Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) was optimistic ahead of the Japanese GP at the Twin Ring Motegi, with the characteristics of the venue suiting the Ducati on paper. On pole in 2014 and with two top five finishes in the last two years at the track also adding to the positive reading, in a race weekend characterised by drama, the Italian turned promise into a haul of 20 points as he kept calm and kept his strategy - pushing to walk the limit, and not go over it.
Andrea Dovizioso (P2): “I started quite well and Valentino didn’t, but we went for the same bit of track and I lost some positions. I decided not to push 100% then and not be crazy, because I saw Marc and Valentino had more speed than me – then after Valentino crashed I tried to push and catch Lorenzo. He didn’t seem 100% after his crash, he wasn’t riding like normal, but he was still so fast. I tried to catch him without pushing too hard and risking too much, and then I decided with five to go that I would overtake him – but he made a mistake. Then I saw on the pit board that Maverick was close and that was a problem because he’s usually quick at the end, but I managed to hold on.”