Casey Stoner once won the MotoGP championship despite riding a bike that was getting ‘eaten alive’

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Casey Stoner was hugely successful in MotoGP, despite having a relatively short career in the premier class.

Making his debut with Honda in 2006, the Aussie claimed two championships in MotoGP. He won in his debut season with Ducati in 2007, before returning to Honda in 2011 and winning his second title.

Stoner retired the following season, with 38 wins, 69 podiums and 39 pole positions in 115 races, standing him as one of the greatest riders in the MotoGP era. The 39-year-old was fiercely competitive and sparked a tense rivalry with Valentino Rossi.

Like many, the Aussie had idolised the seven-time premier class champion, but the pair clashed several times on track. Stoner began to lose ‘respect’ for Rossi with one overtake at Laguna Seca in 2008, as he ran wide and cut the track.

Rossi dethroned Stoner that year for the title, with the then-Ducati rider having won his first championship in 2007. Despite beating Dani Pedrosa by 125 points, he did not feel too comfortable on the bike.

Casey Stoner won the 2007 MotoGP championship with Ducati but his bike was getting ‘eaten alive

The GP7 proved to be a tougher bike to handle than its predecessor. Speaking via the Ducati Diaries Podcast, Stoner said the bike was ‘getting eaten alive’ in the first three gears.

“It wasn’t, except for fourth, fifth gear, really good at anything,” he said. “It didn’t go round the corners. It was pretty good under brakes, it was pretty stable under brakes.

“That’s without a doubt. It didn’t have strong braking power, but it was stable, which was probably the first bike I’d ever ridden with such stability on the braking.

“So, that was a really nice part to have about it. Fourth, fifth and sixth gear of course it just came into its own.

“But the first three gears, we’d just get absolutely eaten alive. So, any tracks that you come to where you really have to accelerate and pump out of the corners, we were gone, we really, really struggled.

“But we just tried to minimise the weaknesses and maximise its strengths. And everybody saw what it’s strengths were: its top speed, and with its stop speed we had some stable braking.”

READ MORE: Everything to know about Ducati from the MotoGP team’s riders to hierarchy

Casey Stoner’s Ducati teammate Loris Capirossi ‘struggled so much’ with the GP7 – he compares it to Francesco Bagnaia

Stoner’s teammate Loris Capirossi found it difficult to adapt to the GP7. Having finished third in the championship the year prior, he could only manage one win in 2007 as he finished down in seventh.

Speaking via GPOne, Capirossi explained how he could not find any feeling in the new bike. He compared his struggles to Francesco Bagnaia, who has been complaining of a lack of feeling in the GP25 as Marc Marquez dominates him at Ducati.

“I’ve been there myself: in 2006, I fought it out for the world championship in MotoGP, while in 2007 I struggled so much with the new bike and Casey won the world championship,” he said.

“It’s not like I from one year to the next year was past it. I didn’t find the feeling with the bike. Definitely, in my case it was worse than for Pecco, who is doing well. He just needs to refine himself a little bit and try to understand the bike.

“I believe in him, because I know he is a great rider, and I am sure he will come back. It is clear that the opponents are strong. Aprilia is doing really well, Marco [Bezzecchi] is getting really strong and has put a lot of pressure on Marc.

“There are a lot of strong riders, but Pecco is among them and I’m sure he will come back.”