Casey Stoner Retires

Casey Stoner Retires

ROUNDUP

REPSOL HONDA RIDER CASEY STONER, MOTOGP CHAMPION IN 2007 AND 2011, announced at the Le Mans pre-race press conference that he will retire from the series at the end of this season.

Stoner outlined three basic points leading to his decision. First, he said that he, his wife and family had been discussing such a change for two years. Second, he said that MotoGP has been changing and not for the better. As a result, he is no longer able to enjoy racing as he once did and feels he must stop before he loses his long passion for the sport. “I’ve seen other riders lose their passion,” he said, but remain in the sport for other reasons.

Third, he called the 2009 season “an eyeopener,” and although his remarks on the point were complex, he seemed hurt by the evident belief of some fans and journalists that he was malingering rather than dealing with a real lactose intolerance that left him with next to no energy.

“Nobody has listened to me,” he said. “I’ve spoken the truth.. .always.”

Stoner underlined his amazing abilities when he switched from Ducati to Honda, mastered a completely different machine and dominated the 2011 season. He did this after three inconclusive seasons of wandering in the same wilderness of doubt in which Valentino Rossi is now lost. Stoner is showing the same mastery now in 2012.

Kevin Cameron