Ducati rider Ben Spies misses out final day at Sepang – MotoGP news
In an effort to rest his healing shoulder, Texan rider Ben Spies did not participate in the third and final day of the first official MotoGP test in 2013.
It was at Sepang; the same circuit which is hosting the current test, that Spies suffered an injury in October last year which later forced him to undergo a surgery. Apart from the shoulder
injury, Spies claimed that he is not at hundred percent fit right now.
“I woke up this morning and felt a little bit sore from the two days of riding and - with only starting rehab 2-3 weeks ago - it's not just my shoulder but my general physical fitness is
nowhere near where it needs to be,” Spies said on Thursday.
On Tuesday, having made his Desmosedici debut, Spies ran a total of 21 laps whereas the following day, he managed to complete 27 laps. At the end of day two at Sepang, Spies was the 13th
fastest rider.
Spies seemed satisfied with his run during the first two days at Sepang.
“I think we did a good job over the first two days with the laps we did,” Spies said.
The team could not gather much statistical data about the performance of the 2013 Ducati bike. For this reason, Spies did not comment too much when asked about the performance of his bike.
“About all I can say at this stage is that the [seamless] gearbox is nice, smooth and super fast. The engine has a lot of power and the bike feels strong in straight-line braking,” Spies
said.
It has been more than two years since a Ducati rider won a Grand Prix round. It was Casey Stoner who won Ducati their last race way back in October 2010 at Philip Island. Keeping this fact
in mind, Ducati are eager to get back in the winning streak although it will not be easy considering the recent runs of Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa.
MotoGP teams meet again at the same circuit approximately three weeks from now for the second official MotoGP test in 2013. It remains to be seen how Spies fares on his Ducati bike in the
second test.
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