Hector Barbera to return at Misano following his injury

The Spaniard broke his leg six weeks ago in a training accident, and was forced to sit out Laguna Seca as a consequence.

He attempted to make his MotoGP return in the following grand prix at Indianapolis, but in first practice he fell heavily at Turn 16 and had to be stretchered off.

Having also been forced to miss Brno, the 25-year-old says he is ready - even if not completely fit - to return at Misano.

"I'm really excited that I'll ride this weekend on this amazing track," Barbera said. "I have a lot of good memories about Misano, especially from 2009 when I won in the middle class.

"Obviously this year it is a different situation. I didn't ride for six weeks, but I made a big effort to be ready to race this weekend and the only thing I thought about during the rehabilitation was to be back on my Ducati as soon as I could.

"I had some down time on my active rehabilitation due to the forced rest after the big crash in Indy, but I worked hard with the passive rehabilitation to recovery as quick as possible.

"I feel good, even if I know that on the track it will be a different thing and it could be hard, but I miss my bike and my team and I want to try."

Barbera also paid tribute to those who coped in his absence, including stand-in rider Toni Elias.

"I have to say thanks to a lot of people," he said, "in particular to my team, my sponsor, all the people that I worked with in these weeks and also thanks to Toni Elias."

Barbera currently lies 11th in the championship, just six points behind works Yamaha rider Ben Spies.