Ben Spies, the American born ex-Yamaha rider, had a torrid 2012 however since his switch to Pramac Racing at the back end of last year things have been looking a bit more optimistic for the 28 year old. We detailed his trials and tribulations of his last year with Yamaha in an earlier post however his 10th place finish last year did not do the Tennessee born rider any justice and he has admitted that he is looking to significantly improve on this showing in 2013. Indeed, it can be argued that Spies has somewhat of a love affair with Italy and Italian racing in particular. He was the 2009 World Superbike Champion with Yamaha Italia team a he spends the majority of his time in Como, Lombardy. So it is perhaps no surprise that he is now set to race with Italian outfit Ducati for the 2013 MotoGP season and his outlook is much more optimistic as as result. Indeed Spies, who had 6 podium finishes during his time with Yamaha, is already targeting success in 2013 and hopes that he will bring some much needed podiums to the Ducati team. That being said, he is still to fully recover from the injury that he sustained at Sepang last year. Poor conditions and a nasty crash caused a list of injuries to the American including an AC shoulder separation, a cracked rib in the upper chest and bruising to his lung. Although, even given this catalogue of ailments and the disappointment of last year, Spies isn't letting it get to him and he is confident that he will be back to his best soon. However, while Spies is confident of a successful year for Ducati, 2013 hasn't gotten off the the fantastic start that was anticipated. Their planned 3 day training and testing camp at Jerez ended abruptly with heavy rain. Ducati testers Michele Pirro and Franco Battaini were limited in the time they had on the track and the number of miles that the Italian company expected to get in while in the south of Spain was nowhere near to what they actually got. Although it wasn't all bad news and new General Manager, Bernhard Gobmeier stated: With a new wave of optimism sweeping Ducati and its staff then the first 2013 MotoGP pre-season test on February 5 at Sepang will be watched intently by all the fans of the Italian company.
