MotoGP: Dovizioso ‘has to be pleased’ despite losing title

2017 MotoGP world championship runner-up Andrea Dovizioso says he has to take the positives from both Sunday’s race and from an incredibly successful season for him and Ducati.

Losing out to Marc Marquez in the championship battle as he crashed out of Sunday’s race at Valencia, he was nonetheless still upbeat afterwards thanks to what remains his best ever season in the premier class.

“I tried everything and I think that we have to be pleased with this weekend. We weren’t as quick as Marquez but we fought to the very end. I pushed hard right from the first lap, I didn’t make any mistakes and I put myself in the right position but unfortunately I didn’t have many cards to play.

“At the start I thought I could pass Jorge but there were some points where I was losing and others were I was gaining: in the end staying behind him helped me ride in a smoother way, so it was positive he was in front of me. We were all at the limit, even Marc who managed to save himself once again from a crash, and I want to congratulate him because also this year he managed to make the difference.

“At any rate I’m very happy with this season and I want to thank all the guys in the team, Ducati and all those who gave their support because our season has been over the top, full of satisfaction.”