This Thursday, November 18, 2021, Andrea Dovizioso answered questions from journalists from the Ángel Nieto Circuit in Jerez, at the end of the first day of MotoGP testing marking the start of the 2022 season.
We went to listen (via teleconferencing software) to the words of the Italian pilot, visibly satisfied.
As usual, we report here the words of Andrea Dovizioso without the slightest formatting.
Andrea Dovizioso's first debriefing under the RNF Racing colors exposed the scars of a change in structure and personnel. After a few minutes, we had to face the facts: Andrea Dovizioso could not hear the journalists' questions. The Italian has not lost his humor however…
Andrea Dovizioso : " We can have the best Zoom of 2021: I will speak and no one will be able to answer me (laughs)!
Today was a beautiful day. It's always nice to try a new bike and the feeling was good and positive, with some very good ones. Corner entries were very good and we made a lot of progress in braking, which was very important to feel. But it was also a strange day because it was very windy and it might be worse tomorrow. So we suffered with the wheelies. We had different engines and different chassis, so for me it was not very easy for me to separate everything and understand everything in detail. I struggled on corner exits, and I don't have all the answers because there was definitely a reason. So I think there is a lot of room to improve. We tried a lot of things but we didn't put the new tires on, we didn't look at the times, also because I think it was better since everyone is fast (laughs). But overall, it was similar to what I expected: A step forward. I still have to understand everything but this is not the milestone where you can easily do what Fabio did this year: As I expected, Fabio did something crazy this year!
So the base of the bike is very good but you still have to understand certain limits because with the 2018 bike I never fell. On the entries, I don't do the best I could do, because this area is the strong point of the bike. Overall, I'm still learning the bike and for sure there is room and for sure there are some things to change in what I do. »
« What happened with the 2019 bike was clear, and it was also clear before, because when you are in this kind of championship where everyone is fast, where everyone is tight, you lose speed, you lose acceleration, and you can't brake like the factory bikes because the bike is different, and you have to learn how to ride the bike, it's normal to be 19th or 20th in every session. It's normal. I have never found a negative point about this bike. We never solved that (what he was talking about before) but we never felt any negative points, whereas with the 2018 bike we couldn't do anything: Every time we tried something, it was worse ! So it's positive. I don't know if with the conditions we have and the circuit we are at we will be able to have a lot of answers before the break, but I am happy with how I felt and I am really looking forward to starting the season in Malaysia. This will really be the track to understand a lot of things and resolve a lot of things, because in Jerez it's always strange, especially with the wind. »
« The power ? Above all, manage. This is not a circuit for judging power because you stay wide open for a second. So it's not a real test but of course the power we have is not a huge step forward, even if I don't have the same situation: I think there is a little difference because we We tried different things. Of course I think if we can have more power it's better because the gap we need to close is big, but in my opinion the goal is more grip than power. »
« (Regarding my contribution to development), all the drivers have a different style, so it's very important to analyze and show the engineers what's happening. I think I'm pretty good in that situation, and what happened today was pretty clear, so it's pretty clear what we'd like to have, and they're going to try. »
« (Regarding Fabio who complained), yes, we don't drive the same way but we ask similar things, because the lack of grip is clear. So it's normal to ask for this, just like for power: If you have more power on the right, it's free! »
Results from the first day of MotoGP testing at the Jerez circuit:
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
