Ducati rider Andrea Dovizioso is not new to the support of the dedicated Itralian fans who are ever present to cheer on the Ducati team at the Italian Grand Prix. The Italian rider has already taken part in nine editions of the Italian GP with his best result at Mugello is a second place he scored in 2011, while last year he finished the race in fifth place.
“The Mugello round is the home grand prix for both me and for Ducati, so it is always something special,” he said. “We count on being competitive seeing as for us it is a track we know very well, and so we will be looking for a good result. The test that we did here a couple of weeks back went well and the feeling is good. I'm convinced that if we work well throughout the weekend, we can do a good race.”
Mugello will also see the participation of Michele Pirro, entered as a wild-card with a third Desmosedici GP of the Ducati Test Team. The rider from San Giovanni Rotondo, winner of the opening rounds of the Italian Superbike Championship, will take to the track for the first time this season in MotoGP.
“Finally I return to the track for a GP for the first time since Aragon last year,” Pirro said. “I'm very happy because it's always a fascinating experience to race at Mugello in front of our fans. As always I'll try and do my best together with the guys in the Test Team to put our bike as far forward as possible. We have a good base and I am ready to try and get a good result in the race.”
The Italian GP weekend gets underway on Friday morning with the first free practice session at 9.55 am, while the 23-lap race is scheduled for Sunday at 2 pm.
