Casey Stoner is looking to bounce back from his dramatic German Grand Prix crash at this weekend's Italian round at Mugello.
Australian looking to bounce back after Sachsenring crash
Casey Stoner is looking to bounce back from his dramatic German Grand Prix crash at this weekend's Italian round of the MotoGP World Championship.
The Australian looked set to take over the outright lead in the riders' championship at the Sachsenring as he battled with Repsol Honda team-mate Dani Pedrosa for the win.
But an error towards the end of the final lap saw Stoner end his race in the gravel, allowing Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo to finish second and move 20 points clear in the standings.
Pedrosa's win also moved him above Stoner, and the two-time world champion, who is to retire at the end of the season, is eager to make amends for his mistake.
Competitive
And he hopes the more open expanses of Mugello will suit him more than the tight and twisting Sachsenring.
"I've always liked Mugello, we've enjoyed some pretty good results there," he said.
"Last year didn't go to plan but we know what we did wrong so hopefully this year we can be a little more competitive.
"I really enjoy the fast corners there, there are a lot of areas where we get a lot of wheel spin and a lot of fast changes of direction. It's not a small dinky little track that you can't use these bikes on, it's actually somewhere where you can open the throttle up and actually get to full throttle.
"After a disappointing race in Sachsenring, I want to get back on the bike and take some points back in the championship."
Valentino Rossi has dominated proceedings at Mugello for much of his 12 seasons in the top class, winning seven times in a row between 2002 and 2008.
But his recent history there has not been so kind. He suffered a broken leg in a crash there in 2010 and could only finish sixth in his debut year with Ducati in 2011.
Extra effort
The seven-time champion currently sits sixth in the standings but after his performance at the Sachsenring, where he finished sixth, he is ready to give it his all in the home race for himself and Ducati.
He said: "Last weekend was our best result of the year so far in the dry, so now we'll start from that base in an effort to improve at Mugello.
"It's the Italian Grand Prix, so everyone, including myself, must make an extra effort to do well in our home race.
"It's one of the nicest tracks in the world, in terms of the layout of the circuit, the atmosphere and all the fans that come to watch us and support us.
"We really have to try to do our best."
