It was the worst kept secret of the MotoGP paddock after Sportmediaset spilled the beans, but it’s now been officially confirmed by Ducati that Casey Stoner will be leaving the Italian team at the end of this season.
Stoner’s destination will be Honda, even if the Japanese manufacturer has yet to give the official confirmation, but we expect their press release at the end of the day and another from Ducati on Valentino Rossi.
Ducati Press Release:The Valencia Grand Prix on November 7th 2010 will be the event that concludes four years of extraordinary collaboration between Ducati and Casey Stoner.
An important relationship characterized by a strong reciprocal esteem and many victories, among which the first MotoGP World Title for both the Italian manufacturer and the Australian rider.
Stoner arrived in Ducati in 2007 and, riding the Desmosedici GP7 that was making its debut in the new 800cc category, he took his first victory in the very first race, embarking on a path that would lead to the world title later in that same year and many more successes during subsequent seasons.
Ducati would like to thank Casey Stoner, who has decided to undertake a new challenge, with gratitude and affection that will always remain.
“I would like to thank Casey on behalf of our fans and our sponsors, but most of all on behalf of all the people working at Ducati,” commented Filippo Preziosi, Ducati Corse General Director.
“The victories and emotions he gave us, rewarded all the hard work and sacrifice we made.
In these four years together we have had a lot of great moments.
Securing the 2007 MotoGP World Championship title and the victory at Mugello in 2009 were moments that we will never forget.
In Casey we not only found an incredibly talented rider, but also an honest and loyal guy and that’s why there will always be a strong and sincere bond between us, even as a competitor.
”“I must thank Ducati for giving me such a great opportunity to race and win with them over these past four years” commented Casey Stoner.
“They took a gamble when they signed me at the end of 2006 as I was unknown, but as we worked together we were able to win a Championship, many races and challenge for the Championship in the last two seasons.
I have now decided to move on and I will have new challenges in the future and different obstacles to overcome, but I will not forget these years with Ducati and the people I have had the privilege to wor.
k so closely with.
So a big thanks to Ducati and all our sponsors who we have shared success with while achieving lifelong goals”