The Mission Winnow Ducati team is ready to take it back to the track at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Montmeló (Spain) for the seventh round of the 2019 MotoGP World Championship. Less than two weeks ago, the squad took an emotional victory in the Italian Grand Prix – Ducati’s third consecutive win at Mugello – with Danilo Petrucci first under the checkered flag in a race that went down to the wire and Andrea Dovizioso third, just three tenths of a second behind his teammate. The circuit on the outskirts of Barcelona also evokes nice memories for the Borgo Panigale factory, which conquered its first ever MotoGP win there with Loris Capirossi in 2003 – in what was only Ducati’s sixth outing in the MotoGP class – and more recently triumphed in the last two editions of the Catalunya GP, with Dovizioso in 2017 and Lorenzo in 2018.
Dovizioso, who competed in his 300th race in the world championship at Mugello, is currently second in the championship, just 12 points behind provisional leader Márquez, and is ready to battle on the Catalan track. Petrucci, who always finished within the top ten with Ducati at Montmeló except from a DNF in 2017 is determined to keep the momentum after scoring his first podium of 2019 at Le Mans and winning his first ever MotoGP race at Mugello.
After six rounds, Ducati is second in the Manufacturers standings with 115 points, while the Mission Winnow Ducati team leads the Team rankings with 185 points.
Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Mission Winnow Ducati) – 2nd (103 points)
“Ducati won the last two GPs at the Montmeló track, and I’m confident we’ll be competitive in the race this weekend as well, even though track temperatures will be a decisive factor. Weather forecast says it will be hot, so both the performance and the correct management of the tyres will make the difference. We’re going through a crucial phase of the season and we need to keep scoring as many points as possible. We’re working well, we’ve been on the podium twice in a row but we need to keep improving our corner speed to be competitive in all kinds of circuits.”
Danilo Petrucci (#9 Mission Winnow Ducati) – 4th (82 points)
“I’m really keen to get back to racing after taking my first win at Mugello. It was a very important result for me, and I’ve been feeling ligther ever since. Our goals, however, don’t change and I expect Márquez to be a strong rival in Montmeló as well. We need to pick it up from where we left it in Mugello, but it won’t be easy because the track is difficult to interpret when temperatures are particularly high. I expect another battle, but we’re more conscious of our potential now so the target, as in the past few races, is the podium.”
The Mission Winnow Ducati team will resume action Friday, June 14th, at 09:55 local time (CET) for the first free-practice session, while the race is scheduled for Sunday at 14:00.
Photos: Ducati Media House
