Photo: motogp.com
This weekend’s race at Mugello is a truly important one for both the Italian riders and for the Italian teams. Ducati is especially waiting to see miracles, most likely coming from Andrea Dovizioso, currently its best rider, and is doing its best to come up with a new chassis at Mugello.
Paolo Ciabatti, the boss of Ducati’s MotoGP project admits that the team has reached the limit of the actual frames for both the factory and the satellite bikes. He also speaks about the physical effort needed to steer the machine, even when everything is new with it, and mentions that things only get worse when the tires start degrading.
In fact, Ciabatti says that a new chassis is also needed to allow the engineers and mechanics to carry on with their work. He revealed that Ducati has a news bike but is using the existing one to test certain parts and components, before they decide which one is sent to the track.
“It seems like the pain is nor pure power, but the way it is supplied and other changes,” Ciabatti tells. The team from Borgo Panigle hopes to soon find the most flexible parts for their engine. Speaking of which, the same Ducati official says that the team has taken some calculated risks and the engines breaking down is the price of testing these parts.
While Dovizioso seems just fine with his actual 4th place in the world standing, with 53 points and has only Jorge Lorenzo to fear, as the Spaniard is closing in from behind (45 points), Dovizioso can hope to step on the podium again this season, even though Rossi has 81 points (and getting better by the race) is a hard-to-get target.
On the other hand, it looks like Cal Crutchlow, the other factory-contracted rider is still expecting to receive a more competitive bike to allow him to finish more races and possibly start to climb back from the disappointing 16th position he currently occupies.
While Ducati is yet unsure as of which direction should their efforts be aimed at, they’d better get their act together quicker, as we might see their riders want to hop on better bikes, just like this autoevolution editorial explains.
Ducati Corse’s General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna also says that the 2014 bike is much better than the previous machine, but there’s still a long road ahead until the Ducati machinery will be able to pose any serious threat to Honda and Yamaha.
In fact, Ciabatti says that a new chassis is also needed to allow the engineers and mechanics to carry on with their work. He revealed that Ducati has a news bike but is using the existing one to test certain parts and components, before they decide which one is sent to the track.
“It seems like the pain is nor pure power, but the way it is supplied and other changes,” Ciabatti tells. The team from Borgo Panigle hopes to soon find the most flexible parts for their engine. Speaking of which, the same Ducati official says that the team has taken some calculated risks and the engines breaking down is the price of testing these parts.
While Dovizioso seems just fine with his actual 4th place in the world standing, with 53 points and has only Jorge Lorenzo to fear, as the Spaniard is closing in from behind (45 points), Dovizioso can hope to step on the podium again this season, even though Rossi has 81 points (and getting better by the race) is a hard-to-get target.
On the other hand, it looks like Cal Crutchlow, the other factory-contracted rider is still expecting to receive a more competitive bike to allow him to finish more races and possibly start to climb back from the disappointing 16th position he currently occupies.
While Ducati is yet unsure as of which direction should their efforts be aimed at, they’d better get their act together quicker, as we might see their riders want to hop on better bikes, just like this autoevolution editorial explains.
Ducati Corse’s General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna also says that the 2014 bike is much better than the previous machine, but there’s still a long road ahead until the Ducati machinery will be able to pose any serious threat to Honda and Yamaha.
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