After a mixed start to the defence of his double MotoGP title, Spanish superstar Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team RC213V) will be on a special mission for the first of four home-turf MotoGP races at Jerez on Sunday, as the European Grand Prix season begins in front of massive crowds.

Still only 22, and with his eyes firmly on taking a classic third successive premier-class crown, Marquez took victory at Jerez last year, starting from pole position – the fourth in a run of ten straight wins as he powered to a dominant second title. The year before the former 125cc and Moto2 World Champion broke every youngest-ever record going as he won the premier-class series at his first attempt.

The first three races of this year have brought mixed fortunes. He was fifth in round one in at Qatar, after a first-corner error; then he won round two at the Circuit of the Americas, his third straight pole-to-chequer win at the Texan circuit. A week later in Argentina he was on pole again, and pulled away in a lead that lasted until the penultimate lap. In a skirmish with multi-champion Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), the bikes touched at speed, and Marquez fell, scoring no points, although escaping unhurt.

In the break after that race, however, more misfortune struck. Marquez was training on a dirt bike and broke the little finger of his left hand. The injury is painful and potentially problematic, but the four-time World Champion has been passed fit to race.

Jerez is his first chance to get his campaign under way again, at a circuit where in addition to last year’s win he has been no stranger to the podium. At his first attempt in MotoGP he was second; and was twice a rostrum finisher in the smaller classes.

Regular team-mate Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team RC213V), a double Jerez MotoGP winner, is still out of action after surgery to address arm-pump issues. The second factory Honda will again be ridden by HRC factory tester Hiroshi Aoyama. The experienced Japanese racer, who won the last 250cc World Championship for Honda in 2009, rode the factory machine in Texas and in Argentina, scoring points at his first attempt.

Two more riders campaign the pace-setting Factory Option Hondas, with former World 600 Supersport Champion Cal Crutchlow (CWM LCR Honda RC213V) riding high after making his rostrum return with a strong third place in Argentina. The English rider is new to Honda, and claimed a pair of seventh places while adjusting to the machine in the opening rounds. Crutchlow has never finished lower than sixth at Jerez, with a best finish of fourth in 2012, riding a Yamaha.

The second English rider on the top-level machine, Scott Redding (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS Honda RC213V), has also moved up to the Factory machine, after finishing top Open (production-racer) Honda last year in his first season in the class.

Redding, youngest-ever GP winner at 15, was runner up in Moto2 in 2013. This year he scored points in Qatar, crashed out of the next race, but claimed a first top-ten finish of the year in Argentina. He finished second at Jerez in Moto2 in 2013, and 13th in MotoGP last year.

Four more riders carry the Honda banner, on the uprated Open Honda RC213V-RS, a close replica of last year’s Factory machine. Open riders have the advantage of more fuel and a softer tyre choice compared with the works bikes. The two most successful so far are from opposite ends of the spectrum.

Jack Miller (CWM LCR Honda RC213V-RS) is in his first MotoGP season, having leapfrogged directly to the premier class from Moto3, where he was a close runner up in the 2014 championship, displaced only at the final race by Honda’s Alex Marquez.

The 20-year-old Australian has made a strong start, scoring points in two out of three races, with a best of 12th at the last race in Argentina. Miller was fourth at Jerez last year, in a typically close Moto3 race.

Miller has six points so far, while the vastly experienced 2006 Honda World Champion Nicky Hayden (Aspar Honda RC213V-RS) has three, after narrowly missing the top 15 in the first and third rounds. The American rider has a good history at Jerez, twice finishing on the rostrum; and is determined to move up the results sheets this year as he learns how to get the best out of the significantly improved Honda.

Eugene Laverty (Aspar Honda RC213V-RS) is a MotoGP rookie, although a former 250cc rider, and has yet to open his World Championship points account, after returning to the series from a starring role in World Superbikes. Former Moto2 GP winner Karel Abraham (AB Motoracing Honda RC213V-RS) is in a similar position.

Traditionally the opening round of the European season, attracting throngs of race-starved fans, Jerez is a cornerstone of the MotoGP series after almost three decades of continuous as a GP venue. In 27 years, Honda has won the premier-class Jerez race 19 times.

The Jerez start-finish straight is straddled by a glassed-in circular “UFO”, the very technical track is 4.423 km (2.748 miles) of almost continuous corner sets. The lap finishes with a hairpin overlooked by grandstands – frequently the scene of decisive last-lap battles.

The next round is at Le Mans in France, on May 17.

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team

“Today I underwent another examination by Dr. [Xavier] Mir, and he confirmed that the wound is healing well and looking good. He took off the cast that they had put on and now I have begun to do some physiotherapy work with some active and passive movements. My finger will be checked at Jerez after every session and the bandages will be changed. I am very motivated for this Grand Prix, because it is the first of the year in Spain, there are my home fans there and I have some good memories from previous years! It’s a pity about the injury, but I hope that it doesn’t affect me too much and that I can get a great result in front of the fans.”

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda Team

“I really hoped to return in Jerez but after riding a supermotard bike on Monday we decided it’s not the best option. By competing in an entire race weekend we risk damaging the arm further and slowing down the healing process and the last thing I want to do is create a bigger problem. I’m missing my team and can’t wait to come back in Le Mans. Thank you all for all your kind messages, they give me strength in these tough times.”

Cal Crutchlow, CWM LCR

“I was a bit lucky to get on the podium in Argentina because Marc crashed, but all the same I felt I deserved it. I am still learning the RC213V, but obviously my pace is good, and I can only hope it will get even better, and I won’t need luck to make the top three. Honda have been helpful, with a new chassis for the second round. So far everything is going pretty well, even if I’d hoped for better in the first two races. Jerez is a great track with a great atmosphere. Should be a good weekend.”

Scott Redding, Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS

“Argentina was a bit like Texas, as we had the speed but we still need to find a few things with the bike that work for me and work consistently. We will receive updated chassis parts in Jerez, so this should help us make the next step, but we also return to Europe with more experience of the bike and a clear direction in which to go in with regards to set-up. The priority is to improve my feeling from the front to give me more confidence. We’ve made a lot of progress in this area since the start of the season and we just need to continue in the same way. The goal for Jerez is simply to carry on improving and to try and close the gap to the guys at the front.”  

Jack Miller, CWM LCR

“I must admit I was a bit nervous before the start of the season, not knowing what to expect first time on a MotoGP bike. The first three races eased my mind a lot. I’m still learning – the Honda, the tyres and everything. But I’ve been able to race hard every time, and do better at each event. I hope to keep up the same progress at Jerez. I can’t wait for my first top-ten finish.”

Hiroshi Aoyama, Repsol Honda Team

“I’m sorry for Dani that he is not able to return to racing this weekend at his home Grand Prix. Honda have asked me to substitute for him again and it’s an honour to do so. I have made some progression with the team during the Austin and Argentina race weekends and they have helped me a lot, so I hope we can make another step in Jerez. It’s a tight track on these big bikes but I’m looking forward to racing there with Repsol Honda.”

Nicky Hayden, Aspar MotoGP Team

“The Spanish GP is the first European race of the season and it is always nice to race at Jerez, a circuit I love. It is a fantastic track and it has an atmosphere like nowhere else, plus I had some good results there in the past so I have good memories. It has quite a lot of fast corners, which should suit our bike, but we need to work to improve grip and make ourselves even more competitive. Everybody has three races behind them now so the competition is getting tougher. The more data everybody has, the more the pace will increase. We have ridden this bike now at three completely different tracks and we have learnt a lot about it. We are improving our form as we go and I hope that continues this weekend.”

Karel Abraham, AB Motoracing

“No points so far, for all the wrong reasons. Jerez is the chance to make up for it. So far this year, I’ve been knocked off, and suffered a couple of technical issues. I’m determined to get back on track in Spain, but I need not to have any more bad luck!”

Eugene Laverty, Aspar MotoGP Team

“We did a great job all weekend in Argentina, probably the best we have done since I started in MotoGP, but we didn’t manage to back it up with a performance in the race. I know we can be strong at Jerez in practice and we have to work very hard to make sure that Sunday doesn’t go the same way as Argentina. In any case we have come a long way since the start of the year and I am sure all the hard work will start to pay off soon. I like Jerez and I had two wins there in Superbikes so it is a place that holds happy memories for me.”