Stoner was driven away by the rule of using last year's engine

Andrea Dovizioso thinks Casey Stoner didn't want to jump in instead of the injured Danilo Petrucci because he should have raced on last year's Pramac Ducati engine. “As far as Casey is concerned, things may still turn around, but after testing and after the race in Qatar, he made it clear that he doesn’t want to race,” Dovizioso said. "I also think that Pramac didn't get what he wanted in the team, because the rules dictate that he should race on last year's motorcycle and there is no good reason for that."

In addition, Ducati boss Gigi Dall'Igna has expressed doubts about Stoner's form, which is said to be one of the major obstacles on the way to the Australian's appearance in the race in Argentina. “I wouldn’t be physically able to drive a race, let alone two in a row,” he said. "The MotoGP engine didn't start running again in January in Malaysia, and he hadn't raced for six months before that."

Stoner's performance in some of the later races of the season is still on the table at Ducati, and the final decision will be made after a few more tests.

Photos: Ducati