Andrea Dovizioso arrived at Ducati in 2013 after having known the Honda and the Yamaha. An experience that he put to the service of the Borgo Panigale factory which ended up making his Desmosedici a more winning machine than in the hands of a gifted person. In 2016, two victories confirmed this new era, an epilogue to a new chapter that the Reds would like to write this year, thanks to the recruitment of the five-time winner. Jorge Lorenzo.
An evolution that Dovizioso does not intend to observe quietly from the side of the track. A Lorenzo in the walls it's good, but the Italian will start his fifth campaign in a red tunic. He therefore does not want to live in the shadow of his prestigious new teammate. As soon as his arrival was announced in 2016, Dovi warned that he would not be a water carrier of Lorenzo. A state of mind that he was keen to recall from the first days of 2017.
On the daily La Gazzetta dello Sport he indeed declares: “ I am very happy with the arrival of Jorge Lorenzo. We know each other very well since we were teammates in 2005 during the 250cc days. It was on a Hondhas ". The opportunity to recall that at that time, Dovi had finished third in the championship and Lorenzo fifth, the title having been won that year by a certain Pedrosa.
He pursues : " it will be a big challenge. We will be on an equal footing, we will have the same cards in hand and my objective is clearly to beat him. Because if you finish in front of him, that means that you also finish in front of many others ».
Dovizioso therefore presents himself as an outsider for the title: “ this championship will be exciting because a lot of things have changed since last season. Lorenzo is with us, Viñales, who I have the greatest respect for, is at Yamaha and with a different bike, the Suzuki, Iannone will be strong. But for me, the favorites will be Márquez and Rossi. Just behind, I put Viñales ". It will be recalled that Davide Tardozzi expects a title in 2018 for Ducati more than in 2017.
