4th - Dani Pedrosa Average score out of ten: 7.6Team: Repsol HondaBike: RC213V (Factory)Wins: 2Podiums: 6Poles: 1Fastest Laps: 0Championship points: 206Championship position: 4th out of 28

Dani Pedrosa shocked the MotoGP world when, shortly after fading from second to sixth in the Qatar season-opener, he revealed a hidden battle with arm pump and was withdrawing from racing to seek immediate treatment.

With Pedrosa and Honda admitting the treatment options were unknown, given that previous surgery had proven ineffective, it is no exaggeration to say that Pedrosa's career hung in the balance.

A further 'complicated and aggressive' form of surgery was chosen, during which the entire 'casing' was removed from around the muscle in Pedrosa's forearm, the recovery from which saw Pedrosa absent for three races.

Upon his return, the Spaniard not only had the unknown factor of his fitness to contend with, but also the urgent need to improve the aggressive engine character of the 2015 Honda, which would catch out team-mate Marc Marquez multiple times during the year.

Pedrosa, who had never gone more than two races into a season without a rostrum, finally climbed the podium for the first time at round seven, his home event in Catalunya. A second place followed in Germany, but it would be the final five rounds where Pedrosa really came alive.

First up was Aragon, where Pedrosa put up probably the best fight of his premier-class career to resist Valentino Rossi for second place. He then caught and overtook both Rossi and Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo to claim victory at a wet Motegi, thus extending his record of at least one win a season since his 2006 MotoGP debut.

Pedrosa would later claim a dry win at Sepang, a race overshadowed by the controversial clash between Rossi and Marc Marquez.

While Rossi, Marquez and Lorenzo bickered over the incident and subsequent penalty, Pedrosa drew widespread praise for his cool-headed analysis and overall conduct in the post-race press conference.

The only rider to outscore Pedrosa in the last five events would be champion Lorenzo - Pedrosa's light weight seeing him to struggle to generate grip with the hard tyres needed at Phillip Island.

With Michelin replacing Bridgestone for 2016, riders will need to revise their technique to suit the French rubber. Some are already tipping Pedrosa's 'pick up and go' style as well suited to the Michelins, providing Honda can finally get on top of its engine issues...

About the vote:

Rather than repeat the Riders' World Championship standings, the MotoGP Star of the Year poll expects viewers to take into account factors such as machinery, performance relative to a team-mate, riding style, experience, injuries, progress and personality just as much as race results.

Over 100,000 votes were cast for the 2015 Crash.net MotoGP Star of the Year poll, where viewers awarding each of this year's participants with a mark out of ten.

2015 MotoGP Star of the Year: Results so far 4th Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda 7.65th Marc Marquez SPA Repsol Honda 7.196th Maverick Vinales SPA Team Suzuki Ecstar 7.187th Bradley Smith GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 7.098th Danilo Petrucci ITA Pramac Ducati 6.49th Aleix Espargaro SPA Team Suzuki Ecstar 6.210th Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team 5.9Full ranking to be revealed alongside the winner.