Hector Barbera survived a huge crash during the Italian round of the championship on June 1, 2008

Hector Barbera survived a huge crash during the Italian round of the championship on June 1, 2008. Running second behind Marco Simoncelli on the penultimate lap who tried to defend his lead by changing his line on the straight, Barberá slipstreamed onto Simoncelli's back wheel and clipped it with his front brake lever. His bike somersaulted through the air, with Barberá escaping somewhat uninjured. However, a further crash in practice at Motegi left him with two spinal fractures, ending his season
On 20 August 2009 it was announced Barberá will move to MotoGP in 2010, riding for team Aspar which will also move from 250cc to MotoGP. The team will use Ducati customer bikes