Last minute Qatar decision for Pedrosa
Added on Monday, March 9th, 2009 by Carole Nash Editor
Last minute Qatar decision for Pedrosa
Dani Pedrosa is trying to remain upbeat about his chances of being fit for the opening of the new MotoGP season although doctors have refused to commit to the Spaniard making an appearance on the grid in Qatar.
Pedrosa faces up to four weeks recovering from knee surgery following a crash at Losail last week, certainly ruling him out of the final official test of the pre-season in Jerez in two weeks time and casting major doubts over whether he can make the opening race of 2009 under the floodlights at Qatar in April.
The Honda rider has been told by doctors that he faces up to four weeks before regaining any sort of movement in his knee but last year’s third placed rider remained upbeat about his chances of making the season’s first green flag – even if it means waiting until race day before making a decision.
“I feel quite a lot better,” said Pedrosa. “When I arrived the truth is that the knee did not look very good, but the operation went well and I am pleased. This morning Dr (Bartolome) Ferreira made his final check and I saw how good the knee was looking.
“Now I have to rest a little as it is very important to give the body a break for the first few days, let things take their course, then I will start my recovery plan.
“We are planning to work hard and so be ready for the first race in Qatar, but when the day arrives we will have to see whether I am really in perfect shape to get on the bike,” he said. “The objective is to try and be fit for the first race.”
Dr Xavier Mir, who performed the wrist surgery on Pedrosa, refused to commit to any timescales but did echo his patient’s optimism.
“The work that we did today on Dani Pedrosa’s knee allowed us to make it look a lot better, and so now it is looking very good,” he said. “Dr Ferreira who carried out the operation, has allowed him to begin putting his foot on the floor as there were some doubts about whether he could walk with crutches.
“Turning to the recovery times, we are optimistic, although we cannot commit ourselves to being ready for the first race. We will take all the relevant steps to speed his recovery, and even though we cannot say whether he will be ready for the first race we do not rule anything out.
“The knee injury is more complicated but it is looking very good, so we are optimistic. We know that in many cases the recovery times for professional sportsmen are usually shorter, and keeping this in mind Dani’s prognosis is very good.”
