Dovi made further progress on the final day of testing ahead of the 2022 season.

The sun greeted riders and teams one more time today at the Mandalika Circuit for their third and final day of testing in Indonesia, before everyone is packing and gearing up for the first Grand Prix of 2022 in less than three weeks’ time at the Losail International Circuit, Qatar.

Once again, Andrea Dovizioso managed to step forward aboard his Yamaha YZR-M1. The Italian went 0.413 seconds faster than yesterday. To improve his sensations and learn more about his new machine, he tried several settings and did a long run before midday. In total, the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team rider did 189 laps at the brand-new venue in Indonesia throughout the three days of official test.

We are eagerly awaiting the start of the 2022 season now!

 

Andrea Dovizioso #04
P 19

“Today was a bit better. In terms of lap time, I felt more comfortable and I could do a bit better overall. Regarding my pace for the race I’m not very satisfied, but it was very important to do the long run, where you always realize a lot of things. It was really nice to compare my long run with the one of Fabio (Quartararo) in the same tyres. At the beginning, he was very fast, so it will be incredibly important for me for Qatar to continue to adapt to the bike. Overall, it’s not enough yet, but we improved in these three days and I’m happy about that fact”.

Dovi achieves further improvements throughout the second day in Lombok, Indonesia.

Saturday saw the MotoGP riders getting more familiar with the picturesque Mandalika Circuit. In scorching heat, the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team riders stepped forward today, getting along better and better at the 4.3-kilometer Indonesian venue, while track conditions slightly meliorated again.

After finding some positives in riding his Yamaha YZR-M1, Dovi aimed to continue where he left off on Friday, but a crash in the morning halted his progress early. Yet, the experienced Italian managed to regain confidence later on and eventually lowered his lap time from day one in the afternoon by 0.942 seconds to a personal best of 1:32.303 minutes with further 70 laps on his account.

Sunday marks the final day of pre-season testing for the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team and the entire premier class field at the Mandalika Circuit, before everyone gears up for the first round of 2022 on March 6th in Qatar.

 

Andrea Dovizioso #04
P 19

“It was a strange day, because I crashed and I forgot how this feels. Apparently, I don’t remember the last time, but it was in 2020, so long time ago. And I did it the right way, really fast in turn eight. But I know I made a small mistake and I lost the front. That changed the plan a little bit, so I couldn’t work through it accordingly. But when we restarted in the afternoon, my feeling was better and I’m happy about the improvements we did with the bike, as we tried some material and the feeling was better. That was very important, because we have to take a decision for the first round in Qatar. About that I’m happy. Unfortunately, I did the fast lap time one hour before the end, because we had something to try. Therefore, the gap is a bit too big, but I hope we will have another day without rain to work on details, because for sure I still have to continue to adapt. I’m better and better, but it’s not enough yet”.

Andrea Dovizioso discovered the Mandalika Circuit aboard his Yamaha YZR-M1 for the first time today.

Hot and humid conditions accompanied the MotoGP paddock on their way from Malaysia to Indonesia. After riders and teams had a few days to get used to conditions, to check out the brand-new Mandalika Circuit and set up the garages, the action on the 4.3-kilometer circuit got underway today.
Although proceedings have been slightly delayed due to a rain shower in the morning, and a dirty track surface didn’t facilitate the riders’ first taste of the newly added track, the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team pair was out shortly after midday to discover the layout, lines and braking points on their YZR-M1 machines.

With more and more rubber on the asphalt, track conditions improved slightly and Dovi did a total of 57 laps on day one and concluded Friday in 9th position with a fastest lap of 1:33.245 minutes.
Andrea will have two more days to prepare himself for the season and the second round of 2022, the first ever Indonesian Grand Prix in March.

 

Andrea Dovizioso #04
P 9

“I’m happy about the way these three days started, because I was able to find a good line today in a very strange situation as the grip was very low. At the end, we could improve the braking, which is very important for me and very important in general for my riding style. So, I’m delighted about that. I was able to be consistent. For sure the track will change and this is not the reality in terms of lap time, because I’m convinced everybody will go faster. But for today, I’m happy”.

Dovi concludes the first test of the year with noticeable improvements of lap times.

Sunday saw the MotoGP field hitting the Sepang International Circuit for a second and final official test day. While conditions proved to be ideal once again in the first hours, rain interrupted proceedings after lunchtime. Yet, the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team rider managed to step forward already in the morning.

Following a first day full of work, Dovi aimed to find clearer directions aboard his 2022 Yamaha YZR-M1 today. The Italian set his fastest time on lap 12 and went more than one second quicker compared to day one. Due to the weather conditions, he was unable to chase faster lap times in the afternoon, but still went out and did a total of 115 laps throughout the two days of action.

The WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team is now ready to pack and fly over to Indonesia, where the entire paddock is excited to get to know the Mandalika Circuit, which is a new addition to the MotoGP World Championship calendar in 2022.

 

Andrea Dovizioso #04
P 22

“We made some progress for sure but I can’t be happy about where we’re at because there are still too many things I don’t have under control. The way I ride the bike is not good enough. I can be faster for sure because this morning I wasn’t able to use the potential of the soft tyre. Apart from that, I’m still not feeling that good. These two days have been very difficult but like always in Malaysia, I think it’s the best track to test some high turns but the condition is over the limit, the grip changes and you don’t have enough tyres to compare. Anyway, I’m very happy to go on a different new track, and I will continue my work with the team to do better”.

Andrea Dovizioso got back in the saddle of his Yamaha YZR-M1 today in Malaysia.

Common hot and humid conditions welcomed the MotoGP World Championship at their return to the Sepang International Circuit for the first official day of testing in 2022, whereby the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team pair of Andrea Dovizioso and Darryn Binder kicked off and continued their pre-season preparations.

Following the winter break, Dovizioso eventually was back on track today trying his brand-new 2022 machine. The Italian did 60 laps around one of his favorite tracks and was happy not just to be back in action, but also to be back at the place where he celebrated two victories in the premier class already. He did a fastest lap of 2’00.342 minutes.

Before the WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team is heading over to the newly added Mandalika Circuit in Indonesia next week, they will have a second and final day of testing at the 5.543-kilometer venue to further explore the potential of bikes and riders in preparation of the 2022 season.

 

Andrea Dovizioso #04
P 23

“Today has been a very strange day. Everybody is stressed, because we have only two days here in Malaysia, so everyone is doing a lot of laps. We did the same and started with a good feeling this morning. We tried a lot of things, but unfortunately, it wasn’t really clear which direction to take and I couldn’t improve my feeling. I don’t think today is the day to understand the real situation of everybody. I don’t know how much the soft tyre can improve things, because I didn’t try and we don’t have enough tyres here to do all the comparisons of material we want, so it’s pretty tricky to program the two days. But anyway, tomorrow we have to confirm something and try to be a bit faster”.