MotoGP: Barros is Back!

In yet another twist to the Silly Season, MotoGP veteran Alex Barros has signed for D'Antin Ducati to contest the 2007 championship.
The surprise move comes after much speculation as to which WSBK team Barros would sign for, after his debut year on Superbikes yielded him a victory. However, the D'Antin team have tempted the Brazilian back to the top class.
2007 promises to be a better year for the satellite Ducati squad, with their bikes initially being very similar to the factory team. D'Antin have also signed up to use Bridgestone tyres to replace their current Dunlops.
In previous years, D'Antin have been using year-old hand-me-down bikes, which performed pitifully. Riders such as Alex Hofmann (who will probably stay with D'Antin), Ruben Xaus and Neil Hodgson had no chance of showing their skills on these ancient machines. However, Barros will be riding a brand new 800cc Ducati. It is unlikely that D'Antin will benefit from anything like the same level of development as the factory team, but the bikes will surely be on the pace at the start of the year. Ducati have already been testing their 800cc machine for several months.
This move gives renewed hope to some of the WSBK riders who have been searching for a ride in 2007. Barros had been linked with several WSBK rides, including the factory Ducati and semi-factory Ten Kate Honda. The Silly Season will surely take an even sillier lurch in WSBK in the next week or two.