Andrea Iannone: Too risky to race in Laguna Seca

Andrea Iannone could have wrecked his rookie MotoGP campaign had he gambled on riding in Laguna Seca last weekend just a week after dislocating his right shoulder.

The Italian damaged his right shoulder when he crashed in final practice for the Sachsenring round in Germany and was ruled out of US Grand Prix after late medical checks in Italy.

Iannone has endured a torrid debut season in MotoGP on the Pramac Ducati and he hasn’t scored a top 10 finish since the second round in Austin.

Team boss Francesco Guidotti told MCN: “We only did the final exams on Andrea’s shoulder on Tuesday before Laguna Seca and then it was pretty clear that if he did come it was going to be a big risk.

“There was a big risk that it could compromise the rest of the season, so the option was to come and potentially compromise the last races or stay at home and be fully fit from Indy onwards. So finally it was an easy decision.”