Today’s third day of pre-season IRTA testing in Qatar was characterized by the rain that began to fall on the Losail International Circuit in the early afternoon and which then intensified as the day wore on, making it impossible for the riders to go out on track. In Qatar, the possibility of using rain tyres is not an option due to the floodlit illumination of the track, which creates glare on the wet surface.
As a result, bikes and riders remained in the garage and so the final testing day came to an early end also for the two Ducati Team riders.
The times set yesterday on day 2 remain unchanged, leaving Andrea Dovizioso at the top of the timesheets with a 1’54.907 lap.
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04)-1’54.907 (1st), total 86 laps
“We are very satisfied with the results obtained in the first two days of testing in Qatar, because we were always very quick both on new tyres and used ones. It’s a pity that today we were unable to go out on track, because we had some important tests to do in view of the race and we wanted to gather some extra data, but the rain made it impossible. In any case we start the season very satisfied over the work done with the new GP15, which immediately went well here in Qatar. I really think that we can have our say in the race, and for sure things are a lot more positive than last year. I want to thank my team and all the guys in Ducati Corse because they have worked really hard and very well!”