Having taken victory at the Automotodrom Brno in 2018, Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) heads to the Czech Republic with renewed positivity and optimism after the Summer break. The Italian, who lies second in the Championship, must achieve a strong result at the Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky if he is to get back on terms with Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) in the MotoGP™ title race.
Dovizioso heads into the round with the opportunity to lead Ducati’s charge to a second consecutive Czech victory, the first time this would’ve happened since the 2006 and 2007 seasons with Loris Capirossi and Casey Stoner respectively. With a 58-point gap between himself and Marquez, it is vital that ‘Desmo Dovi’ is back to his best this weekend.
“The Summer break always goes well to charge the batteries and see things with perspective,” began the pragmatic Italian. “Although the position in which we ended up in Assen and Sachsenring was not bad, the feelings were not what we wanted.”
The 33-year-old has been inside the top five in every Grand Prix this season, besides at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where he was taken out by former teammate, Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team). Now with the second half of the season beckoning, Dovizioso will want to make up for a difficult last three GP weekends.
Continuing to look ahead, he said: “However, now is the time to see things positively. We have worked hard during these three weeks in all aspects and we face this second part of the World Championship with great desire. Circuits come where I am sure we will be very competitive and demonstrate our potential.”
Besides his win in 2018, Dovizioso has four other podium finishes, of which only one of them has come in the premier class – in 2011, with Honda. Will he make it back-to-back victories in the Czech Republic this weekend?