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For one reason or another, during these winter tests, Andrea Dovizioso has never finished the day in first place. Today it was Iannone who pipped him to the post, but this doesn't take away from the fact that the Ducatista is the man to beat, at least in Qatar. Seeing what he was able to do in Malaysia and Thailand, it's fairly clear that Dovi forms part of that small group that will fight for the title.
“starting as favourite only changes things for the better. I'll start the season as a title contender, last year that wasn't the case, and I'm happy. I feel good in this situation we've worked in the right way all through testing, it's all gone perfectly, from Sepang until now”.
Despite the unstable weather, nothing was able to stop Andrea.
“It was an unusual day with some drops of rain but we were able to complete our work programme anyway. I'm really pleased because in the end, with the track in good condition, I was fast and set my best time during a 12-lap run. The fundamental thing during a test is that the times come easily”.
And this applies both to the flying lap and race pace consistency.
“I've been able to maintain a good pace and, at this track that was tough in the past. The Desmosedici has always worked well at Losail but this year it's even better”.
The new parts arriving from Borgo Panigale are also working well.
“I made a long run with the new frame. I'm not sure which I'll use yet because sensations are slightly different to Thailand but both work well. In theory, we might use both but I don't think so. I'm undecided right now, but we're talking about details and so it won't be a problem to use one rather than the other ”.
Dovi is living in the moment and knows he can look to the future with confidence.
“I'm pleased but I also know that everyone still has time to improve and conditions can be different here each day. Experience tells me that I need to keep my feet on the ground, because things can change from one moment to the next. There are still areas I'm not totally happy with, but at this track our bike works well, better than in the past”.
