Before the start of the season the MotoGP teams must homologate an engine specification, which then cannot be changed for the whole year. They also have to do the same with the fairing, even if an update to the aerodynamic package is allowed during the championship.
Spaniard Jorge Martin, who received the promise from Ducati that he would have the same material available as the official riders of the Borgo Panigale manufacturer, admitted today in Portimao that he will indeed have the same engine specification as Pecco Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini, but who opted for a different aerodynamic package from that of the two Italian drivers.
“We have taken a step forward compared to last year, we have an equal situation with the factory team and it is the engine we were looking for. I think that with this engine we will be able to take an important step forward. I am looking forward to start and, above all, to do good results and show that we are strong,” he said in a conversation with Motorsport.com.
However, as far as the choice of the fairing is concerned, Martin was the first to choose as he was very clear on which one suited him best (the one with the step, in the photo above), but in the end the factory team opted for another specification (the one without a step and with the ‘diffuser’, pictured below).
“We’ll start with different versions of the fairing: it was a bit strange, I was surprised that they chose that fairing, because I tried it and tried it again and I never found the right feeling. In the end I chose the latest version, which I didn’t like the Valencia test, but the Sepang test allowed me to take a big step forward”.
“Both in Sepang and in the Portimao test, which was a track on which I had more doubts, it went better and I had no more doubts”, he added, before clarifying: “I don’t know which Ducati riders wear which fairing, which All I know is that I’ll have the latest version and the official riders won’t use it”.
On the reasons why the factory team opted for a different fairing from Martin’s, the Madrilenian spoke about his sensations.
“I don’t know the reasons well, I imagine that they have a better feeling with the other one. Maybe they were looking for something else that I wasn’t looking for, like making the bike turn a little more. I needed to stop better in the corners and brake a little later and that’s what this hull gives me”.
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Francesco Bagnaia, Ducati Team
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
