So Has Ducati Made the Desmosedici Faster For Rossi?
After numerous changes all year long, has Ducati actually made any progress from the machine that Valentino Rossi first rode way back in testing before the 2011 season even began? The return of the MotoGP field to Sepang, Malaysia recently allowed for the first before and after comparison.
Of interest for both Ducati and Valentino Rossi fans was how fast the current, second generation Ducati Desmosedici GP11.1 was at the circuit where the original racer had been tested twice before.
Ducati participated in two pre-season tests at Sepang in February using the original specification GP11. Once racing got underway, Rossi got a new engine with an improved crankshaft before migrating to the GP11.1 for the Assen round which was essentially a destroked GP12 machine to bring the capacity back to 800cc. More recently, some aluminum was added to the front part of the monocoque. This latest bike debuted at Motegi where the 9 times champion was forced to start from pit lane after taking his 7th engine.
How much of a difference has all this development made to Rossi’s performance. In two words, not much. As the table shows although Rossi made modest progress between the first and second tests at Sepang, the Hondas improved much more meaning that the gap between the fastest Honda riders (Simoncelli for the first test and Stoner for the second) actually increased from around 1 second to 1.8 seconds.
Remember that Vale was still recovering from shoulder surgery and opined that he could ride 0.6 seconds faster if he was fit. Even allowing for that, Rossi was still a second down on the fastest riders. Fast forward to this month and qualifying for the Sepang MotoGP. Rossi qualified 9th fastest and yet again, around 1 second slower than the fastest rider (Dani Pedrosa).
I’m no statistician but the only way this could be construed as progress would be if the Honda had gotten even faster during the season. It is not possible to gauge this since the times at the MotoGP round were slower for all riders than the times set during testing back in February.
Ducati has publicly acknowledged the disappointment in the MotoGP performance this year and has vowed that things will improve in 2012 with the switch to new 1,000cc regulations.
Ducati’s poor showing in MotoGP this past season has let a lot of other people down besides Valentino Rossi, and Ducati isn’t very happy with the situation either. Ducati’s Domenicali vows that the OEM will continue to develop the bike, and that next season, it will be significantly improved.
link: Dealernews
There is only one more race this season at Valencia which will be followed by 2 days of testing. This will be the first time MotoGP fans get to see all the 2012 spec machines on track at the same time. Have Ducati got it together for 2012? What do you think? Chime in with your views in the comments section below.
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Well I don’t think there will be anymore arguments about Casey Stoners abilities. If Ducati proved anything this year it’s that Stoner my be the GOAT. I was as shocked as anyone that Rossi didn’t come along mid season and run away with another championship. It’s hard to imagine Rossi and Burgess can’t figure this thing out. I fear it’s Ducati arrogance in design that’s getting in the way of success. Stoner was so happy to be with Ducati in GP that he took every chance and risked it all to win. Now he’s on a proper set up with Honda and he’s champ again. This next season is gonna be a war! That is if Ducati has finally admitted they wasted a whole season on that carbon frame and give the man what he needs to win. Funny thing is Baliss loves the carbon frame on the 1199. Who knows? I’m already tired of Big Red winning. Come on 2012!