Updated: Ducati unveils GP5.

Ducati Corse has today unveiled the Desmosedici GP5 (pictured) which will be campaigned by Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa in the 2005 MotoGP World Championship.

The unveiling of the new machine - which will use Bridgestone tyres and has been described as an evolution rather than a revolution - took place today at an altitude of 2470 metres on the snow covered slopes of Madonna di Campiglio, in northern Italy.

"The bike that Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa will race this season is the result of an evolution, not a revolution of the GP4" explained Ducati Corse CEO Claudio Domenicali during yesterday's press conference. "We learnt from the mistakes we made last year, when we arrived at the first Sepang tests with a completely different bike from the previous version and with no chance of turning back.

"The Desmosedici GP5 is the result of the work we did last season when, despite the difficulties, we didn't lose heart and we found the equilibrium we were looking for, as was demonstrated by our improving performance over the last few races and the two podiums at the end of the season," he added. "The studies that led to the creation of this bike follow a principle of reversibility, which allows us to retrace our steps at any time and make comparisons with previous solutions."

The GP5 actually differs very little from the GP4 that was seen in the final event of the 2004 season at Valencia - except for some chassis, swing-arm and ECU innovations.

The chassis is now also attached to the swing-arm pivot, unlike the GP4. This has already been tested at Phillip Island, but it will be tested again by Checa and Capirossi in Malaysia to see how it works with the new Bridgestone tyres.

It has also been decided to use the new swing-arm in testing and the races. This is lighter than the previous version, albeit somewhat stiffer.

Finally, Ducati claim the new ECU engine control system gives greater calculation power for more sophisticated race strategies. The ECU has a number of different levels of use, but is in line with the decision to continue development one step at a time, leaving open the possibility of being able to change components at any moment.

The software currently being deliberated is not radically different to that used on the GP4, but more complex, evo-spec versions, are also being developed.

Other innovations currently being developed by Ducati are a new 'step' engine, which is already running on the dyno, and which may be used in the second half of the season.

The GP5's aerodynamic package has also undergone modifications: after tests carried out in the wind-tunnel, a new fairing aimed at improving the bike's handling will appear for the first time at the forthcoming IRTA tests at Barcelona (March 18-20).

The Ducati Marlboro Team's pre-season testing schedule has been confirmed as the following:

Sepang (Malaysia): January 23-25
Sepang (Malaysia): February 11-13
Phillip Island (Australia): February 17-19
Losail (Qatar): March 1-3

To see all our pictures from the 2005 Wrooom press event - and there are over 65 of them - covering every detail of the GP5, plus the likes of Ducati Marlboro riders Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa (and a certain Randy Mamola) on skis, snowboards and snowmobiles simply CLICK HERE.