Miguel Oliveira has played down his chances of making a return to MotoGP action at next week’s Italian Grand Prix at Mugello.
Oliveira, who has already missed the Argentine and French Grand Prix’ due to injury, believes he’s at risk of making it three race weekends from six in which he’s unable to start.
The first of those came in Argentina when the RNF rider was taken out by Marc Marquez at his home round in Portimao.
A collision that left Oliveira with injuries to his right leg, was then followed up by another injury for the Portuguese rider, this time to his shoulder after once again being taken out at the Spanish MotoGP at Jerez.
And after taking part in Aprilia’s ‘all stars’ event which saw the Noale-based manufacturer and the Piaggo Group raise over 200 thousand Euros for those affected by recent flooding in Imola, Oliveira is not convinced by his level of fitness.
Oliveira completed a couple of laps around Misano aboard his RS-GP22 last Saturday, before telling MotoGP.com that a decision for Mugello will be made next week.
“The shoulder is not something easy to recover from but we are doing the best we can with the physio at home to put the shoulder back in a good performance place,” Began Oliveira.
“Today, I did a couple of laps with the MotoGP [bike] for the fans – no pushing – but I still feel very uncomfortable on the bike.
“I don’t know if I will be able to race at Mugello but I will wait until the GP week to see if I can race or not.”
Keen not to rush his return, Oliveira also stated that making a return is something he will only do if he’s fully fit.
Oliveira added: “I want to come back at 100% and be competitive. This is the main target. I know that it will be tough as every race you lose the rhythm, the pace, and so you have to return in a safe way.
“You can’t think about any injury. This will be the target. The approach will come based on how I feel with my body.”
Keyword: Miguel Oliveira casts doubt over MotoGP return at Mugello: “I still feel very uncomfortable”