Kawasaki comments on Melandri rumours.

By Mike Nicks

"We have the bikes, and we have the infrastructure and the people to run three bikes, but we will not pay for the third bike ourselves"

That's the verdict of Kawasaki's communications manager Ian Wheeler on the wave of rumours swirling through the MotoGP paddock that the Japanese company is about to add Marco Melandri, disillusioned at Ducati, to its rider line-up.

Asked directly if Kawasaki were planning to take on the Italian, Wheeler said: "If for whatever reason he ends up not riding for Ducati, we would be interested in him riding one of our bikes. But it's completely a Ducati matter and not something for us to have any involvement in at the moment."

If they ran a third machine, Kawasaki would insist that it be as a ...