepang 1 MotoGP, 31/01-02/02

- Sepang 2 MotoGP, 28/02-01/03

- Jerez 1 MotoGP, 23/03-25/03

Moto2/Moto3

- Valencia Moto2/Moto3, 08/02-10/02

- Jerez 1 Moto2/Moto3, 16/02-18/02

- Jerez 2 Moto2/Moto3, 19/03-21/03

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