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The fifth fastest time but 8 tenths from his team-mate, Lorenzo has a bittersweet taste in his mouth. Qatar has always been good for the Ducati and Jorge, on his first visit to Losail with the Desmodsedici, has seen this.
The overall balance is positive though, and more in terms of sensation than performance.
“Today I've started to understand how to ride this bike, but I can't yet do it perfectly - explains the Majorcan - It's very different from what I was used to, but I think I can adapt. It's a difficult and long-term challenge but today I haven't done badly. It's only day one but I felt like I did on the last day of previous tests, maybe even better”.
The bike and rider are starting to trust each other.
“I was able to be competitive from the very first exit, but if I compare my time to that of Andrea I'm still a long way off - he analyses - This means that there is great potential and tomorrow I need to improve my sensations, especially in braking. In that area, I cannot yet exploit the stability of the bike. All the Ducatis go well here and that's positive. I was also lying first for a while, finally, which was a nice feeling”.
A team-mate is always a rider's first rival, but when he has significant experience on a bike it's also useful.
“Andrea has a lot of experience on the Ducati and he brakes very hard and very late, I still need to get used to this style - admits Lorenzo - I'm closer anyway, I was interested to come to a track that is better for us. The road is still long, I have to change the setting a little and adapt my riding style. Dovizioso uses a very different set-up, it might be worth trying it over the coming days”.
Lastly, Jorge dedicates some words to John Surtees, who passed away yesterday.
“I didn't know, that's terrible news for motorsport, very sad”.
