Pramac pair pleased with updates

Enjoying significant factory support from Ducati this season the Pramac Racing team got the chance to try several new components in Monday’s Barcelona test, including a new carbon fibre swingarm, a traction control update and a new tail-piece.

Mika Kallio was tireless in his work on the satellite Desmosedici, putting in 98 laps in total, a figure only matched by his factory counterpart Nicky Hayden. The Finnish MotoGP rookie focused on adapting to the machine updates and ended the day fourth on the timesheet, just four tenths down on paceman Andrea Dovizioso.

“I was fourth overall and I was quicker than Casey Stoner, so it was a really positive day. My pace was a second quicker than on Sunday and I am satisfied with the work we’ve done. The new swingarm has allowed us to take a step forward and I have much better feeling on the rear end.”

“Our pace is really good, so now I can relax for a few days in Finland and go to Assen feeling confident,” concluded Kallio.

Fellow rookie Niccolò Canepa, meanwhile, was also a second faster in testing than in Sunday’s race, finishing tenth on the timesheet at the end of his 90 lap workout, despite a light crash in the afternoon session.

“We tried the new swingarm and the traction control update and I’m feeling good, because I improved on my race pace and I can head to Assen in a positive mood,” Canepa commented.

“It was great to have a full test day because I still find it hard to get a perfect set-up on the bike during GP weekends,” the young Italian stated.

Pramac Racing’s Technical Director Fabiano Sterlacchini was also in an upbeat mood as the test concluded, stating, “Over the weekend we noticed a few things that we thought we could work on to improve in the test. More than physical problems they were issues with rider confidence on the bike so we have taken some big steps forward.”

“As well as having the new swingarm we decided to try and resolve some front end ‘bumping’ issues, which we’ve done. Our aim is to be between fifth and tenth and I think that is a realistic expectation.”