Capirossi confirms retirement
Added on Thursday, September 1st, 2011 by Carole Nash Editor
Capirossi confirms retirement
Loris Capirossi has confirmed that he will retire from motorcycle racing at the end of the season, ending 22 seasons of Grand Prix racing.
The Pramac Ducati rider, a veteran of 324 Grand Prix, confirmed ahead of this weekend’s San Marino Grand Prix that he intends to retire at the end of the current season, despite offers from World Superbikes.
He said: “It is difficult for me to say this after 22 seasons but this for sure is my last race in Italy.”
Capirossi, who has ridden in the premier class for Sito Pons Honda, Ducati and Suzuki, secured his last race win in Japan in 2007 but has secured just one podium since, with a third place finish at Brno in 2008.
“I have decided to retire at the end of the season,” he added.
“I won’t go to a different championship and I will stop racing completely.
“I have been thinking a lot about stopping and I’ve kept saying yes and no, but I’m sure I’ve made the right decision.
“There are a lot of young riders coming really strong and I looked at myself and decided that this was the best time to stop.
“I started to ride when I was only four and now I am 38, and I have done 22 seasons in Grand Prix, so all my life I have been in bikes. Now I’ve got the rest of my life in front of me to think about what I do.”
