Australia MotoGP: Casey Stoner confident of home hat-trick

Casey Stoner believes he can mount a strong challenge for a third successive home victory at Phillip Island this weekend.

Recovered from the recent chronic fatigue issues that forced him to miss three races earlier this season, the Aussie believes he is in good shape to fight for a third win of 2009.

The 23-year-old has dominated the last two races on home soil and he said: “The last two races mean something but not a lot. It’s not a matter of having a hat trick of wins.

“I’ve had some good wins this year but not as many as I thought I could get. The races I was struggling in, the bike was working well and it was just me letting everyone down. 

“I know I’ve got a chance of winning this race and even a chance of winning the next three. But this weekend I’m going to see if I can win it.”

Stoner said his brilliant return to action in Portugal, which saw him claim second behind Jorge Lorenzo, had helped his belief that he could comeback and run at the front despite a ten week lay-off.

He added: “I could have held a higher pace for longer in Portugal but I had second in the bag, so I just did that. To still be able to do low 37s at the end of the race was such a good feeling and I haven’t had this for such a long time.

“I’ve had this problem for a lot longer than I thought I did and it only made itself show in a hot race like Catalunya and I struggled.

“It has been very nice to sort it out and come here with a new enthusiasm for racing and get out there and enjoy it.

“I definitely feel I am better condition than before Portugal and hopefully I can be in even better condition before I get to Valencia.

“Every weekend now I think I will just get better and not have an issue in the future.

“Now we’ve figured this out I don’t think I will have something strange like this happen again, but if we do I’ll jump on it immediately.”