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Andrea Dovizioso, 4th in dry and 2nd in the wet at Phillip Island

In MotoGP

03 ottobre 2008

Andrea Dovizioso, 4th in dry and 2nd in the wet at Phillip Island

The first day of free practice for the Grand Prix of Australia was held in weather which was decidedly variable, with sun and warm temperatures during the morning, followed by rain and a traditionally cold autumn afternoon.

Andrea Dovizioso in dry conditions remained stable among the top ten, gradually improving his lap and quickly concluding the first session in fourth position. By the end of the second session Andrea was truly flying in the rain, putting on an excellent display of riding – despite the lack of grip – to take first position until a few minutes before the end, when he was edged out by Nicky Hayden. The JiR Team Scot rider is confident of being able to tackle the second day of testing in good technical shape tomorrow and is looking forward to the race.

Gianni Berti – Technical Coordinator – JiR Team Scot
"This morning we started the practice session with the dry track and we started to set up a base set-up that has always yielded good results and allowed us to do a good job quickly. We are pleased with the new front forks and if tomorrow we are still in optimal conditions we will continue with the development of these. With the wet conditions we are ready to do very well indeed, even in the race."

Andrea Dovizioso – Rider – JiR Team Scot MotoGP
HONDA RC212V
4^th-best time: 1'31 "051
"Today’s was a good result, with us immediately going fast in the wet, with a steady pace that left me in first place in the standings until I returned to the pit-box at the end of the session. We used data that we acquired during the Winter test before the season started, where we spent an hour in the rain and this proved to be a good starting point for us. Even in the dry we went well, but we are still aiming to improve. The times we did today are similar to those made in the test, but the weather conditions were better, with higher temperatures, but today was cooler. In the wet, we tried some new tyres from Michelin, which worked very well. Phillip Island is a track where speed counts, with the bike spending time in some long curves with little throttle movement to use up before full throttle. These are characteristics which our bike is handling well.”

Pietro Caprara – Head Technician – JiR Team Scot
"Today we were able to use some new material, but we still have to move forward, but despite the variable weather, we got two good results. The data collected during the test before the season started has been exploited well, but the difference today was been Andrea with his determination. In the dry we have to improve – especially during corner entry – but for now we can be positive for tomorrow."