Honda issue apology for Casey Stoner crash

Honda have issued an apology to Casey Stoner after a throttle malfunction caused the two-time MotoGP world champion's crash in last Sunday's Suzuka 8 Hour race.

Stoner suffered a broken right shoulder blade and a fractured left tibia after he slid off the track into the grass and through a section of padded barriers, while his bike careered back onto the track.

The 29-year-old Australian apologised to the team, but Honda have held their hands up and taken the blame for the smash.

A statement on Honda's official website read: "Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) has carried out a detailed analysis following the crash of Casey Stoner in last weekend's Suzuka 8 Hour race.

"Checking the throttle, which is a particular specification for Endurance HRC Factory bikes, and different from the standard throttle used on the Honda CBR1000RR road version, a malfunction was discovered related to the throttle cable.

"This kind of problem hasn"t arisen before, however, HRC will cease using this throttle specification and will design a new one to be used for endurance races.

"HRC would like to apologise to Casey Stoner and thank him for the effort he made in attending the Suzuka 8 Hour event."