Day One

Andrea Iannone’s debut on the Ducati Go Eleven was interrupted mid-day due to rain; wet patches on track since the morning, which did not limit performance too much, allowing twenty-six laps to be completed in good grip conditions. SC0 tyres, the hardest available, with the number 29 finding good confidence with the Ducati Go Eleven. It is difficult to compare the on-track references of the other riders, as today many of the protagonists used soft tyres; tomorrow, when sunshine and milder temperatures are expected, should provide greater feedback from a technical point of view.

The joy on the face and the emotion of being back on the bike; Andrea showed a positive and excited spirit inside the garage, in which the staff is is finding increasing collaboration with the rider. Tomorrow, second day of testing, 10.00-18.00 in the hope of sunny weather!

Andrea Iannone (Rider):

“Getting back on the bike was nice. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to ride more but the weather has gradually gotten worse since the already critical start. The bike, despite the few laps due to rain, I can say is going very well. It wasn’t the perfect day to start again but we are very positive.”

Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):

“I think that in just 20 laps today Andrea proved that he still got it. Not so much for the lap time, this morning it meant nothing to us, especially considering the weather conditions, but seeing him on the trackside and inside the garage. Nice to see him with a smile, nice to see him having fun again. Andrea is creating an incredible atmosphere inside the garage, he laughs, jokes and knows what he wants and what he needs. Now it’s obviously too early to talk or make performance predictions, let’s hope we can ride all day tomorrow and have fun. Our goal is: just have fun!”

Day Two

No one questioned that Andrea was a talent; but it was almost impossible to expect that, after 4 years without riding a racing bike, five years after his last race in Jerez de la Frontera, he finished the first pre-season tests around eight tenths from the first of the day.

Today, finally a complete day of test, thanks to the warm sun of Southern Spain, The Maniac was able to start working on the bike, testing all types of tyres, both in hot asphalt conditions and with the fresh wind towards the evening. The work on fine-tuning the electronics and the comparison with the other riders was also important, a fact which allowed the number 29 to lower the references session after session, improving mainly in the second part of the track. He did the low 40 pace several times, then in the last hour he opted to use the SCQ. Usually, it is not easy to exploit this particular tyre with extra-grip at the first attempt, 1.39.335, almost eight tenths improved, ending in fifth place.

Despite the tiredness and arm pumps, due to little training on this type of very physical motorbike, the lap time obtained surprised most of the paddock staff, almost exceeding all expectations. There is still a lot of work to do, especially on the race pace, but the smile that Andrea showed at the end of the day fills the hearts of the whole team. He has his head down and a lot of work, with the aim of further sewing the bike together in view of the next tests, at the end of January!

Andrea Iannone (Rider):

“Today was certainly a positive day because we managed to lap much more than yesterday, this allowed us to better understand the bike and the tyres which performed very well. The approach on the Panigale was a shock for me lightning fast. It’s a bike that has very high power, and today my arms suffered a little from this. I thank Ducati and the Go Eleven team for all the effort they put into this test. It has been crucial our positive mood to face this tests.”

Denis Sacchetti (Team Manager):

“Today Andrea sent a strong message, the desire to come back racing is very high and has left everyone, including ourselves, speechless! I am happy not for the lap time, but for the approach he had, his working method and the smile he showed today when he got off the bike. That smile counts more than all the data a monitor can show us!”