The news of a contract renewal came as no surprise today, as Ducati and Danilo Petrucci officially agreed to keep their partnership going into the 2020 season.
Petrucci has been in superb form for the factory team during the 2019 season, with the pinnacle being his home round in Mugello, where he took victory for the first time in MotoGP.
Speaking in the riders press conference ahead of the German Grand Prix, Petrucci is in a good place regarding his new contract and the opportunity ahead of him.
“The first part of this season has been very, very good. Since the first interview, I’ve said my target was to stay in this team for as many years as possible.”
“Now, in the next season, I have a big opportunity. Now everybody says I can race with less pressure but actually we’re fighting for the top three in the championship and both Andrea and I want to enjoy some better races than Assen.”
“We have a very, very big challenge. We’re halfway through the season and I think we can now be more focused on the track than off the track.”
Ducati have had a solid but unspectacular start to the season given their lofty expectations, with the team only managing two victories in eight races.
Andrea Dovizioso and Petrucci, currently sit second and third in the championship standings and are separated by eight points.
Assen was disappointing for the team with both riders finishing fourth and sixth respectively. The result means that Marc Marquez extended his championship lead over Dovizioso to 44 points.
