The following is from Ducati…
After enjoying perfect conditions yesterday, the second and final day of testing at Valencia was badly affected by adverse weather, with intermittent showers leaving the track in a constantly damp state. The riders decided to wait for the majority of the day to see if it relented but at around 15:30, with the asphalt still cold and wet, several of them finally took to the track.
Casey Stoner who had set the pace on his GP9 yesterday, opted out and watched from pit-lane as his new team-mate Nicky Hayden made constant progress with the wet setting of the new bike, clocking a fastest lap of 1.48.287.
Nicky Hayden – 1’48.287 (20 laps)
“I would have preferred to have another dry day today because we still had a lot of things to try with the bike but at least I got chance to get a first feel for it in the wet. We’ve seen with the way the rain has followed us around this season how important it is to have experience in these conditions. to. After my first run I said to myself, “wow, you’re so slow!” But then we made some small changes and I felt better. We haven’t really played around with the setting too much today because at the moment the most important thing is to try and adapt to the bike, the tyres, the team and their way of working and communicating. I have to be careful not to speak too fast or use too much slang! Joking aside, I know I have a lot of hard work to do but I’m ready for it and so is the team. I haven’t asked for too many changes because Casey has already shown what this bike can do and now it’s up to me to do the same.”
