Desert run for Stoner

Casey Stoner returns to the scene of his greatest MotoGP triumph of his short premier class career in Qatar next.

And the Australian rider is hoping to make as big an impact at the IRTA test as he did in last year’s Qatar GP.

Stoner exploded onto the premier class scene in Qatar last season, claiming a stunning pole position in his only second MotoGP race. He also topped the timesheets in four out of the five sessions and led the race for 10-laps, before illness that dogged him all weekend saw him fade out of the top three.

The Qatar test that gets underway on February 13 will be Stoner’s first ride at the Losail International Circuit on Ducati’s new GP7 800 machine.

And he said: “I really don’t know what to expect. Even now I’m still shocked about Qatar last year. I felt like crap, I was riding like crap and I still stuck it on pole. It would be nice to think ]

“I could have similar success to last year but it’s a different bike, different tyres, different time of year and I think we’ll just see how we go. I can’t make any predictions.”