Stoner to take first MotoGP gingerly

[totalmotorcycle]

Stoner to take first MotoGP gingerly
Email Print Normal font Large font By Robert Grant
March 25, 2006 - The Age Australia - theage.com.au




AUSTRALIAN Casey Stoner is resigned to a slow start to the world motorcycle championship this weekend.

Stoner is recovering from shoulder surgery and while he will be fit for the season-opening Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez, he is not expecting points.

The Honda LCR rider has missed the past three pre-season tests after opting for an operation on his right shoulder when a dirt track injury flared during testing at Sepang in February.

Despite the setback, Stoner's post-surgery rehabilitation has gone to plan and he will be back on his RC211V tomorrow night (Melbourne time).

"Now I can start the season knowing my shoulder is fixed and just concentrate on riding," Stoner said. "But I don't have any big expectations for Jerez and the early races of the season. The Spanish GP will really be like a test session for me to get the feel of the Honda V5 again, after missing much of the winter testing.

"I won't be 100 per cent race fit but it's a long season, and a learning year for me, so I have time on my side."

The 2005 250cc series runner-up and the youngest rider on the grid, Stoner has no regrets about having surgery on the eve of his MotoGP debut.

"I was keen to get the injury treated now, a proper fix before the season starts, even if it means I won't be able to push flat-out in the first race," 20-year-old Stoner said.

"I have been comfortable with my pace in testing, both at Phillip Island and Sepang, and that was with my shoulder not being 100 per cent.

"In the past, I only felt some pain if I crashed and fell on my shoulder but in Malaysia, it flared up just from riding so it was important to get it fixed now."

MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi will be out to defend his crown for the fifth consecutive season.

The 27-year-old Italian has won six times in all classes at Jerez and a fifth win in the top category tomorrow would make him the most successful rider at the southern circuit.

This year could be different as the king of MotoGP will have to fight off young pretenders, as well as two of his oldest rivals.

Young guns include 20-year-old Spaniard Dani Pedrosa, last season's championship runner-up Marco Melandri and American duo Nicky Hayden and John Hopkins.

Much of the attention in Jerez will be focused on Honda's Pedrosa, who will be making his debut in MotoGP after winning three successive world titles in the 125cc and 250cc categories.

The Catalan's frail exterior conceals a steely determination that matches that of Rossi, but he is anxious to play down his chances of a title bid in his first season in the top class.

"People are expecting too much from me in my first year and I'm concerned that I might disappoint them," he said. "Everyone is saying that I'm the one who should be out there winning but there are five or six other riders out there with three or four years' more experience than me. I'm not the leading challenger to Rossi, there are other riders who should be taking on that role."

Rossi's old foes Sete Gibernau and Loris Capirossi look to have a truly competitive bike at Ducati and were the fastest riders in the final pre-season testing at Jerez, where Rossi struggled.