Ducati has become the first manufacturer to official debut its 800cc
MotoGP machine, after test-rider Vittoriano Guareschi carried out the first shakedown for the 2007-spec Desmosedici at Mugello today.
While development work continues for the 2006 MotoGP championship, in which Ducati Marlboro Team riders
Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau are currently second and tenth, Guareschi took to the track with the 2007 prototype (pictured) - marking the start of its first track test, which will continue until Thursday.
"I have to admit that the first lap with the GP7 was really exciting," said Guareschi, Ducati's official test rider since 2002. "I am used to testing new solutions on our bikes, but this was different to the others: it is a totally new machine, and so it's even more exciting than usual. It seems just like yesterday that we were testing the Desmosedici GP3 here at Mugello for the first time, but four years have gone by! Today we made another important step forward in the MotoGP project: it is as if our family has given birth to a second 'baby' and the first noises it has made are not bad at all!"
No lap times or technical specifications were released for the 800cc machine, but Ducati Corse technical director Filippo Preziosi claimed he was "quite satisfied" with its debut performance.
"Today the new 800cc engine finally moved from the dyno to the track and we are quite satisfied with this debut," he said. "We started off by running a check on all the components of the new bike and over the next two days, if we don't encounter any particular problems, we will move on to phase two and begin the first set-up work. Today is certainly very important, but it is just the start of a long path that we know lies ahead of us.
