Andrea Iannone finished Sunday’s German Grand Prix, round 9 of the MotoGP World Championship held at the Sachsenring circuit, in fifth place. Starting from row 2 in fourth place, the 25-year-old Italian from Vasto crossed the line on the opening lap in fifth, a position he held onto until the chequered flag. Iannone was able to hold off a late recovery by Smith to finish 2.5 seconds ahead of the British rider.
Teammate Andrea Dovizioso had a tougher race after starting from row 4 with the eleventh quickest time in qualifying. The 29-year-old Italian from Romagna worked his way up to eighth place by lap 10 and kept that position until lap 14, right behind Crutchlow. Unfortunately a crash on the next lap put an end to the Ducati Team rider’s race.
In the overall standings Iannone maintains his third place with 118 points, while Dovizioso has now been joined in fifth on 87 points by Smith.
Ducati are still third in the Constructors’ standings, while the Ducati Team is in second place in the special Teams’ ranking.
Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 5th
“For sure today the situation was difficult to manage: we were once again capable of finishing in the top 5 and, as I have been saying since the start of the championship, this is one of our aims this season. Obviously it gives you more satisfaction to fight with the top riders but at this moment it was difficult to do anything more. At the start I tried to stay close to the leaders, taking some risks, but then I realized that in sectors T2 and T3 I was losing a lot and so I tried to impose my own pace and in the end it didn’t go badly. I want to thank all the guys in the team and all of Ducati for the faith that they are putting in me.”
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – DNF
“I am very disappointed about the crash: I really didn’t need that. Starting from row 4 I wanted to make up some places, even though on this track it’s anything but easy. I was pushing hard and lapping quite quickly, but as I was always on the limit I couldn’t be smooth and so I made a mistake. I’m disappointed for the team and it’s a real pity for the championship, but apart from this it also confirms that at the moment we don’t have the same speed as we had at the start of the season. We knew it was going to be tough on this track, so now I’m looking forward confidently to Indianapolis, which might give us some more indications about our current level as it is a track that is a bit more suitable for the GP15.”
Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“We can certainly not be happy about today’s results. We knew that it would be difficult for us at the Sachsenring and unfortunately it was. In any case Iannone demonstrated once again how much he’s matured as a rider, he did a steady race and remains third in the championship. Dovizioso was unlucky but I am sure that in the next few races he will once again be able to demonstrate his true worth.”
