Davies: 'I had many doubts about BMW, made me more convinced to stay at Ducati'

Despite former team-mate Scott Redding trying to convince Chaz Davies to become a rider coach at BMW following his glittering WorldSBK career, the Welsh rider remained at Ducati after claiming he had ‘doubts about BMW’.

Robert Jones

23 Jan 2023

Chaz Davies, Alvaro Bautista Ducati WorldSBK Mandalika 2022

Davies, who retired following the 2021 WorldSBK season, was teammates to Redding in 2020 when the pair finished second and third behind Jonathan Rea.

A great relationship was built between the two Brits despite being in one of the most competitive teams and fighting for race wins.

When Davies decided to bring his career to an end, BMW emerged as a contender to sign the long-time Ducati rider as a coach for its new pairing of Redding and Michael Van Der Mark.

But after discussions with the German manufacturer, Davies was left unconvinced and instead took up the same role with Ducati.

"I spoke to BMW about it," Davies told Motorsport-total.com. "There were many who were enthusiastic about this idea, others obviously less so."

"Somehow it was going very slowly. That didn't give me a good feeling to be honest. I knew it wasn't the right way.

"I got in touch with Aruba and Ducati again. Serafino Foti was very committed to them idea.

"I had my doubts about BMW. These doubts made me even more convinced that I should stay in the Ducati family. I saw the effort people have put in here over the years, so I wanted to continue contributing so that they could win a World Championship."

In what was Ducati’s most successful season across both WorldSBK and MotoGP - 2022 was the first time they won both championships in the same year - Davies’s role might have been one that went under the radar, however, the impact it had was anything but that.

Alvaro Bautista, World Champion, Race 2, Indonesian WorldSBK. 13 November

Rivals with both Alvaro Bautista (2019) and Michael Ruben Rinaldi when fighting for the factory seat ahead of the 2021 campaign, Davies felt it was easy to put aside his previous rivalry and help both riders.

"It's not difficult for me, not at all," added Davies. "My job now is to help Alvaro, Michael and Nicolo (Bulega). It would certainly be difficult for some other people, but that's not my character. I have absolutely no problem with it."

"I try to help Michael on and off the track and to support him in certain situations. I have a lot of experience to draw from.

"I was already in that position and on that side of the pits. I sat in that exact position for many years."