In a long interview with Corriere dello Sport, Andrea Dovizioso made some personal comments on each of his main opponents, past or present, with his usual lucidity and perspective.
This includes Casey Stoner, Jorge Lorenzo, Andrea Iannone, Valentino Rossi, But also Marc Márquez which, indirectly, is also the cause of his stay at Ducati, something we did not know.
To be enjoyed without moderation…
On Jorge Lorenzo…
“When you have a champion like Jorge on your side, you will always have problems. By working calmly, there are advantages because we then have a reference for progress. The downside is that you can lose points when your main opponent is your teammate. A team with two champions disperses its potential.
His first contribution was to confirm the limits of the bike. It was fundamental for my credibility with the engineers. After having Crutchlow in the team, then Iannone, there is always a doubt when a driver complains, if he is not world champion. Then Jorge came and said the same things as me, and the doubt disappeared. But until Mugello where Lorenzo started to be fast, we didn't see any difference. At that moment I realized that Jorge was capable of being fast but in a different way than me. I saw that there wasn't just one way to be fast with the Ducati. I thought it was interesting. So that’s the advantage of having another champion in the team: it’s not necessarily necessary to copy their style but studying it helps you.”
On Casey Stoner…
“It was devastating. When things go well, he makes them go even better. It was a very difficult year for me. And the more objective you are, the more you compare, the worse it becomes. And I am extremely objective and realistic. How do you overcome it? By continuing to work. This situation can be handled in a positive or negative way. I suffered, but others would have stopped in such a situation, while I was able to improve. You have to accept the fact that there are negative years, but not winning then and winning today is a positive factor: it confirms that I have progressed and that I am much more competitive today at 32 years old than at 25 years old.
On Marc Marquez…
“I don't like to say that we lost, I prefer to say that Márquez won. Since losing the title in 2015, Marc has changed his approach: he has always been “I win or I fall”. Today, he still takes risks, he falls often, but in races he makes fewer mistakes. He learned.
I came very close (to returning to Honda) but I didn't accept because it was right to continue with this project (Ducati). We have some things that are not finished and I hope to have a fruition next year. It’s not that it would have been bad to go to Honda, but I want to fight Marc with the Ducati.”
On Andrea Iannone…
“Iannone and those around him have a way of approaching what is happening that is not in good faith.”
On Valentino Rossi and his 10th title…
“I would say yes, because Rossi has proven that when it comes to competition, he never dies.”
