While the leader of the Ducati team could envisage the world title, his hopes seriously diminished in Australia where no Desmosedici managed to finish in the top ten. The disillusionment was all the more cruel as a week earlier Andrea had beaten Marquez on the Honda circuit in Motegi in Japan (photo above).
Concerning the possibility of being World Champion again this year, it was “Difficult yes, impossible no », according to Dovi interviewed by Paolo Ianieri for La Gazzetta dello Sport on Tuesday October 24. “ I want to think that coming back is possible, even if now the championship is no longer in my hands. »
“I can only try to win on Sunday and then we will see. The problem is that Marc is a champion, he is still strong, the other Honda is not, even if his bike has improved during the season. »
“But I don’t see any great superiority over Ducati and Yamaha, he has his talent for masking the problems. And, as we've seen, he's not afraid to jump into combat. But it is the characteristic of champions to feel strong in this game. Beyond luck or misfortune, luck is created. »
The Australian Grand Prix was disappointing for Dovi, but also for all Ducatis as a whole. Thirteenth place, 21 seconds behind the winner, was of course nothing to cheer about. “ The result is due to several things and my mistake at the beginning certainly made everything worse, estimated Dovi. It's a big disappointment beyond the points lost and the performance is confirmation that the bike is not running. »
“There are a lot of things to consider with the Ducati, especially when you get to these tracks with long curves where you don't have to brake much. »
“It’s a shame, and we can’t know if it comes from the tires. Different tires got on the podium so I wouldn't blame the tire, it's more a talk about the characteristics of our bike, we have too many problems in the race. »
“Let's try to make the most of it: it makes no sense to think about the championship with this gap, so let's try to do our best. »
Photo © Ducati
Source: La Gazzetta dello Sport
