Di Meglio in the driving seat in the run-up to Brno

Mike di Meglio is assured of leaving the Cardion AB Grand Prix Ceske Republiky in the driving seat of the 125cc World Championship, currently holding as he does a 30-point lead over the class. With a trio of victories to his name –including glory at the previous round in Germany- Ajo Motorsport´s French revelation is in a strong position at the top of a highly competitive lower cylinder category.

The 20 year-old has been on a quest to shed some pounds over the summer –and not for August daytrips to the beach. Di Meglio identified some extra drag on the straights in recent races, and wants to feel the full benefit of opening the throttle on his Derbi machine.

When the action resumes, he will be also looking to lose Simone Corsi, his closest rival in the standings. Jack & Jones WRB´s Italian stallion is looking to pile on the pressure as the season heads to its crucial final few Grands Prix, having established himself as a proven race-winner.

Trailing Di Meglio by a further 27 points is Gabor Talmacsi, riding at what has previously been regarded as his home race. The addition of Hungary to the MotoGP calendar for 2009 and the reigning World Champion´s difficulties in his title-defending season will do little to keep fans from his homeland making the journey to support their hero, and will go a long way towards packing the grandstands on raceday. Talmacsi has picked up momentum with victory at Assen and a podium at Sachsenring, and is out to prove that the title chase isn´t a two-horse race just yet.

Bearing down on the top three are Stefan Bradl, Joan Olive and Nico Terol, a trio of riders who have each stepped onto the podium in 2008 but are still chasing that elusive first World Championship victory. They are separated by just ten points, whilst Bradley Smith, Pol Espargaro, Sandro Cortese and Scott Redding appear further down in the top ten.