Jack Miller gave Ducati its eleventh win of this MotoGP season at Motegi – Why he thinks the manufacturer is so dominant at the moment
Eleven of the 16 races contested so far in the 2022 MotoGP season have been won by a Ducati rider. On top of that, there have been twelve pole positions. This shows: Ducati is currently the dominant manufacturer. With eight motorbikes, the Italian brand naturally also has the largest number of riders on the current grid.
And it is precisely this fact that, according to Jack Miller, contributes significantly to the Desmosedici being so competitive. “Ducati is at its very dominant point, both here and in the World Superbike Championship,” the Motegi race winner holds.
“Certainly the riders are fantastic, there’s no doubt about that. But clearly, the bike works well. To have eight bikes on the grid, especially to have eight fast bikes, eight fast riders, is very helpful. “
Many riders means a lot of input
“They are riders with a lot of experience. Okay, there are also rookies or younger riders. But they have also done a lot in the past and are not slugs on the bike. So you get a lot of data and see what they do differently and try to put the pieces together perfectly.”
“I think that’s something in MotoGP that has helped us a lot,” Miller analyses, stressing that this project has been growing for a long time and didn’t happen overnight. “Since 2018, when I joined, I’ve seen a steady progression. “
“The bike works very solidly in different conditions – in the wet, in low grip. We find a good way for every scenario, which is the most important thing for a race bike. Because what’s the point if it only works in ideal conditions.”
“You have found this compromise of having the perfect bike on a certain track, but also being able to adapt to all kinds of conditions. That’s what makes us so strong.” But of course, he said, there are still areas Ducati wants to improve on too, especially with the turning.
Turning can still be improved
Miller explains, “The character of the bike makes it one of the heavier bikes on the grid when it comes to direction changes and turning. You still have to force it a bit. That’s an area that will continue to be worked on.”
“Especially in fast direction changes like the corkscrew at Aragon, it’s a bit ponderous. Or also in the tight chicane towards the back straight. In my case, that sometimes leads to missing the ideal point to open the throttle and losing the first few metres in acceleration.”
“That would be something I would still like to work on. But we know that is in the DNA of this bike. We have already worked hard to get rid of it and made great progress. But is there still something better going on.”
The current placings of the Ducati riders:
1st Francesco Bagnaia, 201 points – 2nd overall.
2nd Enea Bastianini, 163 points – 4th overall
3rd Jack Miller, 134 points – 5th overall
4th Johann Zarco, 133 points – 6th overall
5th Jorge Martín, 104 points – 9th overall
6th Luca Marini, 91 points – 12th overall
7th Marco Bezzecchi, 74 points – 14th overall
8th Fabio Di Giannantonio, 23 points – 20th overall
