The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team is ready to resume action in front of its home supporters this weekendat Misano, which will host the seventh round of the 2017 WorldSBK Championship, the second on Italian soil after Imola.
The track located on the Italian Riviera is the only one on the calendar where Chaz Davies has yet to score a podium in the top class. Marco Melandri, on the other hand, has three third-place finishes to his tally at Misano. Both riders took advantage of a two-day test at the beginning of the month to better prepare for the round, and their common goal is to put behind the difficulties encountered at Donington to put up another memorable performance in front of the many ducatisti expected on track during the weekend.
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7)
“I feel good heading into the second Italian round of the year. The home fans’ support is always worth a lot: it’s humbling, enjoyable, and gives you an extra motivation. We have yet to step on the podium at Misano and we need to put it right because we always had the pace there. Last year we were particularly strong, but the ball just didn’t bounce our way as we crashed and then were pushed off the track during the races. The testing was good, we just need to put together a few bits and pieces but our window has been defined and we won’t make any radical changes. We defined a couple of potential directions to try and that’s where we’ll start from in FP1”.
Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #33)
“I’m very confident ahead of this round. I feel good, both physically and mentally. In the tests done at Misano we gathered some important data, despite not having been able to completely solve the issues we’ve encountered at Imola and Donington. I think the team has done a great technical analysis afterwards and devised some solutions that can help me improve my performance, so I feel optimistic and refreshed. The weather will be very hot, so it will be difficult for everyone during the races. Our rivals will be very competitive, but Misano is a good track for the Panigale R so I’m ready to battle.”
Circuit information
Country: Italy
Name: Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
Length: 4.226 km
Corners: 16 (6 left, 10 right)
Pole position: left
Race distance: 21 laps/88.746 km
RECORDS
Fastest lap: Sykes (Kawasaki), 1:34.037 (161,783 km/h) – 2016
Circuit record: Rea (Kawasaki), 1:34.720 (160,620 km/h) – 2015
Superpole: Sykes (Kawasaki), 1:34.037 (161,783 km/h) – 2016
2016 RESULTS
Race 1: Rea (Kawasaki), Sykes (Kawasaki), VD Mark (Honda)
Race 2: Rea (Kawasaki), Sykes (Kawasaki), Giugliano (Ducati)
Rider information
Chaz Davies
Bike: Ducati Panigale R
Race number: 7
Age: 30 (Born 10/02/1987 in Knighton, Wales)
SBK races: 139
SBK wins: 23
SBK podiums: 57
Marco Melandri
Bike: Ducati Panigale R
Race number: 33
Age: 34 (Born 07/08/1982 in Ravenna, Italy)
SBK races: 114
SBK wins: 19
SBK podiums: 55
