After a first debriefing on the evening of his first day of testing (see here), Casey Stoner took a little more time to give his analysis to the camera of the official website MotoGP.com.
From the work carried out during private tests to his vision of the performances of the official Ducati riders in 2018, the double Australian world champion gives us his own vision of things.
Casey Stoner : “For me, it was directly positive. I didn't try to change the settings to find speed and we only did comparisons. So we found a balance on the reference bike and then we made comparisons with different parts and different settings on the engine, etc. In my opinion, I found the package to be better overall in all areas. But we will see according to each rider, and if each of them has the chance to be comfortable with the bike, then I will start to adapt it more to what they like and we will understand if it is a little better for their style. For both, because I think we can work for both. The chassis allows us to feel the surface a little better, so we have more of an understanding of what we're doing when we're at maximum angle. This provides an overall better feeling and a better understanding of where we can attack and how we can do it. The engine seems to have a little smoother, more manageable power. This allows you to be more fluid when exiting a corner and it's a little easier to find traction. Once again, we didn't play with the settings much while I was testing because it takes too long with each change, on each bike, to find a good balance. Factory riders should spend enough time with the bikes to fine-tune them, and at that point it will really be understood what the chassis' strengths are for them.
We can only be happy with last year's season and I think there will be no difference this season. I have known Andrea for a long time, and he is always very strong and consistent, also mentally. I don't think he will change or have more pressure and I think it will probably be the opposite. I think if he had won the championship he would probably have more pressure. But I think there he might find more determination to try again this year and see how victorious he can be. Last year was fantastic for him and for Ducati and it's great to have seen so much success after a long period without.
I expected a little more from Jorge earlier in the season than what we saw, but I think when you've spent eight or nine years with the same manufacturer and you go to a other rather different, it definitely takes time to adapt. So Jorge's progress that we've seen throughout the season, slowly getting stronger and stronger, is a bit like when you do a long run in practice: you go easy and you get stronger and stronger. . So we can probably expect him to start this year with a better level from the start, and of course if you fight for the podium you can fight for the victory. So of course I expect better from Jorge this year. »
