With the 2019 MotoGP season fast approaching and the first of the 19 races slated to begin on March 10 in Qatar, Ducati has revealed its new Desmosedici GP19 machine with its star riders Andrea Dovizioso and Danillo Petrucci doing the honours. The Mission Winnow Ducati team, which will compete in the 2019 MotoGP World Championship, was presented yesterday in the presence of international media, partners and sponsors.
Danillo Petrucci joined the Ducati Factory team for 2019 season. Earlier, he was with Alma Pramac Ducati satellite team. Danillo Petrucci was ranked in eighth position overall in the 2018 MotoGP standings. His teammate and 2018 MotoGP Championship runner up Andrea Dovizioso completed his sixth season with Ducati Team. The 2019 season will be his 12th successive MotoGP season.
On the occasion, Andrea Dovizioso (#04, Mission Winnow Ducati) said: “2018 was a very positive year for me. We started with a victory and, even if we had some ups and downs, the difficulties pushed us to look in new directions and half-way through the season we made a big step forward. I’m very happy with the work done with the team, we fought for the win basically throughout the second half of the championship and I think we’ll make more improvements in the next tests to begin the season in the best possible way. The expectations are high, I have a great feeling with both the bike and my crew, and we can count on more experience. I’m happy to have Danilo alongside me in the garage, we know each other well and I believe we can fight on track but also work together to develop the package.”
On his last season and joining the Ducati factory team, Danilo Petrucci (#9, Mission Winnow Ducati) said: “Last season was very important for me, my best ever in terms of points scored. Even if I barely missed my goal to finish first among independent riders, I still finished 2018 on an undoubtedly positive note. Racing with the factory colours makes me really proud and I can’t wait to get started: I have a great feeling with my new crew, and the technical level is higher than ever. As for me, I know where I can still improve and I changed my conditioning program to make sure I’ll be in my best shape ever come the first race. I’m very happy to pair with Andrea: not only is he a phenomenal rider, but also a wonderful person. We’ve known each other for a long time, and we started to train together with one goal: to both have a really strong season.”
The team will soon leave for Malaysia where, on February 6-9 at Sepang, the first collective pre-season tests will begin.