Preview - Mugello
DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM COMES HOME
The Ducati Marlboro Team travels to Mugello for its home
Grand Prix full of confidence. Indeed the Bologna-based squad
has never been in such a position of strength going into the
Italian GP, with Loris Capirossi second equal on points after
five races. Meanwhile Ducati currently holds second place
in the constructors' World Championship and the team itself
lies third in the team's contest.
At the first five races of 2006 Ducati Marlboro Team riders
Capirossi and Sete Gibernau scored a total of four front-row
starts, one race victory and four top-four finishes. Such
performances are a testimony to the great work done by the
riders, the team, Ducati Corse and Bridgestone tyres.
Both Capirossi and Gibernau go well at Mugello, one of the
most challenging tracks in MotoGP, where they can count on
massive support from Italian fans and in particular from the
3000 Ducatisti packed into the special Ducati grandstand,
which is organized every year at the Correntaio curve. Capirossi
and his Desmosedici have scored podium finishes in two of
their last three visits to Mugello, while Gibernau was just
a fraction of a second away from winning the 2004 Italian
GP and qualified second fastest for last year's race.
The 2006 Italian GP is full of significance for Ducati because
it marks the launch of the Desmosedici road bike, the first
production machine to come out of the factory's MotoGP project,
which will be presented on Thursday 1 June at 11.30. This
year is also the 80th anniversary of the foundation of Ducati,
the 60th anniversary of the start of Ducati motorcycle production
and the 50th anniversary of the 'invention' of the desmodromic
distribution system.
LORIS CAPIROSSI, Ducati Marlboro Team rider, 3rd
overall, 79 points
"For me, Mugello is so good, such a great event. Every
year we go there it's a special moment for the Italian riders.
In fact, pretty much since 2000 - when I won after a big battle
with Valentino (Rossi) and (Max) Biaggi - the race has been
an Italian affair. And Mugello is extra special for me because
the Ducati factory is only 60km down the road, which is great
for all the staff who come to watch us race. It is an excellent
track, very unusual, with an interesting mix of corners -
fast, slow, up and down - so you have a little bit of everything.
I always enjoy it a lot.
"Getting second at the last race in France was fantastic,
it was very good for me and for our championship hopes. I
have to say thanks again to Ducati and to Bridgestone, everyone
is working so hard for this project. Bridgestone brought new
tyres to Le Mans which helped me get another podium."
SETE GIBERNAU, Ducati Marlboro Team rider, 9th overall,
33 points
"I am looking forward to Mugello because we definitely
took a step forward on bike set-up at the last race. We worked
some more on settings and improved things, so I felt much
more comfortable.
"Mugello is a challenging track for me but I've done
well there a few times. And this year it will be a special
race for me because it's Italy and I am now riding an Italian
bike. I've always had some great fans in Italy and I guess
I'll be getting some more support this year, now I'm riding
with Ducati. The track is one of the most technical in MotoGP,
so your bike has to work real good if you want a good result.
One of its most crucial points is the last corner, because
if you get a good drive out of there you can use that extra
speed to overtake other riders down the long straightaway.
The other big challenge is the downhill corner entries that
have a little grip."
LIVIO SUPPO, Ducati MotoGP project manager
"Mugello is always a special event for Ducati - it's
our home race, plus Loris is Italian and maybe we can say
that Sete is now half Italian! So, yes, it is an important
event for us but at the end of the day it's another race,
just like the other 16. The main thing is that we go to Mugello
in confident mood. We have scored some good results there
over the past few years and we are in excellent shape at the
moment, with both our riders able to race up front when everything
goes according to plan."
THE CIRCUIT
Mugello is one of the greatest events of the MotoGP season
- a challenging, high-speed circuit situated in a beautiful
Tuscan valley packed with thousands of enthusiastic fans.
The track features one of the world's longest straights, where
the fastest bikes exceed 340kmh/211mph, giving the Ducati
Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6 a chance to really stretch its
legs. The fast and flowing circuit is also one of the most
demanding, with a thrilling blend of high-speed turns, rapid
direction changes and plentiful off-camber corners. Mugello's
complexities are further heightened by a bumpy surface, which,
combined with numerous adverse-camber corners, makes front-tyre
choice particularly crucial. Mugello hosted its first bike
GP in 1976 but only became a regular venue after total refurbishment
in the early 1990s.
Lap record: Max Biaggi (Honda), 1m 50.117s (171.472km/h/106.548mph)
Pole position 2005: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), 1m 49.223s
DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM RIDER DATA LOGS
LORIS CAPIROSSI
Age: 33 (born April 4, 1973)
Lives: Monaco
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6
GP starts: 236 (65xMotoGP, 59x500, 84x250, 27x125)
GP victories: 26 (4xMotoGP, 2x500, 12x250, 8x125)
First GP victory: Britain, 1990 (125)
First GP: Japan, 1990 (125)
Pole positions: 40 (7xMotoGP, 5x500, 23x250, 5x125)
First pole: Australia, 1991 (125)
World Championships: 3 (125: 1990, 1991, 250: 1998)
Mugello 2005 results: Grid: 6th. Race: 3rd
SETE GIBERNAU
Age: 33 (born December 15, 1972)
Lives: Switzerland
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6
GP starts: 165 (70xMotoGP, 76x500, 19x250)
GP victories: 9 (8xMotoGP, 1x500)
First GP victory: Valencia, 2001 (500)
First GP: Spain, 1993 (250)
Pole positions: 12 (11xMotoGP, 1x500)
First pole: South Africa, 2000 (500)
Mugello 2005 results: Grid: 2nd. Race: DNF
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