Valentino Rossi seeks to tame ‘evil’ Ducati

Valentino Rossi believes he will have to make numerous changes to Ducati’s factory GP11 machine to strengthen his bid for a tenth Grand Prix title this year.

Rossi could only finish his factory Ducati debut in 15th place when he rode a Desmosedici GP11 for the first time in Valencia back in early November.

And while he admitted that much of his failure to post more competitive lap times was due to his lingering right shoulder injury, he also said he would need to work on fine-tuning the bike more to his style in the future.   

Speaking for the first time about the Valencia test today at the Madonna di Campiglio ski resort in Italy, the 31-year-old said: “Ducati is quite different from other bikes, quite different from Yamaha but also from the Hondas. This is a bike, which from all points of view, is like a prototype. This Desmosedici is conceptually speaking totally different. It must be used in a totally different way.

“At the time being we haven’t done anything radical from the initial package we tried. We changed just the riding position and we asked to make some changes on some of the components on the bike so I can feel a bit more comfortable and I can ride a bit more like I want to ride the bike. But after this we are going to need to find more solutions, meaning that we have the improve the Desmosedici to make a bike that is not only fast as it is now, but it should become also easier to ride. On the other hand I’m going to have to adjust to the bike and change also my riding style so as to exploit the maximum of this bike.”

Rossi said it was impossible to make a direct comparison between the Yamaha YZR-M1 he quit riding at the end of the 2010 season and the Ducati.
But he made it clear that the Ducati needs a less refined and smooth riding style.

He added: “The Ducati is different from the M1. It must be ridden with a more dirty style. Let us say with the Ducati you must take corners more sharply. You have to trust yourself to the bike but I hope to be able also to modify the bike to make it more easy for me to ride. It’s a bike. You can change whatever you want. So I think we should be able to improve the bike to make it a bit easier and more competitive from the start to the end of the race.

“This is what I expect. Not only do we need a brutally fast bike but one that is less risky to ride. We need a bike that is constant and competitive from the beginning to the end of the race. So we need to risk a bit less. Historically, the Ducati bike has always been evil and nasty. You have to ride it with your fingernails, your claws. I think I will be able to do it.”