Ducati Team riders get down to first day of free practice for the GP of Qatar at the Losail circuit
The 2015 MotoGP World Championship got underway today at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar. The field of riders took to the track at 7.55 pm local time for the first 45 minutes of free practice and at the end of the session the two Ducati Team men, Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone, were classified seventh and tenth respectively.
After the excellent results obtained in testing ten days ago on the same circuit, today both Italian riders encountered a bit more difficulty in setting up their Desmosedici GP15 machines.
During the session, both Dovizioso and Iannone used a sole set of tyres, the hardest compound available (medium), and they took to the track with both GP15 bikes at their disposal, completing a total of 17 laps.
Tomorrow will see two more sessions of free practice, again lasting 45 minutes each, at 6 pm and 8.55 pm in the evening (Qatar time).
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 1’55.980 (7th)
“Conditions today were a bit different to those during the tests and we were not particularly quick. In this session we tried both bikes to compare two different set-ups but we were unable to find the same feeling that we had last week. Now we have to analyze the data to understand which direction to take tomorrow. It didn’t go bad today, but we have to improve the feeling at the front under braking and the other things that did not allow us to repeat our testing performance. As a first session, it was OK but in tomorrow’s two we have to make an important step forward.”
Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 1’56.315 (10th)
“I am quite satisfied with the way the first session went even though we were not very quick. We had a bit more difficulty than in the tests, encountering some problems that we didn’t have last week. I think that the track conditions were not the same, so for this reason we will focus on tomorrow’s two sessions: in any case I am positive and serene about everything and now we’ll analyze the data together with my team to better understand what can be changed and decide on the modifications for tomorrow.”
