---
title: "Iannone to sit out Japanese Grand Prix"
canonical: "https://readmotorsport.com/2016/10/10/iannone-sit-japanese-grand-prix/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Lewis Duncan"
section: "MotoGP News"
published: "2016-10-10T11:10:24Z"
modified: "2016-10-10T11:10:46Z"
---

# Iannone to sit out Japanese Grand Prix

Ducati Corse rider Andrea Iannone will miss this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix at the TwinRing Motegi and will instead defer his return to action to the Australian Grand Prix in order to allow for his back injury to heal further.

Iannone was forced to miss the San Marino round last month after cracking his T3 vertebra in a crash during first practice. The Italian tried to ride in Aragon two weeks later, and despite posting some competitive times in FP1 the pain in his neck was too severe and he opted to sit that race out as well.

He had hoped to be back on his Desmosedici GP16 this weekend having had three weeks of recovery time, but his doctors have advised him to give his injury a little more recovery time to be fit for next weekend’s race at Phillip Island.

In a statement, Ducati said: “Last week the Ducati Team’s Italian rider underwent a series of checks, which showed that the excess fluid in his back injury had been almost totally absorbed and that the calcification process of the T3 vertebra, which he fractured at Misano after crashing during the first free practice session for the San Marino GP, was now well underway.

“However Iannone’s doctor has advised him to continue with his rehabilitation and to wait a few more days until the fracture has completely healed, before going out onto the track once again.”

Ducati test rider Michele Pirro has been called up to replace Iannone at Misano and Aragon, however, the Bologna manufacturer has decided to field just Andrea Dovizioso this weekend. Pirro will likely be on standby now should Iannone be ruled unfit in Australia.