Tenth this morning in the wet, second in the dry this afternoon and incidentally fourth during the session dedicated to testing the new soft Michelin rear tire, Andrea Dovizioso is satisfied with his position at the end of an overall eventful but capital day. .
Rain is expected tomorrow, which would automatically qualify the Ducati rider for Q2.
Andrea Dovizioso : “In the end, the day went well: I am very happy with my second place, also because tomorrow it could rain and it was therefore particularly important to be in the top 10. It was a good start I managed to set a good time at the end of the session, and although overall I still don't have good feelings, we are part of the fastest group of drivers. Marc Márquez and Maverick Viñales are at a different speed at the moment, but behind them we are all in the same group and I think that's good. Because we are still in the group and everything is still possible. In the end, I really wanted to have a good ride, because tomorrow, according to the forecast, it should rain again. And I did it, although it wasn't easy, because the track offered very little grip. Regardless, it was a positive first day. »
However, there remains the choice of rear tire, always delicate at Phillip Island, a circuit where track conditions can change extremely quickly...
The Ducati rider achieved his best time with a soft rear tire during his last run, but started his session in the dry with a medium rear tire which, today, did not seem to be the best choice.
“In the end, it was a good thing that everyone who did a comparison ranked the medium tire as the worst tire. Apparently the hard rear tire is better at these temperatures. It's positive, because I also had the feeling that my pace was not very good during the first two runs. I don't know the difference, but all indications are that the hard tire is a good choice at higher temperatures. Maybe the soft tire is also a good choice, but we don't know if we will do well in the race. »
FP2 standings for the MotoGP Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
