Ducati back on the podium Sunday was a day of excitement at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, where the second round of this year’s MotoGP World Championship was held. Starting from tenth place on the grid, Andrea Dovizioso administered the 21 laps in a masterly way to conclude the Texan race in third place, his best result since he joined the Italian manufacturer. The last time a Ducati rider stepped onto the podium was in September 2012. His team-mate Cal Crutchlow’s day was on the other hand more complicated. The British rider started from seventh on the grid, and three laps in was already up to fourth. After feeling a strong vibration in the rear of his Desmosedici GP14, Cal came into the pits to change the rear tyre. Two laps later and his race was over as he had a nasty high-side in Turn 2, crashing down heavily and injuring his right hand. Taken immediately to the circuit’s medical centre, he was diagnosed as having a dislocated little finger of his right hand, together with some bruising. He will fly to San Diego tomorrow for a specialist visit, but there should be no problems regarding his return to the track at the next round in two weeks’ time, on the brand-new Termas de Rio Hondo track in Argentina. Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 3rd “I am very pleased with the way I managed the race because in the early laps I didn’t have the right pace. But I kept calm and kept up a constant pace, and this paid off because I didn’t stress the tyres too much. My performance dropped off a bit towards the end but obviously less than the other riders I was fighting with and this allowed me to do the final stages in a good condition. Then I pulled out a small gap over Bradl and Smith, which allowed me to take the chequered flag with an advantage of almost two seconds. I am very pleased with this result for my team. We’ve been working hard for a year and suffering a lot, and we are still not as quick as we would like to be. Getting a result like this at this time of the season is very important, also for all the engineers and mechanics in the racing division back in Bologna, who are working very hard to improve the Desmosedici’s competitiveness.” Cal Crutchlow (Ducati Team #35) – DNF “I was very optimistic, but unfortunately I had a problem with the rear tyre of the bike immediately from lap 1, there were some very big vibrations and it was becoming worse so I thought it was better to pit and change the tyre. Because we were not even at half-distance, the team made the decision to put the soft rear tyre in and I took benefit from that but I was never going to get any points. I remember hitting a bump on the track that upset the bike. It was a fast corner and seemed like it was just going to be a normal crash, but I got caught up with the bike and it ended up highsiding me. I really hit my hand so hard that I dislocated the finger and the swelling of the hand was so bad that I couldn’t see the problem. I’m sorry for the team, but very pleased for Andrea to be on the podium after all the hard work the guys in Ducati Corse have put in over the winter.” Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager) “It was a good result for the team, somehow unexpected after yesterday’s qualifying. Andrea did a really great race, riding hard and in a very clever way, to finally take a Ducati back onto the podium. Unfortunately Cal had a problem with vibration at the rear of his bike and he subsequently crashed after stopping in the pits to change the rear tyre. Luckily it seems that the condition of his right hand is not too serious and he should be OK for the next race in Argentina in a couple of weeks’ time. After all the work we’ve been doing over the last few months, today we scored a positive result and so I’d like to thank all the guys in Ducati Corse for their massive commitment on track and back in Bologna.” The Ducati Team wishes to express its sincerest condolences to the family and friends of the Italian racer Emanuele Cassani, who tragically lost his life today in a crash at the Misano Adriatico circuit. Read the whole post here.
Little bit different from the article I read today..... Bridgestone bosses have said there was nothing wrong with their tyres at the Austin MotoGP round despite Valentino Rossi and Hector Barbera suffering front grip loss midway through the race, and the 'Doctor' being embarrassingly caught and overtaken by old rival Andrea Dovizioso, both the satellite Monster Yamahas and traveling so slowly that team-mate Jorge Lorenzo, who had sustained a ride-through penalty, finished only four seconds behind him. “Unfortunately after seven or eight laps of pushing hard the front was toast and I had to slow down. It's a pity because even though everyone else was on the same tyre, it's still bridgestone who have a lot of questions to answer regardless of the notoriously tyre hungry Ducati's conserving their's for a podium finish on a bike that I helped setup in 2012 and which Dovi can thank me now for because he is so lucky to be reaping the rewards of my hard work" “For sure I finish almost 45secs behind the leaders but the Yamaha is just not setup for this track and Lorenzo only goes well because bridgestone give him secret compound behind my back" said the disillusioned medical practitioner Race boss Masao Azuma admitted he was puzzled by Rossi's problem but added Bridgestone would have a look at various parameters including his bike setup, track day conditions and riding style to help solve the issue and save another pathetic performance by the former world champion at Argentina. “The high abrasion on the right side of the front tyre that some riders experienced during the race was unexpected. There are some sections of the circuit that are quite demanding on the right side of the tyre, but our compound allocation for this race was designed to meet these demands”said Azuma. “We can say with confidence that the tyres were not in any way faulty, but to save face with some underperforming and disgruntled riders, would reluctantly agree that the operating conditions during the race were a lot harsher when compared to other races and the practice sessions earlier in the weekend where some people was sitting around joking and drinking mocholocos and signing autographs while they should have been out testing"Meanwhile, Dovi, competing sick with influenza and still managing a 3rd place finish behind the lightening quick Hondas has this to say ; http://media.crash.net/original/PA1495028.jpg "I think the Ducati is performing quite well and I'm really happy for the team, We undid a lot of settings from 2012 which were shit and holding us back and while Cal is a choker and up Rossi's hole and also full of excuses just like him, myself and Stoner are of the mentality that we kind of got on with things and to be fair the Duke's do need a serious pilot at the helm to manage the power and handling characteristics that not everyone can get their tiny brains around, but it's great to be *achew, back at the top now on what some say is an inferior and unridable bike and if I can shift this nasty virus do hope to finish even higher at Brazil, Caio" Dont think Admin on our Irish forum is a Rossi fan for some reason....
749er will be wetting his pants reading this..wonder if Cal will pay back those comments in kind this year, obviously once his hand heals
