Andrea Dovizioso says he was left with a “really good feeling” after sampling Aprilia’s MotoGP machine for the first time in a three day test at Jerez.
The Italian was invited by Aprilia to try the RS-GP despite the ex-Ducati man turning down an opportunity to race for the manufacturer for 2021 after being left without a ride towards the end of last season, with the good progress made by the marque on its challenger over the winter enough to tempt Dovizioso to sample the bike.
The 15-time premier class race winner didn’t want to be drawn too far into the sensations he felt with the RS-GP due to not having “the right position” on the bike, though he at least did confirm another test-to be held at Italian Grand Prix venue Mugello-was to go ahead “in a month or less” that would be more representative following modifications to make him more comfortable.
“You can immediately feel the difference from what you rode in the past but to understand the details is very difficult,” said Dovizioso.
“You have to push really hard but you also have to be comfortable on the bike to understand a lot of details.
“To be there fighting for an important lap time or position is a different story.
“To do that you need the right position on the bike. It takes time to push the bike to the limit and feel comfortable on the bike.
“I think it’s too early for me to go into any details, it’s too early for me so I don’t think it’s a good idea to explain to the media. Like every bike, it has positives and negatives, which is normal, but I had a really good feeling.
“Next, we will do another test so we can work on some other details. I think we will organise another one at Mugello in one month more or less. At this moment, all we have on the table is this next test in Mugello.”
Dovizioso confirmed his intention to return to MotoGP competition for the ’22 season, adding that it was “stupid” for him to try and find the limit of the RS-GP given his current positioning issues, though did go as far as confirming there were “some things really nice and some that need to be better” about Aprilia’s challenger.
“MotoGP is still my passion and I would like to race next year,” continued Dovizioso.
“I think it was smart to be on track and I’m really happy because Aprilia gave me the possibility to do that in the right way.”
“After one month, I hope Aprilia can make some changes to help with my position. If you want to push really hard, you have to look at the small details and to understand everything clearly you have to feel comfortable.
“Until you have that situation, I think it’s stupid to try to push. When you don’t feel comfortable, you’re not able to be on the limit during braking, entry and exit and you have to do that in order to fully understand all of the details. There are for sure some things really nice and some things that need to be better, but every bike is like that.”
Dovizioso’s Aprilia outing marks the first time he has ridden a MotoGP prototype other than a Ducati since the end of ’12-a full nine years-when he competed with the Tech 3 Yamaha squad on a satellite M1.
He managed a trio of runners-up championship results in his eight campaigns with Ducati across the ’17-’19 seasons, losing out to eventual Marc Marquez after being the Spaniard’s only consistent challenger over the period.
He and the Italian manufacturer split at the conclusion of the ’20 term after months of animosity between the two parties caused by a lack of progress in curing the Desmosedici’s long-standing mid-corner turning weakness from Dovizioso’s side.
Ducati management meanwhile-including CEO Claudio Domenicali-were frustrated with Dovizioso’s supposed lack of aggression in battle and inability to head Marquez for a title, the latter left without a berth for ’21 due to the late split and lack of competitive opportunities.
