Cal Crutchlow: Casey Stoner’s retirement took b***s

British rider Cal Crutchlow reckons Casey Stoner’s shock decision to retire from MotoGP at the end of 2012 took ‘massive b***s’ from the reigning world champion.

Stoner confirmed 2012 will be his last in MotoGP in Le Mans last week having decided to quit because of his disillusionment with constant rule changes and future plans to dumb down the adrenaline pumping performance of the 210mph prototypes in MotoGP.

Criticism that he was a prolific crasher and rumours that the lactose intolerance issue he first suffered in 2009 was grossly overplayed were all contributing reasons for his shock decision, said the Repsol Honda rider.

Stoner’s decision stunned the paddock but all of his rivals said they had the utmost admiration for the 26-year-old walking away at the peak of his powers.

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider Crutchlow also praised Stoner for having the courage to speak his mind and condemn the future direction MotoGP is taking.

Stoner is against plans to make MotoGP more like the current CRT concept in 2015, where bikes are based on prototype chassis and highly tuned production engines.

Speaking to MCN, Crutchlow said: “I completely agree with what he is saying but he is the only one with the b***s to say it.

“He can say it because he is stopping but it is difficult for us to say it because we all need jobs for next year and if the championship is going CRT we can’t say this and that is s**t.

“We need to be here but Casey’s opinion is totally right and I agree with everything he said. I believe every other rider thinks the same, but they don’t want to say it.”