Possible Spoiler - Valenciana Moto GP
 

So how poor was the Ducati Performance today in the final GP of the season

Sooner changes are made the better

Luckily Audi are stepping in this coming week by the sounds of it and reorganising the Corse Department and commisioning a new chassis from Suter

It also appears Preziosi has been given the boot; maybe he is the rumoured person that wouldn't listen to others? He was the inventor of the machine though, so the team may be worse off without him.

Most exciting Moto GP for a good while.

Good bit of drama at the start and a plenty of thrills and spills from then on.

Some good results ended in the gravel.

Ray.

Or he could be what was holding back the development!

That's what I meant by the first bit of that sentence! ;)

I don't believe you can have the same person in charge of Engine development and Chassis development,
When the first 990 was rolled out it probably incorporated all the up to date thinking of the time and was on a par with what the other factories came up with for their 990s, since then it looks as if Ducati they have fallen behind on Chassis development.
part of this may be the willingness to try new ideas and materials, but may also be down to the constraints of using a 90 degree V4 engine.
As the Moto GP bike has no real relation to bikes sold to the public why persist with the 90 degree format when possibly a 45 or 60 degree V4 layout may offer less constraints on chassis design

Just my thoughts

At that level its specific skills for specific componants, just like F1, and couldnt agree more you cant have same person doing both

Team leader-director-manager choose your title needs to pull it together tand make decions woth the rider on the direction things are going and whe to put more effort. That way the specialists carry on doing their bit anyway...expensive process tho

I think it was a compromise, as Kev said, as the team was small and not enough experience within the company, as well as a lack of funds.

Now that Audi is behind them, hopefully the specialists will come on board and we will see the project improve.

I can't remember when Ducati had such a poor Moto GP

Top Ducati rider was Karel Abraham who was the last rider not to get lapped and only had one CRT bike Finish ahead of him

Rossi on the works Ducati was not only lapped but also finished behind three CRT bikes and 7 places behind a still recovering and not exactly highly motivated Stoner who ran the same race strategy as Rossi of Starting on Wets then changing to Slicks.

At least with world superbike we knew the extra weight added to the 1198 after winning the Championship last year was going to handicap Checa who dispite riding with this penalty and a outdated bike put in some great rides

Pedrosa came out of pit lane after Rossi. Says it all

Not really as it ment Pedrosa started on Slicks and Rossi then had to dive in to the pits during the race, change bikes and then exit the pits doing all of the pit lane on the speed limiter, then have to adapt to a different bike and tyres to what he had just been riding around on

Not much testing today for the Moto GP guys due to the weather, our local rider Bradley didn't even get out.
At least Dovi got in 41 laps on the Ducati but only 4 of them were in the dry, so I doubt if he has worked out what direction the bike needs to go in.

I must be mixing my bikes up then....was it Haydon went into pits with Pedro, Cal etc?

Yes, Nicky Hayden went into the pits on the sighting lap and started from the pit lane - he nearly sh@t himself when I think it was Pedrosa got a bit frisky on the throttle and went sideways right in front of him!!

Times from the weather hit Valencia tests

1. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1m 32.481s (Lap 23/23)
2. Cal Crutchlow GBR Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 1m 33.609s (11/18)
3. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Team (GP12) 1m 33.623s (22/22)
4. Stefan Bradl GER LCR Honda MotoGP (RC213V) 1m 33.828s (11/12)
5. Alvaro Bautista ESP Honda Gresini (RC213V) 1m 33.994s (15/16)
6. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team (GP12) 1m 34.453s (12/17)
7. Michele Pirro ITA Pramac Racing (GP12) 1m 34.573s (42/43)
8. Randy De Puniet FRA Aspar (ART CRT) 1m 34.758s (19/24)
9. Marc Marquez ESP Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1m 35.201s (13/15)
10. Karel Abraham CZE Cardion AB (ART CRT) 1m 35.578s (15/15)
11. Andrea Iannone ITA Pramac Racing (GP12) 1m 35.667s (41/43)
12. Bradley Smith GBR Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 1m 35.775s (33/34)
13. Danilo Petrucci ITA IodaRacing (Suter-BMW CRT) 1m 35.904s (12/14)
14. Hector Barbera ESP Avintia (FTR-Kawasaki CRT) 1m 39.248s (25/26)
15. Aleix Espargaro ESP Aspar (ART CRT) 1m 43.517s (35/40)

I do fear a little for Bradley on that full customer (factory?!) bike agaisnt some of the quicker CRT riders

early days, first ride and all that so hope he gets to grips with it before March

He is only half a second slower than Marc Marquez on the Repsol Honda, so pretty good for a first go I reckon.

Or 1.1 seconds if you look at the final times!!

Now he may be in trouble....

Bradley was only allowed out on the afternoon of the second day as the conditions started to clear up so I wouldn't read to much into it.
He's probably hopped on Dovis old bike and there has been a fair bit of talk lately about how Dovi as a diffent set up to many hence why he might get on with the Ducati, so if thats the case Bradley will need more dry track time to work out how he needs the bike setup.
Marquez was also held back from testing in the wet but is quite lucky in that his team mate is possibly the closest to him weight/size wise out of all the riders in the class and may provide Marquez with a good starting point

Shame the weather didn't play ball

Be great to see 2 Brits heading to the the front....mind you may mean I need to trade the 848 in for an R1 ;) lol

Just get a Tech3 paint job on the 848 :)

Ouch! Imagine the reaction on that other Ducati forum....almost worth doing!

Which other forum? Surely there are no others...?!? :lol:

thats why I said THAT and not THE ;)

sure some of them would love a Rossi rep Ducati...and a few a Stoner Respol Panigale :lol:

and you need to be careful...someone seems to be masquerading as you on there ;)

Go on Paul get that graphics pack working and lets see what a Tech3 848 would look like