ENG - Dall'Igna interview: "Ducati Open? The decision in three weeks" At Sepang the eyes of many were focused on the Ducati Corse General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna. He has got a huge responsibility, the task of bringing back Ducati to competitiveness. The machine found by the Ducati riders in their garage in Malaysia was not a revolution - the Italian Engineer having not had enough time to design a completely new bike - but the GP14 was, at least in some details, re-thinked by Dall’Igna. And the first response was positive. “I am quite satisfied with the way things went in these days, said Dall’Igna. “The atmosphere within the team seemed positive to me, and that’s important because I had to try and reverse the negative trend that clearly had been created in this team. It will be fundamental to motivate riders and technicians that are working on the bike’s development” Mission accomplished? “The laps times set by our riders showed that a step in the right direction has been taken. I’m expecting a similar positive impulse from the Engineer working at the project at home. Now we need to keep a cool head". What’s next? "We gathered a lot of useful data for future development. We’ll thoroughly analyse them at the Factory. It will be a crucial phase because it will direct our moves for the next test. We have a project already set but we must define the priorities”. Do you have time to realize new parts before the second Sepang test? (February 26-28) "I expect so, at least for some parts. We will prepare something new for Sepang 2, for Phillip Island and for the Qatar test too. But I can’t be more precise before analysing the data we gathered". GP14 seems working. “The GP14 solved some of the issues of the GP13. A bike is made by many parts and you must work on everything. There is not one single main problem to be solved, as generally thought. For instance Iannone still complains for the braking area and Dovizioso for the chattering”. How was the bike changed compared to the last year machine? “It has more possibilities for chassis adjustment and there is margin for several new solutions”. Did you focused on the chassis during the winter? “Yes we mainly worked on the chassis area of the bike but the engine has been revised as well. I need every tenth I can get. At this level the littlest details also are crucial”. Did Yamaha Open performances surprise you? “Aleix is a strong rider, and it’s no news for me having had him in my garage for two years in the past. A good bike is not enough, you need a rider able to push it to the limit. That’s why they make better money than technicians”. (laughs) The Open class clearly benefits of rules more flexible for the development “I often said that the rules for the Factory bikes it’s extremely limiting for us, because prevent us to work on crucial areas”. So, are you going Open? “We are evaluating it. We have time till February 28th to take a decision and we'll decide upon the development program we will choose to follow”. Will the riders be involved in the decision? “They trust the Engineers and it is correct that such decisions are taken by Ducati. But we’ll certainly listen to their opinion on the matter”. Would it be a move taken thinking to the future? Ezpeleta want a completely “Open” MotoGP in 1917 “Before thinking to the 2017 bike I must take care of the 2014, 2015 and 2016 bikes”. (laughs) Choosing the Open option could be seen as a slight to the Japanese Factories? “Whatever decision we will take it twill be a technical, not a political, decision. I have no reasons to make something against Honda and Yamaha and I don’t think there will be misinterpretations about it”.
