MotoGP: Gibernau's Ducati team quits MotoGP mid-season
The Spanish-run Francisco Grupo Hernando Ducati team has pulled out of the remainder of the 2009 MotoGP World Championship, leaving series returnee Sete Gibernau without a seat in his comeback season.
The Spanish-run Francisco Grupo Hernando Ducati team has pulled out of the remainder of the 2009 MotoGP World Championship, leaving series returnee Sete Gibernau without a seat in his comeback season.
A shock announcement came over the weekend that the team was folding due to the global financial crisis, further impacting the shrinking grid sizes in MotoGP as sponsorship dollars dissolve while costs continue to skyrocket.
“The first to be surprised was me. We fought to get this project going. It’s a shame,” Gibernau said.
The team won’t attend this Sunday’s Grand Prix of Germany at the Sachsenring, and it’s not expected that it will return unless a rider with a large amount of sponsorship dollars joins the squad to finish out the season.
Gibernau made his return for 2009 with the all-new Francisco Grupo Hernando team but has struggled to get the results expected after a number of promising tests with the factory Ducati test team last year.