Ducati Blog

Ducati pair starts British Grand Prix against all odds with wet-weather tires; proves too big of a gamble

One cannot start to fathom what went on the minds of the whole Ducati Marlboro Team when they decided to play God and forecast rain at Donington Park—they setup the Desmosedicis of Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden on full wet-weather tires when no else on the grid did so. One last big gamble perhaps, particularly for Casey Stoner who was down 28 points (with only 7 rounds left) to championship leader Valentino Rossi prior to the race.

But what could have been the decision that put Casey back on course to fight for the championship looked glimmer and glimmer as the race progressed—Casey Stoner (who started 4th) was quickly relinquished to last as early as the first lap. By the second lap, the decision looked even more abominable as riders up front started completing more laps on slicks. By this point, it was either going to rain hard or they just threw away a race.

To add insult to injury, Casey Stoner, had he finished strong with a podium or even just a top ten (finish), could have gained more of an advantage as both Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo (#1 and #2 in the championship) crashed—with Lorenzo not scoring any points and Rossi finishing only fifth.

As for Nicky’s part of the gamble, at least he was not in a position where he could lose or gain something with that big a consequence. Had the gamble paid off for him, sure he could have picked up a place or two (probably even win the race), but at this point he could not lose any much more as he is already in deep as far as the season is concerned—it’s cruel but it’s true.

On the other hand, as I assume we are all MotoGP fans here, I cannot help but feel really good for the top 3: Andrea Dovizoso, Colin Edwards and Randy de Puniet—all having maiden podium finishes for this season, and at one point, all potential first GP win.

I wonder what could Casey and Nicky have left to say as the official statements start to come out. Watch out for those.

Guess who’s the top Ducati rider in this race? Niccolo Canepa.

British Grand Prix final results

1. Andrea Dovizioso
2. Colin Edwards +1.360
3. Randy de Puniet +1.600
4. Alex de Angelis +8.958
5. Valentino Rossi +21.622
6. James Toseland +22.465
7. Marco Melandri +35.284
8. Niccolo Canepa +38.769
9. Dani Pedrosa +42.112
10. Mika Kallio +45.845
11. Loris Capirossi +53.190
12. Gabor Talmacsi +1’12.315
13. Chris Vermeulen +1’20.398
14. Casey Stoner +1 Lap
15. Nicky Hayden +1 Lap

Related posts:

1. Stoner and Hayden talk about wet tire gamble
2. Casey Stoner tops Free Practice 1 at Qatar
3. Casey on pole — 2009 MotoGP Qatar qualifying times
4. Best ever qualifying for Nicky — 4th in Germany
5. British Grand Prix Qualifying Practice Results