Luis d’Antin, owner of the Pramac d’Antin satellite Ducati squad, offers a dramatic solution to ease the cost of getting on board the
MotoGP show - chuck out the factory 125s and 250s that can see riders trying to bring a huge pot of money to acquire a winning package.
"This is not the place where you should need half a million or a million euros to get a good bike," d’Antin said at Mugello. "In the 250cc class, if you don’t have a factory bike you don’t get the best tyres."
But how would a no-factory ruling be policed? How would you define what distinguished a factory part from production? Not my job, says Luis - I’m not a technical guy. But there must be ways that the rule-making gurus can achieve it, he reasons.
d’Antin, meanwhile, is revelling in the performance of his 'customer' Desmosedici GP7s, which are clearly no different to the works kit. "In every race except France our bikes have been faster through the speed trap than the official Marlboro bikes," he said. Two Ducati technicians work full-time on the d’Antin machines, and there’s plenty more support inside the factory.
With an agreement that gives him the Ducatis until 2009, this is one team owner who is feeling very happy. Now he just wants Alex Barros to repeat the podium place he achieved in Mugello, and Alex Hofmann to back up his Le Mans fifth place. This is a team that’s had a troubled time in the past, including with Neil Hodgson, but it’s now an attractive option for any rider looking for the opportunity to post regular top-six places.
