Local rider Hiroshi Aoyama will stand in for the injured Dani Pedrosa in the Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi after the Spaniard's weekend was curtailed by a practice crash. Pedrosa was launched off his bike in second free practice, suffering a broken right collarbone as a result of the crash. Honda has called up 34-year-old test rider Aoyama as Pedrosa's replacement, the Japanese rider making a return to the premier class after a year's absence. Aoyama, 2009 250cc champion, subbed for Pedrosa when he last broke his right collarbone - in 2011 at Assen - and also replaced the Catalan rider for a three-race stretch last year when Pedrosa was having surgery for arm pump issues. "First of...
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