Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Bradley Smith has expressed his excitement about returning to action after seven weeks spent on the sidelines with a leg injury.
The British rider was due to contest the Oschersleben 8-Hour endurance race with YART between the Czech and British Grand Prix. A crash during the first free practice session at the German circuit, which saw him struck by another rider, resulted in ligament damage to his knee and a laceration to the leg.
Smith was forced to miss his home race at Silverstone, the San Marino and the Aragon Grand Prix whilst he recovered and was replaced by compatriot Alex Lowes, though Lowes was forced to miss the Aragon race after a heavy fall during FP1.
Smith says he is determined to achieve the best result possible, though admits that he will need some time to readjust to his YZR-M1 after such a lengthy absence. The Briton has a respectable history at the Twin Ring Motegi, finishing all three of his MotoGP outings inside the top 10 and claiming a podium in the 2010 125cc race when he finished third behind Nico Terol and Marc Marquez.
Of course Smith’s crowning achievement in Japan came in 2015 when he, along with Tech 3 teammate Pol Espargaro and Yamaha test rider Katsuyuki Nakasuga, won the iconic Suzuka 8-Hour race, which was Yamaha’s first since 1996.
The technical, stop-and-go nature of the Motegi circuit will likely take its toll on the still-recovering Smith, and this is something he has noted. But, he remains confident that he can put in a strong weekend to set him up nicely for the remaining two flyaway races in Australia and Malaysia.
“I am excited about jumping back on my YZR-M1 and even though I know it will be a challenging race, I am determined and I will do my very best,” said Smith.
“It will be the first time that I can ride a MotoGP bike after seven weeks and even though I am almost fit, it will take me a bit of time to fully adjust to being back on the Yamaha. This will be the initial goal of the weekend, but I am confident that I can quickly get up to speed again.
“Japan is a special place, with it being the home of Yamaha and also the country where I won the Suzuka 8 Hours event last year. Plus, the fans are fantastic and really supportive which will motivate me even further. However, I’m under no illusions that the weekend will be a physically demanding one due to the stop and go nature of the circuit, plus, there are a lot of hard braking corners but I am certain that we can start the flyaway races positively before we head to Phillip Island.”
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