Turn 3 to be named after Casey Stoner at Phillip Island

The Phillip Island track in Australia will honour reigning world champion Casey Stoner by naming its Turn 3 after the Repsol Honda rider later this week.

A special naming ceremony will take place at Turn 3, which is one of Stoner’s favourite corners on the 18-round world championship calendar, on Thursday morning ahead of his farewell appearance in front of his home crowd this weekend.

Stoner becomes the third Australian MotoGP world champion to have a corner named after him at Phillip Island.

The start/finish straight is named the Gardner Straight after 1987 500cc world champion Wayne Gardner. And the first turn is called Doohan Corner after five-times world champion Mick Doohan.

Stoner is bidding for an unprecedented sixth consecutive victory in his home race having not been defeated at the spectacular and super fast Phillip Island track since his first championship-winning year with Ducati in 2007.

The 27-year-old will retire from racing after next month’s Valencia race.

He finished third in a rain-lashed Sepang race in Malaysia yesterday in only his second race since returning from a serious ankle injury he suffered in a qualifying accident in Indianapolis.