CRUTCHLOW RETURNS FOR YAMAHA

Cal Crutchlow will return to the MotoGP arena, riding for Petronas Yamaha SRT in the next three rounds.

Riding in the Styrian, Austrian and British Grand Prix, the races will be Crutchlow’s first since 2020.

The English rider will replace Franco Morbidelli who continues to recover from left knee surgery after damaging his meniscus and the anterior cruciate ligament.

The 35-year-old veteran was looking forward to the short return stint.

“I’m looking forward to riding for Petronas Yamaha SRT in the three Grands Prix,” Crutchlow said.

“It’s great to be back riding with Yamaha this year as the official test rider and to be able to step in when needed is good for all parties.

“Obviously it’s not in the best circumstances and I wish Franco a good recovery, I hope he comes back strongly after the knee surgery.”

Despite finishing in the MotoGP top 10 in the standings as recently as 2019, Crutchlow was hesitant to set the bar too high in terms of performance.

“I think it’s difficult to set targets for these three races and it will be more about understanding the bike, as I’ve had limited riding days this year,” he said.

“The good thing will be that I can compare the bikes and I should be able to gather a lot of data for Yamaha.

“It’s a bit like being thrown in the deep end, as it’s a very competitive MotoGP class, but I’m really looking forward to it and it’s going to be good to be back on the grid.”

The Austrian and Styrian events will both be held at Spielberg in Austria, and the British GP at Silverstone.

The last round in the Netherlands saw Morbidelli replaced by Yamaha FIM World Superbike rider Garrett Gerloff.

Crutchlow has ridden for Yamaha before, despite spending the majority of his career with Honda.

From 2011-2013 he rode with the outfit, finishing fifth in his final season before a move to Ducati.

Crutchlow is now the official factory test and development rider at Yamaha.

Team Principal of Petronas Yamaha Sepang Racing Team Razlan Razali said that Crutchlow was the logical choice of replacement for Morbidelli.

“After looking at all the options, it was a collective decision between Yamaha and ourselves to ask Cal Crutchlow to fill in for Franco, while he recovers from surgery,” Razali said.

“Cal is a credible and experienced rider, who is currently a test rider for Yamaha. Cal will be able to rack up some good mileage on our M1, which should aid him with his testing and development work for Yamaha.

“We have no real targets for him in terms of results. We will do all we can to help support him and make him feel comfortable in the team.”

Crutchlow has three career race wins to his name, along with 18 podiums.

The Italian rider he replaces is 13th in the standings.

The Styrian Grand Prix is on August 8 at the Red Bull Ring.

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