Marc VDS Honda has confirmed Tito Rabat will be back in action at this weekend’s final pre-season outing at Qatar, having been sidelined through injury since the beginning of February.
The Spanish rider crashed heavily at Turn 11 early on the final day of the Sepang test at the beginning of last month, suffering several fractures in his right hand and foot, as well a nasty laceration to his left knee.
Rabat underwent successful surgery in Spain, but a lack of movement in his knee meant he was forced to sit out the second test at Phillip Island later in the month.
The time away has seen the Spaniard focus fully on rehabilitation, and though he admits that he isn’t quite up to full fitness he heads to Qatar confident of a productive three days of running on his RC213V.
“The last four weeks have been all about rehabilitation, working with the physiotherapist to recover from the injuries and also the surgery,” he said.
“I am still not back to full fitness but I’m fit to ride and although we’ll need to take the injuries into account in Qatar, this won’t stop us from enjoying a productive test.
“This test isn’t about pushing for a lap time, it’s about working with my crew, rebuilding my confidence with the bike and ensuring we are as well prepared as it’s possible to be when we return to the Losail International Circuit for the first race of the season.”
On the other side of the Marc VDS garage, team-mate Jack Miller, who has been enjoying a positive pre-season on his updated Honda, will be given the latest specification ‘big-bang-style’ engine from HRC to test.
“I’m feeling really good after the tests in Sepang and Phillip Island and I’m looking forward to carrying that momentum into the final pre-season test in Qatar, where we’ll be testing the latest specification Honda engine for the first time.” the Australian stated.
“It’s been a good pre-season so far; we’ve found some improvements and, step-by-step, we’ve managed to go faster, finishing inside the top ten last time out at Phillip Island.
“Now we’re heading into the final test before the season gets underway and the aim is simple; to make sure we’re fully prepared for when the lights go out for the first time in 2017.”
The final test ahead of the 2017 MotoGP season gets under way this Friday at the Losail International Circuit at 16:00 (GMT+3).
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