During the winter tests the Italian team did no do so well at the Sepang International Circuit, where they claimed three victories over the years. Both Ducati riders Valentino Rossi and Nicky
Hayden hope to enjoy a good weekend at Sepang, where the additional challenge of high air and track temperatures will test the endurance of riders and tyres alike.
Valentino Rossi
“We’ll see what awaits us at Sepang, because we didn’t do very well there during the winter tests. Still, many months have passed since then, and now with the new frame and swingarm, the bike is better. The race and the whole weekend will certainly be very difficult because of the high temperatures, which present a challenge for both the bike and the riders. That said, it’s obviously not our first time, and we know what to expect. We’ll try to do our best.”
Nicky Hayden
“Motegi is behind us, and hopefully Malaysia we can do a better result and have a better weekend. We need to be able to start better on Friday. We do have a few new parts to try this weekend that may help, and hopefully my wrist will be stronger now that it’s been three weeks since I hurt it. The track has less downhill braking, so it might not cause me as much pain as it did last weekend. The season is really getting close to the end, and we need to try our best to do a couple of good results before it’s over.”
Vittoriano Guareschi, Team Manager
“We come to Malaysia expecting a challenging weekend due to the high temperatures, because as always, heat tests the riders’ conditioning while also affecting the bike’s setup. Technically speaking, it’s a track where, apart from a slow hairpin, there are no stop-and-go sections like those at Motegi, where we suffered on acceleration and on the exits from the tight corners. There are two long straightaways where we can take advantage of our engine’s horsepower. It will be important to preserve the tyres by finding a setup that enables us to have a steady performance for the entire race. It’s something that we’ve been able to do in recent races but that will be more difficult here at Sepang because of the high temperatures.”
Press release courtesy of Ducati Team
Valentino Rossi
“We’ll see what awaits us at Sepang, because we didn’t do very well there during the winter tests. Still, many months have passed since then, and now with the new frame and swingarm, the bike is better. The race and the whole weekend will certainly be very difficult because of the high temperatures, which present a challenge for both the bike and the riders. That said, it’s obviously not our first time, and we know what to expect. We’ll try to do our best.”
Nicky Hayden
“Motegi is behind us, and hopefully Malaysia we can do a better result and have a better weekend. We need to be able to start better on Friday. We do have a few new parts to try this weekend that may help, and hopefully my wrist will be stronger now that it’s been three weeks since I hurt it. The track has less downhill braking, so it might not cause me as much pain as it did last weekend. The season is really getting close to the end, and we need to try our best to do a couple of good results before it’s over.”
Vittoriano Guareschi, Team Manager
“We come to Malaysia expecting a challenging weekend due to the high temperatures, because as always, heat tests the riders’ conditioning while also affecting the bike’s setup. Technically speaking, it’s a track where, apart from a slow hairpin, there are no stop-and-go sections like those at Motegi, where we suffered on acceleration and on the exits from the tight corners. There are two long straightaways where we can take advantage of our engine’s horsepower. It will be important to preserve the tyres by finding a setup that enables us to have a steady performance for the entire race. It’s something that we’ve been able to do in recent races but that will be more difficult here at Sepang because of the high temperatures.”
Press release courtesy of Ducati Team
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