Wrooom - MotoGP Press Ski Meeting 2008
CLAUDIO DOMENICALI REVEALS DESMOSEDICI GP8
 Yesterday,
Casey Stoner and Marco Melandri unveiled the Desmosedici GP8
in its new livery and today, Claudio Domenicali, Ducati Corse
CEO and Ducati Motor Holding Product Director, revealed the
technical details of the new bike. Two hundred journalists
from all over the world gathered at Madonna di Campiglio to
attend the Wrooom - MotoGP Press Ski Meeting 2008 and meet
the Ducati Marlboro Team riders and management.
In addition to explaining the 2008 technical innovations,
Domenicali also briefly analysed the 2007 Ducati championship
and commented on the most interesting aspects of the new championship.
"It is very exciting to be here," began Domenicali.
"This event has become traditional over the years, but
I must say that it feels different this year. The very special
feeling created in 2007 between our rider and our bike and
tyres resulted in a fantastic season for all of us. I could
sum it up by saying that Casey was able to perfectly interpret
our GP7, which had been impeccably built and maintained high
levels of competitiveness and excellent reliability throughout
the season. The Bridgestone tyres also took a step forwards
in terms of performance consistency, thanks to our successful
joint efforts which had begun in 2005 and allowed us to basically
close the gap with Michelin."
"Our 2008 bike is an evolution of the 2007 model, how
could we have done otherwise? There was so very little wrong
with that bike," continued Domenicali before analysing
the new bike's technical characteristics. "We worked
on all areas. In terms of chassis set-up, the new frame is
lighter with optimised torsional and flexural rigidity to
solve the rather minimal "chattering" that we experienced
on a few occasions last year. The rear suspension geometry
is also different to reduce the 'pumping' effect observed
in certain tracks and in special conditions. As for the engine,
we worked on two areas. First of all, performance. We introduced
a number of modifications to minimise friction and obtain
a small power increase without affecting fuel consumption.
Secondly, we worked on rideability, in other words, engine
response proportional to the rider's torque requirements.
We tackled this aspect to obtain a 'fuller' engine response
especially mid-range and maintain peak power for longer.
Finally, with regards to electronics, we modified a few sensors
and actuator details to increase reliability and consequently,
safety. One of the main reasons of our presence in racing
is to develop technology to be transferred to production bikes,
improving safety and making them even more fun to ride. Electronics
play an important role in all this. An example of this is
our new 1098 R, which is equipped with exactly the same traction
control system used in Ducati racing bikes, making it the
first bike in the world to feature a system able to combine
safety with high performance."
Domenicali concluded his presentation by talking about the
essentially important support granted by Ducati sponsors in
a highly competitive and challenging environment like MotoGP.
"We would like to thank Phillip Morris who made it possible
to reach these goals. Without them, all this would have been
very hard to achieve. Our contract with them runs until 2011
which gives us the peace of mind needed to continue our work,"
said Domenicali. "Just today, we've renewed our contract
with Shell, a technological partner extremely important to
us, given the decisive role played by fuel consumption in
our championship regulations."
Domenicali also thanked other Ducati partners, among whom
Alice, a long-standing sponsor, San Disk, the contract with
whom has been renewed until 2009, and Riello UPS. Finally,
he mentioned the newly acquired, important partner Enel, now
in a two-year agreement with Ducati.
Wrooom, which in its new edition also includes F1 World Champion
Ferrari team events, will end on Friday, 11th January.
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