Casey Stoner names who smashed “the best race of the year for any rider”

Casey Stoner spotted the MotoGP rider who delivered the top performance of the entire year.

Legend Stoner was in attendance at the Red Bull Ring for the Austrian MotoGP where he watched the feat unravel live.

Stoner saw Gresini Ducati rookie Fermin Aldeguer sensationally finish as runner-up behind Marc Marquez.

Aldeguer overtook Pecco Bagnaia and Pedro Acosta to move into third, then passed Marco Bezzecchi with five laps remaining.

Aldeguer was lapping half-a-second quicker than Bezzecchi and Marquez at one stage.

Casey Stoner heaps praise on Fermin Aldeguer

“I think this was probably the best race of the year for any rider,” Casey Stoner told AS.

“Coming to a track where everyone else was struggling and finishing so close to the winner.

“It was a very impressive race. Halfway through the race, when he was chasing Acosta, I told my wife he was going to arrive.

“And then he started setting lap times six or seven-tenths faster than the others, and it was incredible how he was still able to take care of the tyres.

“It's clear the bike's setup was fantastic; it had more traction than many of the ones he's ridden.

“It was a very surprising race for him.”

Praise from two-time MotoGP champion is the latest accolade for impressive rookie Aldeguer.

He sits eighth in the MotoGP standings and has shown great potential on the ‘24-spec Ducati.

Intriguingly, he demonstrated pace at the following race - the Hungarian MotoGP - to match his Austria speed.

He was just two seconds behind eventual winner Marquez before crashing on Lap 14, then getting hit with a long lap penalty. He finished 16th.

But Aldeguer’s best lap was on Lap 23 of 26, just 0.056s slower than Marquez’s best lap of the grand prix.

Stoner knows a top talent when he sees one…