SPIES CONFIRMS SPLIT WITH YAMAHA MOTOGP TEAM

Spies had been hinting about the move through social media earlier in the week, and made the formal announcement at the pre-race press conference ahead of this weekend's round at Laguna Seca, but gave no hint of his plans for 2013.

"I've known for quite a bit what my personal decision was and I thought this was the right time to do it with all the contracts happening with other riders," Spies said. "There's a litany of reasons behind it - just getting back to stress-free and doing what I want to do and finish out the season strong. That's all that's going to be said about it at this point until I'm ready to talk about the future. It's not going to change anything.

"For sure, especially at Laguna we're going to give 100 per cent and we want to do what we're capable of doing and what the bike's capable of doing for the team. Nothing changes from that standpoint. I just made a decision, and wanted to get it off my chest and out of the way. Now that we've done that now I feel like the weight of the world is off my shoulders and I can do what I set out to do."

Spies's departure opens the door for Valentino Rossi, a previous Yamaha rider, to perhaps return to a successful team following two years of struggle on the Ducati. The rumour mill that had been grinding away for most of the season picked up pace following Spies's announcement, but Rossi, while leaving the door firmly open, gave no real indication whether he may switch to the Yamaha factory squad for 2013.
"The situation is quite clear. I still haven't decided, as it is a bit to early," Rossi said at Laguna Seca. "I have spoken a lot with Ducati about next year, but still waiting for some important ties and some important things on the contract. And I also have some other options for next year. But I think the situation will be clearer in the next weeks, and I think in the summer break I will decide about next year."