Great pictures Tassie...

I think I'm going to be a Westy fan this year at THe Island, he needs lots of support...

TOP TEN FOR WEST AT WET SACHSENRING
Published: 13 Jul 2008

Anthony West overcame a painful back injury and treacherous conditions to match his best result of the season at Sachsenring today. The Kawasaki pilot crossed the line in tenth place aboard his Ninja ZX-RR after crashing and remounting earlier in the 30-lap race.

West had a huge crash in practice on Friday, leaving him with what was originally thought to be a badly bruised back. However, a further medical examination and x-rays on Saturday evening revealed fractured vertebrae identical to the injury suffered by his teammate, John Hopkins, at Catalunya.

The 26-year-old Australian struggled with the injury during this morning's 20-minute warm-up session but simply gritted his teeth for the race, as he fought his way from the back of the grid to seventh place in the opening laps.

West looked set to record his best result of the year so far, until an uncharacteristic mistake in the wet conditions saw him lose the front of his Ninja ZX-RR at the final turn, while battling for fifth position with Chris Vermeulen and Alex De Angelis.

The Kawasaki pilot remounted and rejoined the race, quickly moving back up to tenth place despite his left foot constantly slipping off a damaged foot peg and a gear lever half it's usual length.

In the closing stages of the race West was one of the fastest riders on track, but although he managed to claw back more than four seconds on Shinya Nakano in ninth place, he simply ran out of laps and was forced to settle for tenth position at the chequered flag.

West will undergo further treatment on his back injury ahead of next weekend's USGP at Laguna Seca, where the Australian will be joined by Jamie Hacking, who will substitute for the injured John Hopkins aboard Kawasaki's Ninja ZX-RR.

Anthony West: #13 - 10th Position
"I'm disappointed because it was possible for me to finish much higher than tenth today. I got a good start and made up lots of places in the opening laps, eventually closing onto the back of Chris Vermeulen and Alex De Angelis, who were battling for fifth place. I was pushing hard to stay with them when I lost the front under braking for the final turn. It was a stupid mistake to make, but luckily the bike wasn't too badly damaged and I was able to rejoin the race quite quickly. From then it was just a case of getting my head down and trying to retake as many places as possible. It was quite hard, because my injured back was really sore and I couldn't push on the left foot peg, as most of it was snapped off in the crash. This is only my second top ten finish of the season but that's no consolation when I know, but for a stupid mistake, I could have finished much higher today."

Michael Bartholemy: Kawasaki Competition Manager
"It's been a difficult weekend for Anthony. The two big crashes during practice left him with a painful back injury, as well as knocking his confidence. They also put his crew under a lot of pressure, as they worked to rebuild two very badly damaged bikes between sessions. As a result his qualifying performance was affected and starting from the back row of the grid just made a tough job even tougher today. I'm happy that Anthony managed to finish the race in the top ten but, like him, I'm also a little disappointed because it was possible for him to do much better today. We've seen how good he is when conditions are wet, so he should have been in his element this afternoon. Instead he made an unforced error and that cost him an almost guaranteed top five finish today."

Well I think he did well in really bad conditions so good ride Ant and keep it up!

If he goes back to WSS he could do very well. Look at 2007 3 races and he was coming 5th in the Championship!!

Anthony West: #13 - 19th - 1'24.483 Day 1 Laguna Seca

"The conditions were quite difficult this morning, with mist still hanging around some parts of the circuit. We had some difficulties getting the bike to turn in and hold a line during the first practice session, but this was much improved for the second session this afternoon. We still have issues with the front-end; you need to have confidence in the front-end grip at this circuit, and it still feels a bit vague at the moment through some sections of the track. Halfway through the session I decided to push harder anyway, and that's when I lost the front under braking for turn two. It was a big crash, but luckily I didn't do any more damage to my back. The team are working hard now to find a solution to the front-end problem, and I'm confident that they'll have it sorted for tomorrow's practice and qualifying sessions."

Anthony West casts doubt on MotoGP future
By Matthew Birt

MotoGP

13 August 2008 12:57


Anthony West has conceded that he would sack himself if he was running Kawaski’s factory MotoGP squad!

The Aussie has had a torrid time during his first full premier class campaign and Kawasaki bosses will tell the 27-year-old he will be axed for 2009.

Being dumped will hardly be a shock given his poor form, not least to West, who told MCN: “I’d like to stay at Kawasaki but with the results so far I can’t imagine it is going to happen.

"If I was the boss of Kawasaki and my riders were coming last, you blame the bike or the rider and it is always the rider they blame first. That’s my own personal feeling.”

Almost resigned to his fate, West said he hadn’t started considering his options for next season, but he added: “I haven’t really started looking yet. If I’m out I’ll try and find another ride in MotoGP, and if I still can’t find one then I’ll try and go to World Superbikes. And if I can’t find a good there, it looks like I might have the option of getting on the Yamaha 600 again.”

West won two races for Yamaha in World Supersport before landing his dream MotoGP break with Kawasaki halfway through 2007.

He said a return though would be a last resort. “It is stressful enough just trying to get this bike up the front so I’m not trying to think about next year. It is too depressing thinking about riding a 600 again so I want to focus on the rest of the year.”

West said the struggles encountered by John Hopkins proved the 2008 factory ZX-RR had not improved as fast as its rivals, and that finding a suitable replacement will be tough.

“Who are they going to find that’s going to be any better? There are not that many riders who can ride these bikes and everything is so close it is not like I’m far off. Even if they find a better rider they want too much money.

"I’m cheap and money is a real big part of it, “said West, who added: “I don’t want to say the bike is because it still a good bike and they are still trying to develop it the best they can. But John is not doing what he did last year.

"Last year he was always challenging for the top five but this year he’s been struggling for the top ten.”

Ant West

#13 - 6th – 2’14.064

“I really didn’t expect to improve my time on our last lap, so the final result has been a real confidence boost. The conditions worsened throughout the session and there was a lot of standing water around the circuit, so the bike was aquaplaning in a lot of places. I was struggling to see and I got held up on my final lap on a soft tyre, but we still managed to move up a further three places. We’ve made a lot of improvements to the set-up of the machine, and although I’m not really sure how this will fair in the dry, starting from sixth means we’re in a strong position for the race.”



Kawasaki Competition Manager
"John's return to racing this weekend in Brno has certainly been an impressive one. Despite missing the last three races he was immediately on the pace here in Brno and I'm confident his strong comeback from injury will continue with a good result in tomorrow's race, whatever the conditions. Anthony also did a great job in qualifying, and I hope his sixth position in today's treacherous conditions will go some way to boosting his confidence. We know he has the natural talent to compete at this level, and I think he proved that to himself today. Based on their performance today, and with the improvements Kawasaki have made to the Ninja ZX-RR since Laguna, I am confident of strong performances from both of our riders in tomorrow's race."



1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 2'11.657; 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha +1.189; 3. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.302; 4. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +1.345; 5. Alex De Angelis (RSM) San Carlo Honda Gresini +1.695; 6. Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team +2.407; 7. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP +2.878; 8. Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini +3.061; 9. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +3.148; 10. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice Teamw +3.204

There is hope for Westy yet....

Kawasaki close in on Melandri deal and third bike for 2009
Wednesday, 20 August 2008
Kawasaki´s Michael Bartholemy has provided an update on the proposed recruitment of Italian MotoGP rider Marco Melandri.

Following Marco Melandri´s comments on Tuesday, on the final day of testing at Brno, that he is set to join Kawasaki at the end of this year, the Japanese manufacturer´s MotoGP Competition Manager Michael Bartholemy has confirmed that a deal is on the table – with final confirmation from Japan currently being awaited.
Bartholemy told motogp.com on Wednesday that the stamp of approval from his own bosses at Kawasaki Heavy Industries was still required, commenting, `We have reached an agreement with Marco Melandri meaning that he would join us for the next two years, but the deal still has to be approved by Kawasaki in Japan.´
Explaining what Melandri´s arrival would mean for current Kawasaki rider Anthony West, Bartholemy declared, `With regard to Anthony he will not be part of the main Kawasaki MotoGP team next season but we want to offer him a contract to remain as a Kawasaki factory rider, because we have invested a lot in him to bring him up a level since he joined us last year. That could mean that Anthony rides for us in another World Championship series.´
Meanwhile, Bartholemy is also still finalising plans to bring a third Kawasaki machine onto the MotoGP grid on a permanent basis next season and is positive about such a project taking place. For West that could mean a chance to remain in the premier class of motorcycle competition depending on sponsorship demands.
As Bartholemy explained, `If we do run a third bike it would be up to the sponsors and the management who the rider is, but Anthony West could be part of the package that we offer. In Misano we should be able to confirm that Melandri has joined us and we should be able to clarify the situation with the third bike.´