DUCATI
Learning from its mistakes of 2022 , Ducati engineers opted against radical changes to a bike that ended its 15-year wait for the MotoGP™ title . Factory riders Bagnaia and Enea Bastianini , as well as Pramac ’ s Jorge Martin and Johann Zarco , were relieved to find the GP23 is a small evolution on last year ’ s model . Development work was split across the four men , with a new engine deemed a success from the off . Martin said he was “ ready to race ” on just the second day of testing at Sepang . Plus , he could make fast lap times when riding “ smoothly . I don ’ t have to be aggressive to be fast .” The only area of mild concern ? According to Bagnaia , it was “ the handling , the ’ 23 bike is more aggressive and more nervous .” Otherwise , Ducati are miles ahead of where they found themselves this time a year ago . Even riders from Mooney VR46 and Gresini Ducati , riding year old GP22s , look capable of getting in on the act .
48 | MotoGP™