Rossi: I'm enjoying this Ducati
Tuesday, 31 January 2012 13:55
As darkness begins to descend on the Sepang circuit, Valentino Rossi can breathe a sigh of relief in his garage; the new Desmosedici has lived up to expectations, and he can now take a more optimistic outlook on the future. Aside for a good overall feeling from the bike, the stopwatch also had positive things to say about the GP12. "I cut my gap to the leaders in half, compared to the last test at Valencia - Rossi enthused - considering it's only the first day and we have only done 40 laps with this bike, I'd say that isn't too bad." The Italian rider finished with a best lap of 2’02.393, which was a little over seven tenths behind Lorenzo, and less than two tenths from Spies and Crutchlow.
What's your overall feeling from today's test?
"I'm happy. The new bike is an optimal base to work from, and we managed to improve in all of the areas where we struggled last year. It's also beautiful to look at."
Can you be a little more specific?
"I feel better on the bike, even in terms of riding position, I'm able to ride it as I like and I'm enjoying it. In particular, we took a big step forward on the brakes and in corner entry. Even in high speed direction changes, another of our weaknesses, I noticed a big improvement."
What has changed?
"Everything. It would be easier to name the things that haven't changed. It's still a very new bike, we are just taking our first steps, but now I'm able to make the tires work well and to heat them up properly. Although I'd like to verify this on a cooler circuit."
You didn't find any problems with the bike?
"We are still struggling a bit under acceleration and loosing a lot of time there; the power delivery is still too harsh."
Is that an engine issue?
"I don't think so. Our engine is strong, but we need to work on the electronics. The Honda in particular is able to get the power down better than us."
One problem with the GP11 was that it didn't react well to adjustments. How is the GP12 in that regard?
"It's the opposite. Today we tried some small changes, and we were consistently improving with each of them. That seemed impossible just a few months ago."
How do all these changes feel while riding?
"I feel safer on the bike, I can finally brake the way I like, and I can take the lines I prefer. It's no coincidence that I did 40 laps today without a single mistake; I didn't run long even once. Everything is under control now."
Were you expecting this?
"I'll say this: only from the most optimistic point of view could I have imagined a start like this."
Now what do you expect going forward?
"I think you first impression is crucial when testing a new bike, and my first impression was very good. I don't have specific objectives at the moment, and there is a lot of work left to do. We still aren't ready to fight for wins. After three days we will have a more complete picture of the situation. To understand the true limits of a bike, you need to lap near pole position time. That's around 2’ or 1’59” on this track."
You also tried the new Bridgestone tires, how are they?
"They are a little better than the old ones, but I didn't notice a huge difference."
What was it like to ride at the circuit where Marco Simoncelli was killed?
"It's always hard not having Sic with us. That's the case here in Malaysia, just like every other track."
| Next > |
|---|
