The Ducati Lenovo Team has arrived in Australia to contest the third-to-last round of the 2022 MotoGP season, the Australian GP, at the Philip Island Grand Prix Circuit this weekend.
The track, about a two-hour drive from Melbourne, hosted the World Championship on 25 occasions before the pandemic, forcing organizers to cancel the 2020 and 2021 editions. So far, Ducati has had four wins and 11 podiums at the Australian circuit, the most recent being Jack Miller’s third-place finish in 2019 with the Desmosedici GP bike of the Pramac Racing Team.
Miller will race his home Grand Prix here and will do so for the first time wearing the colours of the factory team. Winner of the Japanese GP and fresh off a second place in the last round held in Thailand, the Australian rider will be hunting another success in front of his home crowd. For Pecco Bagnaia as well, third in Buriram, the Australian GP will be very important. The Italian rider arrives in Phillip Island with a gap in the Championship of only two points over leader Quartararo. On the Australian track Bagnaia, who finished fourth in the 2019 edition, aims to get another important result for the Championship.
Francesco Bagnaia (#63 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 2nd (217 points)
“After the Thai GP, I went back home for a few days, and now I’m ready to tackle these other two consecutive rounds in Australia and Malaysia. I am excited to return to Phillip Island, a very fast circuit where we can do well. We are now two points behind Quartararo, but this does not change our approach: we have to stay focused, work well from the first session on Friday and aim for victory in the race. Now more than ever, it is important not to make mistakes. We will see how the weather will be. In the last GP, we regained a good feeling in the wet, but we still have to arrive on Sunday ready to race in any condition.”
Jack Miller (#43 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 5th (179 points)
“I am really very happy to be back in Phillip Island and finally have my home Grand Prix with the factory Ducati team. The last time we raced here was in 2019, and this weekend will be the first time my family and friends will see me racing live wearing the colours of the Ducati Lenovo Team, so I am happy and proud! We come from a period in which I found a great feeling with my Desmosedici GP: the bike is working really well, and my feelings are improving race after race, so I can’t wait to get on track and fight for a good result again.”
The Ducati Lenovo Team riders will take to the track on Friday, 14th October, for the first practice session of the Australian GP at 9:55am local time (00:55am in Italy), while the race will be held on Sunday, 16th October, with the start scheduled for 2:00pm Australian time (5:00am Italian time) over a distance of 27 laps.
Circuit Information
Country: Australia
Name: Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit
Best Lap: M. Márquez (Honda), 1:28.108 (181.7 km/h) – 2013
Circuit Record: Lorenzo (Yamaha), 1:27.899 (182.1 km/h) – 2013
Top Speed: Dovizioso (Ducati), 348 km/h – 2015
Track Length: 4.4 km
Race Distance: 27 laps (120.1 km)
Corners: 12 (7 left, 5 right)
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