No regrets for Casey Stoner

Casey Stoner has said he won’t look back and ponder what might have been in 2009 after his brilliant return to winning ways in Australia last weekend.

The Aussie’s bid to regain the world title he won in dominant fashion in 2007 was ruined by a mystery mid-season illness that forced the 24-year-old to miss three races. Before his well- documented fatigue issues struck in early June, Stoner was right in contention for the title with Fiat Yamaha duo Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo.

But his three-race sabbatical killed off his title hopes, with Stoner missing the Brno, Indianapolis and Misano races while he underwent a series of tests to diagnose his health issues. Stoner’s return to action has been hugely impressive, with the factory Ducati claiming second in Estoril before he produced a brilliant performance to defeat Rossi on home soil at Phillip Island last weekend.

But Stoner reckons he won’t dwell on the past and ponder whether he could have been world champion again had it not been for his illness. He said: “ There is no point sitting around thinking about what could have been. That’s living in the past and there’s no point thinking about it and getting disappointed about it.

“We had the pace this year to try and fight for the championship, especially those five races when I wasn’t right because that’s when our bike was. That was the hardest time for us but we have to look onward and upwards, get ready for next year and another fight.

“It has been a tough couple of years for us and we go into the winter with hopefully no injuries so next year hopefully we’ll be ready to go from the beginning. Hopefully that will carry us through the season. It has definitely been a tough season and one I want to forget about.”