After taking part in the GP of Japan and the Australian GP in the last two weeks, Andrea Dovizioso is gearing up for this weekend’s penultimate round of the season – the Shell Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix – which is being held at the Sepang International Circuit.
Seventh place at Phillip Island with two rounds remaining confirmed Andrea Dovizioso’s runner-up position in the championship standings for the third year in a row.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 2nd (240 points)
“The Sepang circuit is for sure the one I prefer more than any other in the world championship. On this track I have some great memories and I’m able to ride to my best characteristics, but at the same time it’s one of the most demanding races on the calendar. Heat and humidity are two factors that have particularly affected us in the past, so let’s see what will happen this year. On paper I think that we can be competitive in all conditions, with or without rain, as we have shown in the past, but nowadays in MotoGP it’s really difficult to make predictions.”

Andrea Dovizioso finished the Australian Grand Prix, which was held today at the Phillip Island circuit, in seventh place. The Ducati Team’s Italian rider, who was starting from row 4 following this morning’s Q2 session in which he finished in tenth position, ran an intelligent race as he moved up to the group fighting for fourth, but at the start of the final lap, after passing Miller at the end of the straight, he went wide at Turn 2 and dropped down four positions to finish the race in seventh place. With nine points scored today, Dovizioso is confirmed as runner-up in the Riders’ standings for the third year in a row.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 7th
“After a first part of the race in which we were fast, we consumed the rear tyre too much and our rhythm dropped compared to that of the top three. In the group of riders fighting for fourth place, we were all in a bit of difficulty but on the last lap I had created the right opportunity for myself: unfortunately, at Turn 2 the bike got away from me, I went wide and lost four positions. In the end it was a pity because we could have finished third and got onto the podium, albeit with a big gap from the first two. The positive aspect from today is that we confirmed our second place in the Riders’ classification, with two rounds remaining and for the third year in a row.”

Saturday’s track action at Phillip Island was affected by the adverse weather conditions, with cold temperatures, strong gusts of wind and intermittent rain throughout the day.
This morning ten riders, including Andrea Dovizioso, opted not to go out on track during the FP3 session because the conditions would in any case not have allowed them to improve on their times set in FP2 yesterday. In the afternoon the wind became even stronger and, after Oliveira’s crash, the Race Direction decided to interrupt the session about twelve minutes before the end, immediately summoning the riders for a meeting of the Safety Commission. It was then decided to cancel all further activities on track for today and a new schedule was drawn up for tomorrow.

On Sunday the MotoGP class will now go out for a warm-up session of 20 minutes at 9.50 am (00.50 CET), followed by Q1 and then Q2, in which Dovizioso will take part, at 10.45 (01.45 CET). The race will start as scheduled at 15.00 (05.00 CET), and will be held over a distance of 27 laps.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – yesterday’s time 1’29.320 (2nd)
“Today was a very strange day, with strong wind but above all it was very gusty, which because of the layout of Phillip Island with its very fast corners and the bikes always leaning, made it increasingly dangerous to continue to be out on the track. I’m happy that the decision was taken to cancel all track activity in the afternoon to prevent unnecessary risks from being taken, and now let’s hope that tomorrow the weather conditions will allow us to race without any problems”.

The Australian Grand Prix race weekend has begun in a positive way for the Ducati Team rider. At the end of the first day of practice, Andrea Dovizioso was lying second in the timesheets.
This morning’s FP1 session was held in the rain, and it finished with Dovizioso in tenth. In the afternoon the track dried out rapidly and the riders went out for FP2 on slick tyres. Andrea Dovizioso ended the session in second place, setting a quickest time of 1’29.320 with soft tyres on the last lap of his third exit.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 1’29.320 (2nd)
“In the end today went well: I’m very happy with second position, also because tomorrow it might rain and so it was particularly important to be inside the top 10. I managed to set a good time right at the end of the session, and even though in general I still don’t have a good feeling, we are amongst the quickest group of riders. In any case it was a positive first day”.

Less than one week after the GP of Japan, held last Sunday at Motegi, the MotoGP World Championship continues non-stop with another classic event on the calendar at the Phillip Island circuit, the scene for the seventeenth round of the season – the Australian Grand Prix.
Following a podium for Andrea Dovizioso in Japan – third place and the 100th in his career – he is now ready to tackle the second of three back-to-back overseas rounds. At the Phillip Island circuit, situated about 140 kilometres south of Melbourne, Dovizioso won on this track in 2004 in 125cc, but he can also count two thirds to his name in the premier class, one in 2011 and another in 2018, the latter with Ducati.

Andrea Dovizioso (# 04 Ducati Team) – 2nd (231 points)
“On paper Phillip Island is the most challenging circuit for us of the three end-of-season overseas races, but it is also true that last year here I finished third, and this is the marker that we must follow. The cold and the rain often form part of the weekend in this race, and so anything can happen. Even though I gained a few points on my closest rivals at Motegi, I can’t afford to relax if I want to hold on to second place in the standings, and in any case I’m determined to score a good result in Australia.”

Andrea Dovizioso was back on the podium again in the GP of Japan at the end of a great comeback race that saw him fight his way through from the third row at the start to third place at the chequered flag. The Ducati Team rider, who got off to a good start, finished the opening lap in fifth place and then at the mid-point first passed Miller and then Morbidelli, before subsequently holding off attacks from Viñales. In the last few laps Andrea then closed the gap to Quartararo in second, and he took the flag just under five-tenths of a second behind the French rider.
With today’s third place Dovizioso has now reached a total of 100 career podiums in GP racing.
In the Riders’ standings, Andrea Dovizioso consolidates his second place, with an advantage of 55 points over Rins and Viñales in third.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 3rd
“At the end of the race my feeling with the bike was really excellent, so much so that we did our fastest lap on the penultimate lap. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to pass Quartararo, who I saw was in a bit of difficulty in the final stages, but I think I could have overtaken him if there had been one more lap. I’m quite disappointed with my first part of the race however, because despite having good grip we were unable to be fast enough. We’ll now have to analyze the situation in detail to understand what the problem was and be ready for the race at Phillip Island.”

The Ducati Team rider will start from the third row of the grid in tomorrow’s Grand Prix of Japan at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit.
Andrea Dovizioso obtained seventh quickest time at the end of the Q2 qualifying session, which was held on an almost entirely dry track. This morning’s FP3 session took place in heavy rain and it saw Dovizioso in sixth place of the the timesheets, being able to go through directly into Q2 thanks to the time he had set in yesterday’s combined free practice standings.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 1’46.410 (7th)
“Our qualifying session was a bit difficult because there were still some damp patches on the track, and I wasn’t able to have a really fluid riding style there. It’s a pity about the third row, but we are in quite good shape for the race: let’s hope the warm-up tomorrow morning is dry because we still have to do an important test, with the aim of being protagonists in the race.”

At the end of the first day of practice for the GP of Japan, to be held this weekend at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit, the Ducati Team rider was classified inside the provisional top 10, signing the fourth fastest lap time of the day.
In cloudy conditions but with a dry track surface, all the MotoGP top riders improved their times in the afternoon’s FP2 session to try and qualify inside the top 10 and go directly through into Q2, seeing as tomorrow rain is forecast for the Japanese circuit.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 1’45.414 (4th)
“Today we immediately started off on the right foot, because our bike works very well at Motegi and it’s always great to be here. We were fast but, as has often happened this year, there are a lot of us with a good pace and so we’ll have to work on the little details to get set up for the race. Unfortunately, this afternoon the air was quite cool and the tyres from this morning didn’t work in the same way, but in any case we’re working well and I believe I have a good margin to improve: I’m very confident for the rest of the weekend.”

The MotoGP World Championship arrives in the Land of the Rising Sun this weekend for the GP of Japan, the sixteenth round of the season, and the second on Asian territory following the one in Thailand ten days ago.
At the Twin Ring Motegi, a circuit situated around 145 kilometres north of Tokyo, Andrea Dovizioso managed to get onto the top of the podium in a memorable race in the rain in 2017, after an exciting head-to-head battle with Marc Márquez.
Last year on the other hand Dovizioso crashed while he was in second place and fighting with Márquez, so this year he will be aiming for a good result that will allow him to consolidate his second place in the standings.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 2nd (215 points)
“With the title already assigned in Thailand, our main aim now is to hold on to second place, and this is what we’ll be fighting for in the next four races. Motegi is one of those special circuits where in the last few years we have been very competitive. Last year we missed out on the podium while fighting for the win, and I think that we will again be fast this year. We must continue to work hard to improve in all conditions and on all tracks and we’ll be giving our all in these last four races.”

Andrea Dovizioso finished the Thailand GP, held today at the Buriram International Circuit, in fourth position. The rider from Forlì, who started from row 3, ran at a consistent pace throughout the race and after moving up to fourth on the opening lap, kept the same position until the chequered flag, defending himself from Rins, who made a comeback in the final stages.
Andrea Dovizioso remains in second position in the Riders’ standings, 110 points from Marquez who was crowned 2019 world champion today, and with an advantage of 48 points over Rins in third.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 4th
“It was rather a difficult race because unfortunately we weren’t able to improve enough in T3 and T4, where also in practice we were losing out to the frontrunners. It’s a pity, but I’d like to offer my congratulations to Marc and his team because they have had a spectacular season. We tried to fight against them but it just wasn’t sufficient, so now we’ll have to work even harder in view of next season”.