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As his physical condition improves day after day, Guintoli decided not to undergo surgery and hopes to be fully fit for Round 10 of the season, scheduled for August 1st at Nürburgring. "I feel better than after the two races, that's for sure. The first I did last week was to go to my surgeons to understand what was the best thing to do, whether to undergo surgery or to wait. We decided not to do the surgery so I'm doing a lot of physio and exercises in order to recover as quick as possible and be ready for Nürburgring."

Despite the setback, Guintoli lined up at both Moscow Raceway and Silverstone and, especially in Russia, he rode through the pain to secure some encouraging results and crucial points, that helped him stay on top of the standings after nine rounds completed in 2013: "I was far from happy after I got injured and there was a lot of frustration looking at the challenge for the title.

Everybody knows that in order to battle up front you need to be very fit, but in one way or another you have to train. I don't do motocross, for example, because I think it's too dangerous but then I dislocated my collarbone while cycling! Those things happen, unfortunately, and I have to say that the Moscow round was a very tough one. I focussed on doing the best I could and it worked, after all I'm still leading the Championship."

Speaking of Championship chase, Guintoli leads the way even though he hasn't won a race since 2013 Season Opener: "I haven't been winning a race since Phillip Island, but I always do my best to fight for the win. Sometimes it looks like I'm in the position to do so, but then it doesn't happen. It's a very competitive field and many riders have what it takes to go for the win. Surely I won't stop trying!"