After the first day of French GP free practice at Le Mans, which ended with Andrea Dovizioso in provisional pole with a time of 1:31.936min, the only man under the 1:32min mark, Ducati announced the renewal of the agreement with the Italian rider for the next two years. Dovizioso is already the longest-serving Ducati rider in MotoGP. He joined the Bologna-based manufacturer in 2013. At the end of 2020 will have raced a Ducati continuously for eight years, thus establishing another significant record.
“Today was a really great day for us because we announced that the marriage with Ducati will continue for the next two years. I believe that together we have done a fantastic job so far, but it’s not enough. We want more and I’m happy that we have reached a deal that allows us to work with peace of mind to obtain better results. We’ve got two and a half seasons ahead of us, all the time we need to try and bring home the world title, which is our aim”, Dovizioso commented.
Dovizioso: I could never have imagined staying so many years in Ducati, and ours is really a great story
“I’m very pleased with the support that I have received from many people over the last few days: I could never have imagined staying so many years in Ducati, and ours is really a great story. Today we started off well, with a clear head and you could see that from the results. We managed to be immediately quick this morning, and then in the afternoon, we made a further step forward with the set-up. I was quick both on new tyres and used ones, but we must continue to improve because there are a lot of riders who have a good pace here.”
We wanted to let our followers know first that it’s official! È fatto! ? @AndreaDovizioso extends contract with Ducati for 2 more years. 04+04=8 years as a Ducatista! Press conference with #DesmoDovi at Le Mans at 17h (CET). #Dovizioso #ForzaDucati #DucatiTeam pic.twitter.com/f3BW5wr4MJ
— Ducati Motor (@DucatiMotor) May 18, 2018
