Andrea Dovizioso admits he is “not sure what to expect” from his Ducati GP13 at Phillip Island this weekend. The Italian was the first Ducati home in Malaysia, albeit an uncompetitive eighth, but with completely different conditions expected in Australia, is not making any predictions for his chances.
“Phillip Island is a really challenging track for everyone. Normally, the conditions are very difficult with the wind and cold. The circuit is completely different from Sepang in terms of temperature, track layout and grip. The tyre wears a lot on the left side, so I’m not sure what to expect from my Ducati on a track like this. As far as my results here are concerned, unfortunately they’re nothing too special: just one win in the 125 class.”
Teammate Nicky Hayden finished the Malaysian Grand Prix with smoke pouring from his motorcycle and is glad to have moved on to one of his favourite MotoGP venues.
“Phillip Island is one of the best tracks in the championship. It’s been repaved for this year, so we’ll see how much smoother and faster it is now. In the past, I’ve gone really well there, but we’re not on our best form or catching many breaks at the moment. We’ll see what the weather’s going to be like. The mornings can be quite cool and a lot different than the race, which makes it challenging for bike setup. There are a lot more lefthanders than right, so tyre wear on the left is very important, but at the same time, getting heat in the tyres in the mornings is a problem. I love Australia and look forward to it.”
Free Practice 1 for the Australian Grand Prix will get underway at 00:55 UK time on Friday morning. The Checkered Flag will have full coverage throughout the weekend.