MotoGP is heading to Jerez this weekend for the first European round of this year's World Championship.

The Jerez circuit first hosted MotoGP in 1987, a year after its construction, and the championship has made an annual pilgrimage to the track (it is always the venue for the first European round of the year) since 1989.

It has a complex layout, offering riders a real challenge. It boasts 13 turns over its 4.42km distance, so teams will be looking to set the bikes up for some hard braking with shorter, sharper bursts of power out of the corners.

Here Dani Pedrosa tells us about the main features of the layout, its corners and secrets.

Main straight and turn 1 and 2, Expo 92 and Michelin

Jerez is a very difficult circuit on a MotoGP bike. There are only a few straights and little time to rest. The main straight is short, so you reach the braking section of the first corner really quickly. Coming out well from turn 1 is important and the next turn, Michelin, is one of the points of the circuit that allows for good overtaking manoeuvres. It is a right-hand angle where you have to follow the perfect line to get ready for the series of corners coming next.

Turns 3 and 4

Turn 3 forces you to change the side on the bike, because you come out from turn 2 leaning to the right and have to change quickly to the left to enter turn 3. The straight leading to turn 4 is hardly noticeable and this turn is quite fast.

Turn 5, Sito Pons

The Sito Pons turn is really nice, I like it. The bike is almost flat; first it goes upwards and than it goes down to the longest straight of the circuit. You have to make good use of the track and come out well, because else you might get passed in the following 300 metres due to the slipstreams or in the next braking section.

Turn 6, Dry Sack

After the Sito Pons turn, we face the longest straight of the circuit. It goes downwards and you reach high speeds. The Dry Sack braking section is like all-or-nothing. You have to brake very well and avoid the other riders passing you through the inside. It is obviously also a good place to overtake your rivals.

Turn 7

This is a good point to check the condition of your tyres, because you are almost flat in this corner, and when you open the throttle, if the tyres are worn, you skid a lot. It is a fast corner and you are nearly flat.

Turn 8

This turn is a left-hand hairpin that forces you to lean down a lot and open the throttle really softly. You have to get out well to be able to follow the right line, especially if you have someone behind you, to do the Nieto and Peluqui turns well.

Turns 9 and 10, Nieto and Peluqui

These are two linked right-handers that become a single one. You have to be very precise when entering the first one, because if you make a mistake in the beginning, the rest won't be OK either. And you have to be careful when getting on the intermediate kerb; it is a bit irregular and you are almost lying there.

Turns 11 and 12, Crivillé and Ferrari

These are the two most important corners of the Jerez Circuit. It is very difficult to overtake there because you are at more than 200 Km/h, and it's definitely not a good place to crash. After turn 12 there is the angle before the start/finish straight, difficult and very important.

Turn 13, Ducados

It has different lines and it makes a difference whether you arrive there with a rider in front or behind. Moreover, the acceleration when coming out of the corner is crucial in the last lap if you're being followed by other riders. This corner has a difficult entry and exit.

Main straight

If you come out of the last corner badly you may be overtaken on the finish line. It is a small straight and you hardly have any time to rest on the MotoGP bike. You have to get almost immediately ready to brake for the first corner.

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Kawasaki Racing / Repsol Media Service

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