However, the race was only briefly affected by rain – for a few laps in the late stages – leaving the two Ducati works riders struggle on the rear of the field throughout the Sunday action. Stoner only got to score 2 points in the UK, while his Kentucky-born teammate had to settle for the last point up for grabs the past weekend.
“Everybody knows I’ve been struggling for the last few races in the dry so I was praying for the rain to come today. Every single lap we were out there it threatened to pour down and we were very close to having the perfect situation,” said Stoner after the race, in an official review of the British GP for Ducati.
“Unfortunately, even though it got heavier, it didn’t come soon enough and our tyres were destroyed so it ended up being the wrong decision. I still think it was a risk worth taking because it could have worked out fantastically but obviously we’re disappointed it didn’t,” concluded Stoner.
Consequently, the Australian rider lost an additional 9 points to championship leader Valentino Rossi, who managed to cross the finish line in 5th place. Nicky Hayden lamented on the Ducati decision, although admitting it would have saved the day had it rained on Sunday.
“We agreed on it together with the team but it was my shout, I thought ‘let’s try and be a hero here!’. I don’t want to say it was a mistake; it was just a gamble that didn’t pay off and we’ll learn from it,” added the North American rider.
For the first time this season, both Ducati works driver were classified behind their counterparts from the Pramac Racing satellite, as Niccolo Canepa and Mika Kallio finished the race in 8th and 10th place respectively.
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