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Davies rode one race earlier in the season when he took the ride vacated by the injured Alex Hofmann, but he was not expecting another opportunity this season.

Hofmann's premature departure from the Pramac D'Antin Ducati team has handed Davies his opportunity in Australia and Malaysia, with the possibility of a third race in Spain if things go well.

Chaz's case was strengthened after an impressive test session with the team in Italy and he's looking forward to the challenge of transferring that form into race conditions, although he told BBC Hereford and Worcester that he was still surprised when MotoGP came calling:

"Ducati seemed very keen, and they wanted to see me back on the bike.

"My good friend, Casey Stoner, who has a lot of pull in Ducati these days - he's just won the World Championship - he pushed a couple of people in Ducati to make it happen.

Chaz Davies: has enjoyed his season in the States

"That got me the test in Mugello in Italy, and things went really well; I was one second off Valentino Rossi's lap record which, over a two-minute lap, isn't a great deal - it's a tenth of a second per corner.

"It was really positive; it's good for me and my confidence because now I can go forward - I've realised that maybe MotoGP isn't as far away as I thought it was 12 months ago."

A year on from his decision to head to the United States in search of a competitive ride, Chaz feels that, while it was undoubtedly a gamble, it's one that has worked out really well for him:

"The year's been great; I've spent a lot of time in America and I'm really happy with the decision that I made to go over there in the first place.

"I'm really glad that I did it; I had a good year over there - I had a lot of fun.

"I had a couple of podium finishes and it put a bit of the buzz back into racing for me after a couple of tough years."

The only downside of racing in the United States is that a rider can fall off the radar of the movers and shakers in MotoGP, which is largely based on this side of the Atlantic.

The Herefordshire rider makes no secret that his ultimate ambition is still to ride in MotoGP, and he's confident that his time spent racing in the United States will have done his cause no harm at all:

"Going to America takes you out of the view of the people who are keeping an eye on MotoGP, which is obviously the most prestigious championship in the world.

"That's where any rider aims for, but I had to try and find myself a route back around to MotoGP, because things weren't working out for me.

"So I had to take the risk, and I'm glad I did; you are a little bit out of the picture as regards being in the news here in Europe, but it's not the end of the world - you're not completely blanked out."

Chaz will ride for the Pramac D'Antin Ducati team in the Australian MotoGP grand prix at Philip Island on the weekend of 14-17 October 2007.

Coming soon: Chaz tells BBC Hereford and Worcester about his plans for next season, and why this could involve another season spent in the United States.