Stoner Returns to Europe

[Mothers Worry]

Stoner to miss next three races

From autosport.com:

Stoner to miss next three races

Monday, August 10th 2009, 13:17 GMT

Casey Stoner will miss the next three MotoGP rounds as he recovers from the physical problems that have plagued him since the Catalunya GP in June.

The Australian will be replaced at Brno, Indianapolis and Misano by Mika Kallio, who has raced for the Pramac customer Ducati team so far this season, and is scheduled to return for the Portuguese GP in October.

"After five extremely difficult races due to my health, I returned to Australia to visit the sports doctors who have looked after me for many years," said Stoner. "We have taken the difficult decision not to contest the next three rounds of the championship, to allow my body time to recover from the recent stress.

"The doctors believe that during the Barcelona race I was suffering from a virus, and that I subsequently pushed my body too hard, leading to problems that have caused my fatigue since then. The doctors are continuing with many tests to try to understand these problems and make sure it does not happen again.

"I have spoken with Ducati and thank them for their understanding at this time. I feel very sorry for the factory, my team, my sponsors and the fans, and I am also disappointed because the bike in the last races has been very competitive. I will be doing everything possible to come back at full strength for Portugal."

Kallio is looking forward to the opportunity to prove himself on a factory Ducati in the coming races.

"When I took the call I could hardly believe it," said Kallio. "I am proud to be racing the next three events with the Ducati team.

"Obviously I'm not expecting to suddenly be a second quicker, because our bikes are very similar to the official machines, but I hope to be able to pick up some good results for the team.

"I would particularly like to thank [Pramac team boss] Paolo Campinoti, who has allowed me to enjoy this incredible opportunity. It will be a real honour for me. Nonetheless I would like to send my best wishes to Casey and I hope to see him back out on track as soon as possible."

Kallio's place at the Pramac team will be taken by Michel Fabrizio at Brno this weekend.

Ducati team boss Livio Suppo added: "It's obviously difficult for us to contemplate the next three races without Casey, but it's clear that the most important thing at this time is his health.

"We have already overcome tough times together, like when he had to undergo surgery on his scaphoid towards the end of last season. We are united whether in times of success or in times of difficulty. We are confident that the doctors will help solve the issues that have affected him since early June and that Casey will be able to take part in the last races of the year in peak fitness.

"A big thank you to Paolo Campinoti who, as always, has proved to be a great supporter and an ideal partner for Ducati, allowing Mika to ride with the Ducati team for the next three races. Mika is having a really positive debut year in MotoGP and we are delighted that he will be alongside Nicky Hayden in the official works team."

Bummer........... get well soon.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Yeah, but he was seemingly not getting anywhere continuing as he was, so it is probably the best decision. 

Great opportunity for Kallio though, and the best of luck to him as I really quite rate him. 

[Mothers Worry]

Yeah, but he was seemingly not getting anywhere continuing as he was, so it is probably the best decision. 

It certainly makes it clear why he wasn't getting anywhere.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Yeah, but he was seemingly not getting anywhere continuing as he was, so it is probably the best decision. 

It certainly makes it clear why he wasn't getting anywhere.

Yeah, I thought after Laguna they confirmed he was suffering from anaemia probably compounded by the virus he had prior to that.  It seems strange that an environment such as top line motorsports where the riders / drivers are so nutritionally monitored and organised to be diagnosed with an (to my laymans understanding) essentially dietary deficiency ailment.

[auto]

I know he was only a slight chance to win the Championship with the Fiat Yamahas going so good but it was still a chance.

He is the 2nd or 3rd best rider out there and the races will be that bit less enjoyable not having an Australian but even better/worse a fantastic rider.

[Mothers Worry]

He is the 2nd or 3rd best rider out there and the races will be that bit less enjoyable not having an Australian but even better/worse a fantastic rider.

Yes he can ride very well.

Don't forget that Chris Vermeulen is still out there. O.k. he's not in contention for the major prize this season either but it's all good.

[Mad Maper 13]

He tried to solider on and it is sad that this has struck him down

[Mothers Worry]

Stoner denies career under threat  

From autosport.com:

Stoner denies career under threat  

Thursday, August 27th 2009, 11:16 GMT

Former MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner has dismissed speculation that his career is under threat from the mystery illness that has forced him to take a break from the sport and says he is determined to return in time for the Portuguese Grand Prix.

Ducati is about to embark on its second race weekend without Stoner, following the 23-year-old's self-imposed three-race break to try and shake the post-viral fatigue doctors say has stricken him down this season.

The sabbatical has prompted speculation over the 18-time grand prix winner's long-term future, but Stoner has strongly refuted such suggestions.

"I haven't lost my love for bikes and racing," he told Motosprint this week. "And neither for Ducati. My plan is to return to racing as soon as I get my energy back.

"The objective is still to race in Portugal."

Stoner says he has no plans to walk away from the sport: "I would like to carry on racing for a few more years, because racing a bike is what I hope to be doing as soon as possible. I just need to recover and to get back to a level of form that allows me to do that well."

He admits however that he felt compelled to stop now and recover, and admitted that he had been frustrated by his condition: "At one point I started having a bad feeling: I felt vulnerable, and I found myself in the position of someone doing something he hates. It's like finding yourself doing a job you can't stand, but that you have to do anyway.

"It was a really bad feeling for me, to realise that while I was riding my bike, while I was racing and fighting against my rivals, I was really pushing to the maximum, I was giving it my all, but there was nothing I could do to avoid those results I don't like. They are not up to my usual level of performance.

"This [break] was the only possibility I could see. I convinced myself that I had to detach myself, for a short time but completely, from what I was doing: I had to disconnect from racing.

"The most frustrating thing is being unable to ride my bike perfectly. It's bad for me, for the team, for Ducati. This situation is difficult for everyone.

"I can make shift and manage injuries, but I can't manage something I don't know."

Stoner believes that his condition has been provoked by pushing himself beyond his physical limits this season. "I'm certainly not the first athlete to do that," he said. "I have got to the point that I need rest, because the fatigue has become too much to recover as quickly as it should.

"I can't come to terms with the fact that I can't ride to the best of my abilities. The Desmosedici is capable of winning, but I'm not. At least not at the moment. That's why I've taken this break: I want to rest, I want to find again the energy to go back doing what I used to do before with this bike."

Stoner's father and manager, Colin, says that his son's break from the sport is already beginning to show signs of having worked.

"It's been positive, and in fact there are already positive signs, recovery signs, just for having rested a bit and for having completely reviewed the nutrition and preparation programmes," he said.

"He is following a program designed to allow him to rest completely without thinking of the races. On top of that he is on a different diet and he takes some medicines."

"Casey's objective is to return in Estoril. The only thing that could change this programme would be a worsening of his physical conditions, but that would be completely unexpected.

"If everything goes well, Casey will be back for the final races and then he will rest at the end of the season, since after the Valencia test he will have the possibility of a rather long winter break, before coming back in good form in 2010."

It's good to hear that the break is having positive effects. Hopefully we will see CS back into the fray ASAP.

[nayr37]

I vaguely remember Alex Criville (sp?) having gone through a similar mystery illness?...I dont think he ever fully recovered and faded into the background. Hopefully Casey finds his health soon.

[Mothers Worry]

Ducati confirms Stoner return at Estoril

From autosport.com:

Ducati confirms Stoner return at Estoril  

Tuesday, September 29th 2009, 15:03 GMT

The Ducati team has confirmed Casey Stoner will return to racing action as scheduled at this weekend's Portuguese Grand Prix.

Stoner has skipped the last three races of the season as he recovered from the mysterious illness that affected him earlier this year.

During his time away from the track, the Australian has been under constant supervision of a medical team, undergoing a series of exams and special tests.

Ducati said the results of the tests had excluded pathological anomalies of cardiovascular, respiratory or neurological origins. The exams and inspections also failed to show up any kind of virus or infection.

However, the medical report revealed low blood pressure levels and a lack of sodium, two factors that doctors believe were the main cause of the physical problems Stoner suffered earlier in the season.

According to the team, the doctors said it was absolutely necessary that Stoner rested in order to avoid aggravating his physical debilitation.

Stoner underwent a final medical exam before leaving Australia and doctors confirmed he is in better physical shape, although still not fully recovered.

The 2007 world champion will be back in action at Estoril this weekend, and will remain under medical supervision, with a new sodium-rich diet aimed at raising his blood pressure and muscular functionality.

"I'm definitely looking forward to the race weekend," said Stoner. "Having three races off is the biggest period away from racing in my life. It was very difficult to accept the advice of the doctors to stop racing.

"In the past I have raced even when injured, like in the last few races of the 2008 season when my wrist was broken, but this time it was really not possible and of course I felt very sorry for the team.

"Now I'm looking forward to getting back together with the team and everyone and I hope I'll be able to be more competitive than I was in the past, but we will have to wait and see.

"The doctors have put me on some salt tablets to increase my sodium levels but we will have to see if it helps. We will understand more during the weekend.

"Of course it's going to be difficult: at first we won't know if it will work because I've been off the bike so long that in any case my muscles will take some time to get race fit again. But, as I said, I'm looking forward to getting back and to starting work on the bike, looking towards the future."

Team boss Livio Suppo added: "We are really pleased that Casey is back with us. We never had any doubt that he would be with us once again at Estoril. We know that he is still not in 100% peak fitness and we just hope that over the last four races of the season he can gradually build his strength and work with Nicky to help Filippo develop the bike.

"With that goal in mind we have a few new things to try this weekend, in particular a new fairing which is designed to make the bike handle better in strong winds and fast direction changes. I really hope Nicky's luck turns around after Misano because his season has got gradually better and I'm sure he'll keep that trend going this weekend."

Hopefully he can put a few good runs in before the season ends a strike some fear into the hearts of his opponents for 2010.