Aussie Casey Stoner has raced to four consecutive podiums, but now he wants win number one of the season.

Australia’s Casey Stoner is eager to fight for his first victory of the season as the MotoGP World Championship visits Brno in the Czech Republic this weekend.

Following a consistent run of four consecutive podium finishes, Stoner says the Brno circuit is one of his favourites on the international calendar.

“Brno is one of my favourite circuits – I have liked it since I raced there for the first time back in 2002,” the 2007 world champion said. “It is long and flowing, with a lot of direction changes and plenty of opportunities to overtake.

“It is the kind of circuit that lends itself to spectacular races and I can’t wait to race there again – I wasn’t fit to ride last year and I missed it. I want to make up for that this weekend so we’ll be looking to find a good set-up for the bike, improve by a couple of tenths compared to the rest and be fighting for the win.”

Stoner and the Ducati Marlboro Team will stay on for the post-race test at Brno on Monday, which team manager Vito Guareschi looks forward to.

“We go to Brno on the back of an excellent team result at Laguna Seca and with the objective of improving on it with both riders,” he commented. “Casey has always been very fast here and Nicky scored a decent sixth place last year.

“In the past the circuit has generally suited the characteristics of our bikes so it will be important to find a good set-up for this weekend – for the race, obviously, but also for the test so that we can build a strong base to work from over the second half of the season.”

Stoner currently sits fourth in the championship standings, directly behind Repsol Honda’s Andrea Dovizioso.