The reigning World Champion was seventh fastest in the opening practice session at the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, as he made his competitive comeback just six week after fracturing his right tibia.

Just 41 days after suffering an exposed fracture of his right tibia in a crash at Mugello, Valentino Rossi was back on his Fiat Yamaha M1 at Sachsenring on Friday for the first practice of the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland.

Dispelling any doubts over his ability to be competitive the 31 year-old lapped consistently throughout the session, and was amongst the top four for much of the hour-long practice before eventually placing seventh with a best time of 1’23.244, just 0.723s off pace setter Dani Pedrosa and two-hundredths off team-mate and Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo.

"I am really happy today, especially because I am a lot more agile on the bike than I was in the tests (at Misano and Brno),” explained Rossi, whose return to action was feverishly welcomed by both fans and the media. “I feel good and this track is helping me because a lot of it turns to the left. I am feeling quite confident on the bike and also my shoulder is good and not giving me problems. Now I have some pain in the leg and ankle but it's not too bad.”



Putting in 29 laps during the session Rossi set his best time on his final turn, and is now looking forward to tomorrow’s second practice, which will be followed by the qualifying session.

“I was able to do some laps in a row and I was quite fast so things seem okay,” he observed, before he continued: “Now we will have to wait until tomorrow morning to see how the leg is and whether it has swelled overnight or developed any problems."

Impressed by the nine-time World Champion’s speedy return to action was his Fiat Yamaha Team Manager Davide Brivio, who stated: "Once again Valentino has surprised everyone! After missing four races and not being completely fit this can be considered a very good session. From a team point of view it was like he had never been away, working on the suspension and searching for the best set-up.”

“His physical condition isn't too bad, a bit more difficult in the right hand corners and okay on the left, but overall it is a lot better than we expected. We're very happy and now we'll see where we can get to tomorrow," he concluded.