Casey Stoner satisfied with wrist progress

Aussie Casey Stoner is confident his left wrist will be recovered sufficiently for him to resume winter testing in Sepang next month.

The former MotoGP world champion visited specialists in Italy yesterday (Monday) on the eve of today’s official 2009 Ducati team launch.

And the factory Ducati rider was boosted by news that his left wrist is making good progress after major surgery and he is on target to return to action when winter testing resumes in Malaysia on February 5.

Stoner needed a bone graft on the wrist in November after an old 2003 injury flared up during last season when he was comprehensively beaten to the world title by Yamaha rival Valentino Rossi.

Stoner, who won six races in 2008, did admit that his progress had been slower than he’d anticipated.

He said: “So far everything is very good. As far as I can tell the bone is healing perfectly.

“The bone graft has attached itself quite well and I’ve still got to take it very easily for the next month or so just to make sure I don’t break that connection and make sure that everything is still healing as well as it is going at the moment.

“The main thing at the moment is trying to heal the scar tissue because that is still restricting a lot of movement. I don’t know if I’m behind schedule but I’m not quite as far on as I thought I would be.

“As for riding a bike I think it will be close enough to 100 per cent, especially by the time we get to the first test in Sepang. I really want to try and push it a little bit more now I know the bone is healing quite well. I think over these next two or three weeks I should be able to bring it on a long way.”

Stoner said he currently has about 80 per cent movement back in his wrist having spent the entire time since his operation in a lightweight cast.

He added: “The movement in the wrist at the moment up and down is about 80 per cent. Considering the time I’ve had to keep it in a cast I have only just been told that I can now move it a little bit more aggressively and stretching the muscle a little bit more.

“I don’t think there is any issue and I’ve got no problems. I can grip anything I want so it is just a matter of building my arm muscle up again and stretching the wrist out gently.

“I think by the first test, even without 100 per cent movement, riding wise it should be close enough to 100 per cent.”