Less than one week after the Czech Grand Prix, the MotoGP World Championship continues non-stop with the second of three races in August, this time in the heart of Austria, at the Red Bull Ring close to Zeltweg in Styria. The eleventh round of the season will be held at the spectacular Austrian circuit, the scene for two historic wins in the last two years for the Ducati Team in the hands of Andrea Iannone and Andrea Dovizioso.

The day after the triumphant 1-2 win by the Italian team at Brno, which saw Dovizioso take his second win of the season ahead of his team-mate Jorge Lorenzo, the two riders took part in the official MotoGP test on Monday. Both carried out detailed testing of the new aerodynamic package used in the win at Brno.

In the two editions of the Austrian GP held at the Red Bull Ring, the Italian rider has taken home a second place in 2016 and a superb win last year, after a spectacular battle down to the final corner with Marc Marquez. Lorenzo also had a good race with the Desmosedici in 2017, the Spanish rider finishing fourth overall after leading for the first eleven laps.

The Austrian GP schedule gets underway on Friday morning with the first free practice session at 9.55 am, while the 28-lap race will start at 14.00 CET on Sunday.

Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 3rd (113 points)
“After our splendid win at Brno, now I’m very pleased to race immediately again in Austria, because for us the Red Bull Ring is a very favourable track and so I’m sure we’ll also be competitive here. I expect to see Marc and our other rivals stronger than last year so it’s not going to be easy to repeat the win, but I have to admit that it wasn’t easy to win last year either. The Red Bull Ring is a bit of a strange track, but I expect that the aerodynamic solutions we adopted at Brno will also work here, and especially at the remaining circuits in the second half of the season.”

Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team #99) – 5th (105 points)
“For us to arrive in Austria after the 1-2 in Brno is fantastic and there couldn’t be a better scenario for Ducati. If I had to indicate an ideal circuit for the Desmosedici, I’d probably chose the Red Bull Ring because our bike adapts very well to this track, which has a lot of acceleration points and heavy braking areas, and it’s here that we can make all the difference so I’m very confident for this GP. I’m really motivated to get some great results but, even though everyone says we are favourites for the victory, we’ll have to see how the weekend goes because the weather will be changeable and it could also be a determining factor for the race.”

The Red Bull Ring
The Red Bull Ring circuit, formerly known as the Österreichring, is a historic track situated in Austria, close to Spielberg in the Styria region. The circuit, which was built in 1969, remained unused for many years after undergoing costly restoration work that modified the layout. The total length of the circuit is 4.318 km and the layout has ten corners, with an elevation change of 65 metres.

Fastest Lap: Iannone (Ducati), 1’23.142 (186.9 km/h) – 2016
Circuit Record: Zarco (Yamaha), 1’24.312 (184.3 km/h) – 2017
Best Pole: Iannone (Ducati), 1’23.142 (186.9 km/h) – 2016
Top Speed: Bautista (Ducati), 316.5 km/h – 2017
Track Length: 4.3 km
Race Duration: 28 laps (120.9 km)
Corners: 10 (3 left, 7 right)
Race Start: 14.00 CET

2017 Results
Podium: 1st Dovizioso (Ducati), 2nd Marquez (Honda), 3rd Pedrosa (Honda)
Pole Position: Marquez (Honda), 1’23.235 (186.757 km/h)
Fastest Lap: Zarco (Yamaha), 1’24.312 (184.327 km/h)

Andrea Dovizioso
Bike: Ducati Desmosedici GP
Race Number: 04
Age: 32 (born on 23rd March in Forlimpopoli, Italy)
Residence: Forlì (Italy)
Races: 286 (188 x MotoGP, 49 x 250cc, 49 x 125cc)
First GP: 2001 Italian GP (125cc)
Wins: 19 (10 x MotoGP, 4 x 250cc, 5 x 125cc)
First Win: 2004 South African GP (125cc)
Poles: 19 (6 x MotoGP, 4 x 250cc, 9 x 125cc)
First Pole: 2003 French GP (125cc)
World Titles: 1 (1 x 125cc)

Jorge Lorenzo
Bike: Ducati Desmosedici GP
Race Number: 99
Age: 31 (born on 4th May 1987 in Palma di Mallorca, Spain)
Residence: Lugano (Switzerland)
Races: 278 (184 x MotoGP, 48 x 250cc, 46 x 125cc)
First GP: 2002 Spanish GP (125cc)
Wins: 67 (46 x MotoGP, 17 x 250cc, 4 x 125cc)
First Win: 2003 Brazilian GP (125cc)
Poles: 65 (39 x MotoGP, 23 x 250cc, 3 x 125cc)
First Pole: 2003 Malaysian GP (125cc)
World Titles: 5 (3 x MotoGP, 2 x 250cc)

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