Ducati: No 1000cc test at Brno

Ducati's 2012 MotoGP prototype will keep away from a head-to-head assessment with rival 1000cc machines from Honda and Yamaha, after the factory announced that this year's 800cc bike will be used at Monday's official post-race test at Brno.

Ducati has already used five of the eight days of 1000cc testing acceptable with MotoGP riders this year - compared with two days for Honda and none for Yamaha.

All the preceding factory 1000cc tests have been detained in private, but that will change on Monday in the Czech Republic with Honda and Yamaha both confirming that their factory MotoGP riders will try 2012 bikes.

However Ducati has determined that both Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden will offer that day to working on the 800'.

“The Test Team tried some electronics updates at Mugello, and we'll use them in the post-race test at Brno to carry on improving the setup and reduce the gap to the lead group," said team manager Vittoriano Guareschi.

"Filippo [Preziosi] will be on hand Monday, and we'll carry on the development work on the GP11.1 with both Valentino and Nicky.”

While Rossi will go on to ride the GP11.1 throughout the grand prix weekend, team-mate Hayden - who completed his first laps on the customized bike during Friday practice at the previous US GP - revealed that he is probable to use the original GP11.

"Obviously the test on Monday will be really significant for us. I'll almost certainly just ride the GP11 on the race weekend and then test the new bike on Monday," said the American.

Rossi and Hayden will start round eleven (of 18) holding fifth and seventh in the world championship, with one podium apiece so far this period.

Distress Rossi ready to ditch new Ducati

Valentino Rossi's fight back to turn around his Ducati fortunes hit a new low on Saturday at Sachsenring, when the MotoGP superstar capable just 16th out of the 17 riders.

Rossi's best lap time, of 1min 23.320sec came on only his sixth of 30 laps and was 1.639sec at the back pole sitter Casey Stoner.

The Italian - without crew chief Jerry Burgess for the second event in a row - also lapped 0.925sec slower than he had managed on his return from a broken leg at last year's event, when he skilled fifth on a Factory Yamaha.

Rossi, the only Ducati rider using the newest GP11.1 motorcycle - which features an 800cc engine attached to next year's (1000cc) chassis and a new seamless transmission gearbox - was almost one-second at the back the 'standard' Desmosedici of his team-mate Nicky Hayden (eighth).

As such, Rossi has now exposed that he could ditch the GP11.1 and go back to the previous version.

"We are very upset, because we are stressed very much this weekend. I am very slow and close to last," Rossi told the official MotoGP website.

"For three races now we've used the new [GP11.1] bike to try to get better on the performance of the old one.

"I tried this bike with the 1000 engine and it was not so bad, but with the 800 engine the bike became very hard to ride and I cannot load the front of the bike.

"So our show at the last three races has been very, very bad. Especially in practice. And here it has been worse.

"So now we think maybe to come back to the normal, standard, bike. I don't know when. Maybe after Brno [mid-August]. We will decide after tomorrow.

"We've tried changing more or less everything on the bike [here] and, at the end, the lap time and our act does not improve.

"So I don't know what we can do for tomorrow's race, but we won't give up and will keep annoying to improve."

Saturday marked Rossi's worst qualifying performance since he was 17th, out of 19 riders, for the 2007 Valencia Grand Prix - when he only finished five qualifying laps due to a massive accident.

Rossi and Hayden positive after Friday practices

Valentino Rossi posted the third-fastest time overall during the first day of practice in the Gran Premio bwin de España. The Italian set his quickest lap of 1’40.077 in the morning session, when situation were slightly cooler and not as windy. Nicky Hayden on the other hand, was among one of the riders who improved in the afternoon, when he finished ninth, a little less than a second off his team-mate, in the mutual results from both sessions. His fastest lap time was 1’41.058.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team)

“I’m happy because this morning I did the third-fastest time. In the afternoon when the senior temperature hurt us a little, I was fifth. Anyway, most of the riders went a bit slower in the second session. Apart from the two Hondas at the front, we’re earlier to everyone else, which was our goal. It was a good day. There’s still work to do; we’re trying to find the right balance, and that’s why we’re trying two settings that are a little dissimilar from each other as we work on weight distribution. We have to improve the feeling with the front a little, the bike that I prefer still doesn’t turn like we want it to, which means we’ll have to find a compromise flanked by the two set-ups. As for my shoulder, I don’t have much strength, but in terms of endurance, it’s a little better.”

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team)

“We’re basically riding the same bike as in Qatar. Obviously with a couple of small tweaks for this track, you need a stiffer front spring and a few other modest differences. We feel closer than we were in Losail. We made a little step forward this afternoon and it’s good because only a few riders improved in the afternoon sitting, though the wind was a lot worse. It’s the same for everybody, but the wind was really brutal today, particularly around here where you’re leaned over in a lot of long corners. We’re still almost a second off of the front riders, but at least we’re inside a second, which wasn’t the case at Round 1. We’re not over here jumping up and down with joy, but we’re positive, and we’ll keep improving. There are a few places I’m lacking, but we’re trying to just make small gains and not make too numerous big changes.”

Rossi tests fitness at Misano

The Ducati rider completed a private test at the World Championship circuit on Wednesday, ahead of the Sepang Test next week. Watch footage of the day's events in the attached exclusive video.

Valentino Rossi rode a Ducati 1198 at the Misano circuit today (Wednesday) to test his physical condition ahead of the first official MotoGP Test at Sepang, which takes place next week from February 1st-3rd.

Riding the non-MotoGP machine to comply with the Testing restrictions, the Italian took to the track at around 1pm local time in cool conditions, with a maximum air temperature of 10ºC and a peak track temperature of 15ºC.

Still reporting pain in his shoulder, Rossi was accompanied at the track by Ducati Team Manager Vittoriano Guareschi and two of his crew engineers Matteo Flamigni and Gabriele Conti as he took the latest step in his continuing recovery from shoulder surgery which he underwent last November.

“First of all, thanks to Filippo (Preziosi) and to Ducati, who organised this test,” said Rossi. “Misano Circuit let us use the track on a day when Mattia (Pasini) was planning to ride in order to confirm his own condition. The track more or less confirmed what we expected: the shoulder is painful, especially under braking, when the front area hurts, where they stitched the tendon. Movement is stable enough, and we’re also doing not so bad with endurance, but apart from that, it hurts a lot and isn’t very strong. Let’s hope it gets a little better in these next few days before the test in Malaysia.”

Rossi’s press conference from Ducati’s Wrooom 2011 appearance in full

Valentino Rossi gave his first press conference as a Ducati rider through Wrooom 2011, held last week at Madonna di Campiglio. Here you be capable of watching the full video of the Italian star’s reflections.

Wearing Ducati colours for the first time and amid the prospect of the international press and the fans, Valentino Rossi gave a press conference at Wrooom 2011 in which he offered his opinions and prospect for 2011, the campaign which sees his debut at the controls of the Ducati Desmosedici GP11. In the fond of video you can see the complete interview with the Italian.