Dani Pedrosa announces his retirement from MotoGP.
Words: B.T.
Images: Courtesy of MotoGP.com
October 15th, 2006 was when Dani Pedrosa’s name became etched into my memory forever! He was Nicky Hayden’s teammate that crashed into Nicky in turn 6 and seemingly ruined the American’s chances of a World Championship! How dare he?! Unforgivable! I hate this guy!
As luck would have it, Hayden would go on to win the Championship and Pedrosa was spared the wrath of an entire nation. But who was this “Pedrosa” dude? What was his deal? As my addiction to MotoGP grew, so did my compassion and admiration for Pedrosa.
Daniel Pedrosa Ramal was born on September 29th,1985 in Castellar del Valle’s, a village near Sabadell, Spain. Pedrosa stands 5’2 and weighs roughly 115 pounds. Think about Prince, but on a motorcycle! Talented but really, small. His weight would hamper and help him his entire career. On a drag race to the finish line, sure it helped him, but when he needed more rear grip? Well, at the size of a twelve-year-old girl… You figure it out!
Pedrosa was singled out by the man who would ultimately end his career, Alberto Puig. Puig saw something special in the young Spaniard in the Movistar Activa Cup in 1999. Although Pedrosa’s feet can barely touch the ground while sitting aside his race bike, he was vastly talented. He won the 125cc title in 2003 and went on to win the 250cc World Championship in 2004 and 2005.
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