Canepa aiming for Hero return in Thailand

Niccolò Canepa is hoping to return to the World Superbike championship in ten days in Thailand, despite still suffering from the effects of his heavy crash during race one at Phillip Island last month.

Avoiding breaking any bones in the crash, the Hero EBR rider was nonetheless left with extensive damage to his left leg, and has been in a struggle to regain full fitness ever since.

“In the end, the ligament in my left ankle was torn. I’m trying to do my best to recover as much as possible before the Thai Round. The leg still hurts quite badly. There is nothing else damaged apart from the ligament, but I’m in a lot of pain. Right now I can neither run nor cycle, though I must be ready for Thailand as the weather will make things difficult for everyone. Riding won’t be a problem anyway.”

“After the good results in the official test at Phillip Island I was hoping for a better opening round, but on Friday we had an engine issue in the morning and then a crash in the afternoon session,” he continued. “Then we all know what happened in Race 1. I’m still confident about the Thai Round, though, as I’ve always performed well on new tracks. In general I think we can aim at very good results on those tracks where top speed is not a huge factor: like Jerez, Assen, Misano and Imola.”