Third race in Spain for Ducati Team

The MotoGP season is entering its final phase, which will comprise three overseas races book-ended by a pair of stops in Spain, the first of which is set to take place this weekend at MotorLand Aragón, host of the calendar’s fourteenth round.

Situated in the northeast of the country, roughly midway between Barcelona and Madrid, the circuit is relatively new to the championship, and this will mark just its fourth time hosting MotoGP. It’s a modern facility with a track that runs in an anti-clockwise direction and includes a variety of corner types, as well as some modest climbs and descents.

The Aragón race will also mark the 200th Grand Prix start for Andrea Dovizioso, who finished on the podium last year and will be riding the track for the first time aboard the Desmosedici GP13. Dovizioso’s Ducati Team cohort Nicky Hayden also has a podium result to his credit at Aragón, having finished third in 2010, the track’s MotoGP debut.

Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team
“I don’t know if Aragón will suit us better than Misano. For me this year it’s always new and at every track the Ducati works in a different way. I don’t know what we can expect but normally Aragón is quite a good race for Ducati. I really didn’t know that I will reach the milestone of 200 GPs at Aragón! It’s really nice to do a lot of races in the world championship, and it’s something really important for the rider. When I was young, for me it was impossible to think about being a part of the world championship, so I’m really happy to have reached this milestone but it also means that I’m becoming quite old!”

Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team
“Aragón is definitely quite a bit different from Misano, the last track we raced at, as it goes left and has some elevation changes. It’s a fun track that has some nice corners, although it has gotten pretty bumpy since the first year we went there and had great results with the Ducati, which hasn’t helped us. It’s a track I enjoy, but we know that it’s not going to be an easy race for us. Still, I’m looking forward to going there. We’ll try to start the weekend strong and see if we can do something better than we have at the last few races.”

Vittoriano Guareschi – Team Manager
“Aragón is a race that brings back some nice memories for us. The first time we went there, we won the race and also put Nicky on the podium; it was my first win as team manager. The track is really nice, it usually has a good crowd and there’s a long straightaway where the power of our bike’s engine can be exploited. During the post-race test at Misano, we found a few little things that our riders liked—nothing extraordinary but they did help us to go a bit better. We hope to experience the same benefits at Aragón.”

Ducati