By blue2bikes
April 28 2006

Hard man of World Superbike, Pier-Francesco Chili, is looking to return to racing after breaking his pelvis during testing at Misano two weeks ago. Frankie is hoping to return at the British round of the series, when the race comes to our shores for its first visit at Silverstone, on 28th May 2006. One of the most recognised faces of racing, Frankie has a legion of fans here in the UK, as well as worldwide, and his return would be a great comeback after such injuries.

Although Frankie was hoping to return to racing at Monza, on the 7th May, he decided to prolong his return until the UK round - although he will still be at Monza to support his team-mate Michel Fabrizio, and his temporary replacement Gianluca Nannelli.

During an interview, Frankie said, “I was hoping to do some testing at least at Monza, but it looks as if that won’t be possible now. The fracture itself should be set by then, but I’m having trouble lifting my right leg and I’ve still got a lot of pain in my coccyx and buttocks. And there’s my left shoulder on top of all that. It seems as if I dislocated it in the fall, and even though it evidently put itself right immediately, all the ligaments are obviously still inflamed,” Chili told the official World Superbike website.

“In all probability I should be ready to race at Silverstone (round five) by the end of May, but of course it all depends on how I feel. I need to be back on form before I get back on the bike. After all, I’ve got to look after myself at my age!”

“How could I possibly not be there?” he said of Monza. “I’ll arrive on the Thursday and stay all weekend. I want to say hello to my fans, and Michel has told me he wants me there too. So I can’t let the side down.”

Frankie, who is a legend and still riding competitively at 41, mentioned nothing about retiring. Having spoken to Frankie on many occasions, and when I asked him when he would retire, he has said, “When I stop enjoying my racing.”

Frankie has always been a great ambassador of motorcycle racing and, having won 17 WSBK races since 1995, and also ridden alongside most of the biggest names in the sport, he will get a tremendous welcome when he returns to Silverstone.