Andrea Dovizioso produced yet another fine performance at Le Mans to step onto the podium in the French Grand Prix with a third place finish. The Italian rider, who started from the front row after going second in qualifying, got off to a good start and crossed the line at the end of lap 1 in second place behind Lorenzo, the eventual winner of the French race. Dovizioso held on to second until lap 13, when he was passed by Rossi, and he took the chequered flag in third. Andrea is now third overall in the Riders’ championship standings.
Team-mate Andrea Iannone, still feeling pain in his left shoulder which he injured last Tuesday during Ducati testing at Mugello, had an outstanding race. Thanks to assistance and treatment from the Clinica Mobile and his sheer determination, the rider from Vasto provided some exciting action during the race: he powered away well at the lights, finished lap 1 in third and then maintained the same place until lap 11. After being passed by Rossi, Iannone was running fourth, but exhaustion set in and he was then caught by Smith and Marquez, who both overtook him on lap 24. At this point, Marquez and Iannone provided all the excitement for the massive Le Mans crowd, trading positions numerous times, and in the end Iannone finished a well-deserved fifth ahead of Smith. The Italian also lies fifth overall in the championship standings with 61 points.
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 3rd
“I am happy because it is always very important to score a podium finish and the one I got today confirms once again that we are competitive. The conditions were good, but after the mid-point of the race I was no longer able to keep the pace of Lorenzo. Unfortunately the tyre had a drop in grip and I was not able to be as efficient as in the first half of the race: I thought my speed was good enough to get me to the flag and allow me to fight for the win, but it was not possible. This confirms that we are still missing a little something and, even though we have to be satisfied with another podium, we still have to work hard and make further improvements to the GP15”.
Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 5th
“This was a really difficult race for me, maybe the most difficult of my career. At the start I was feeling fine, I had good pace and I was pleased with the way things were going. Up until lap 10 I was lapping quickly behind Lorenzo and Dovizioso, but then I began to feel pain in my left arm and had to use my right arm more to compensate. As a result I could no longer brake the way I wanted. I also made a couple of mistakes, losing some time, and I was caught by Smith and Marquez, with whom I had a really great scrap. In any case I’ve got to be pleased with today, because it was really difficult to finish the race, and I want to thank my team who gave me a really competitive bike that allowed me to obtain this result. A big thanks also to the guys in the Clinica Mobile who have been taking care of me all weekend”.
Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“Today’s podium was the fifth for us since the start of the season and so we are really satisfied with it. Dovizioso was on really good form and ran a quick and smart race throughout to score another podium finish with the Desmosedici GP15. Iannone raced brilliantly, showing true character and, despite strong pain in his left shoulder, he had a superb battle with Marquez to finish the race in fifth place. Now that the French GP is over, from tomorrow onwards we will be beginning preparations for our ‘home race’, because we know that at Mugello there will be massive numbers of Ducatisti, and we want to try and give them even greater satisfaction than today”.
