Spies out to end Stoner's reign
Ben Spies believes reigning world champion Casey Stoner can be beaten this season, but insists it will not be easy.
The Yamaha Factory racer is in awe of Stoner's talent, but believes his reign as the fastest man in MotoGP could come to a halt.
"I'm sure anything with wheels, Casey's fast," Spies told PitpassRadio.com.
"But I think anybody can be beaten...Valentino (Rossi) won so many races and never seemed like he could get beat but, you know, it can happen.
"Hopefully we can do that - beat Casey and win a championship for the US That's the ultimate goal. But what we've seen is Casey is the fastest and the most talented person, I would say, that's touched a road racing bike.
"But there's always a changing of the guard. We've seen it in all types of racing. It's going to take a lot of work though. I've got to give it to Casey, the guy is just raw talent and scary fast - but like everyone he can be beaten for sure."
Stoner is already a double world champion having won the title in 2007 with Ducati and again last year with Repsol Honda. He will now be aiming to make it a hat-trick when the 2012 season starts in Qatar on 8 April.