Lorenzo less "instinctive" than Stoner, says crew chief

Italian engineer Gabarrini worked alongside Stoner for both of his championship campaigns in 2007 and 2011, making the switch from Ducati to Honda along with the Australian rider.

He stayed at Honda following Stoner's retirement at the end of 2012, working with Jack Miller at the Marc VDS squad, before returning to Ducati this year to crew chief Lorenzo.

The Spaniard endured a difficult start to his Ducati tenure, finishing seventh in the standings - his lowest-ever position in MotoGP - and failing to win a race for the first time since making his premier class debut in 2008.

“Everybody told me working with Jorge was going to be so difficult, but it isn’t true," Gabarrini told Motorsport.com.

"If you explain to him what is going on, he listens to reason, although he may agree or disagree."

Comparing Lorenzo and Stoner, he added: “They are similar in terms of talent. They both were born to ride a bike. But they differ in the character and on the way to approach their work.

"Casey was an instinctive rider, he only needed a few corners to understand something and didn’t tend to do many laps. Jorge uses less his instinct, and relies more on his working method.

"Jorge is very precise and meticulous, besides being very sensitive with the feedback of the bike."

Gabarrini added that Lorenzo's slow start to the season made for a stressful experience at times inside the Ducati garage.

"In some moments, I felt the pressure because we had Jorge with us and the results didn’t come," he admitted.

"But that is part of our job and we also have to release the rider of that pressure."

Translation by Irene Aneas