After concluding the opening two rounds of the season with excellent results in both Qatar and at Austin, the Ducati Team has now arrived in Argentina, where round 3 of the 2015 MotoGP World Championship will be taking place at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit.
The new Desmosedici GP15 has certainly made a positive race debut, and the two riders of the Italian team, Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone, have already scored a total of three podiums, which include two second places for Dovizioso in Qatar and in Texas, and a third place for Iannone at Losail.
Dovizioso, who lies in second place in the standings just one point behind leader Rossi, had a few problems at the Argentinean circuit last year and could only finish ninth, while Iannone ended up as the best Ducati rider with a sixth place finish in the GP of Argentina.
For both Ducati Team men, the aim in this race will be to confirm the competitive level of the GP15, while continuing development and set-up work on the new project.
The weekend at Termas de Rio Hondo will begin on Friday morning with the first free practice session at 9.55 am (CET 14.55), while the race will be held on Sunday at 4 pm local time (CET 21.00).
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 2nd (40 points)
“Last year I had a difficult race in Argentina, because we had a few technical problems, I didn’t have a good feeling with the bike and the track was very dirty, so the whole weekend didn’t go well. Now however the situation is different, because the GP15 has already reached a good competitive level and I am sure that also at Termas we can fight for the leading positions, like we did in the first two races of this year.”
Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 4th (27 points)
“Termas is a track that I like a lot, but last year in the race I had tyre and grip problems, also because the track was new. I don’t know in what condition we will find the track surface this year, but all things considered in 2014 I did a good race and was the first Ducati rider to reach the chequered flag, in sixth place: as a result, I am optimistic again this time, and I hope to do a good race with my GP15 also in Argentina.”
The Termas de Rio Hondo Circuit
The circuit is about six kilometres from the spa town, from which it takes its name, in the province of Santiago del Estero in the northern part of the country. It was built on 150 hectares of land and officially inaugurated in May 2008 with a round of the Argentinean Touring Car Championship. In 2012 it underwent a series of interventions to modernize the facilities and lengthen the circuit with the aim of turning it into the most modern, safest and spectacular in South America. It is 4.806 metres in length, has 14 corners (five left and nine right), and the main straight measures just over one kilometre.
Circuit Record: Pedrosa (Honda – 2014), 1’39.233 (174.3 km/h)
Fastest Lap: Marquez (Honda – 2014), 1’37.683 (177.1 km/h)
Top Speed: Bradl (Honda – 2014), 334.1 km/h
Race Distance: 25 laps (120.2 km)
Race Start: 4 pm local time (CET 21.00)
2014 Results
Podium: 1st Marquez (Honda), 2nd Pedrosa (Honda), 3rd Lorenzo (Yamaha)
Pole Position: Marquez (Honda), 2’02.773 (161.6 km/h)
Fastest Lap: Marquez (Honda), 1’37.683 (177.1 km/h)
Andrea Dovizioso
Bike: Ducati Desmosedici GP15
Race Number: 04
Age: 29 (born on March 23rd 1986 in Forlimpopoli, Italy)
Residence: Forlì (Italy)
Races: 224 (126 x MotoGP, 49 x 250cc, 49 x 125cc)
First GP: 2001 Italian GP (125cc)
Wins: 10 (1 x MotoGP, 4 x 250cc, 5 x 125cc)
First Win: 2004 South African GP (125cc)
Pole Positions: 16 (3 x MotoGP, 4 x 250cc, 9 x 125cc)
First Pole: 2003 French GP (125cc)
Titles: 1 (1 x 125cc)
Andrea Iannone
Bike: Ducati Desmosedici GP15
Race Number: 29
Age: 25 (born on August 9th 1989 in Vasto, Italy)
Residence: Vasto (Italy)
Races: 162 (35 x MotoGP, 51 x Moto2, 76 x 125cc)
First GP: 2005 Spanish GP (125cc)
Wins: 12 (8 x Moto2, 4 x 125cc)
First Win: 2008 GP of China (125cc)
Pole Positions: 8 (5 x Moto2, 3 x 125cc)
First Pole: 2008 GP of Malaysia (125cc)
