Andrea Dovizioso signs Ducati’s 50th MotoGP success as he takes a spectacular victory at the Austrian GP. Seventh position for his teammate Danilo Petrucci. Third place for Jack Miller, rider of the Pramac Racing team

Andrea Dovizioso took an extraordinary victory today at the Austrian GP, signing Ducati’s 50th MotoGP success. For the Bologna factory, it is the fifth consecutive triumph at the Spielberg race track, where it remains undefeated since the return of this race on the calendar in 2016.

As he started with the fourth time on the grid, the Ducati Team rider was in second place when, after only a few laps, the race was suspended due to an accident. Starting again, this time from the front row thanks to the position he occupied at the time of the red flag, Andrea managed to hook with the riders at the front, putting himself behind Jack Miller (Pramac Racing Team) who was leading the race, after only a few laps. On lap 11, the rider from Forlì made his decisive attack, earning the first position that he kept up to the chequered flag.

For Dovizioso this is his third success at the Red Bull Ring: thanks to this victory the rider from Romagna climbs back into second place in the overall standings, only 11 points behind Quartararo. As he was overtaken in the final lap by Mir, Miller finished third with the Ducati Desmosedici of the Pramac Racing team.

Danilo Petrucci, who started from thirteenth on the grid, finished with a good seventh place, which allows him to add valuable points to the general standings that currently sees him in the eleventh position. After the first four events of the 2020 season, Ducati is second in the manufacturers’ standings, while the Ducati Team is third in the team standings.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 1st
“It was a very peculiar race given the interruption due to the bad crash of Zarco and Morbidelli. Today my feeling with the bike was not particularly good, but in some areas, I felt strong, and I could make a difference. The weekend started well, but I was not sure if we could win the race: we managed to be immediately competitive, and I found good sensations, but we still lack something compared to the previous years. This track suits the characteristics of our Desmosedici GP bike, but we will still have to work to take another step forward and put ourselves in a position to fight for the victory in all the upcoming races.”

Danilo Petrucci (#9 Ducati Team) – 7th
“Starting so far back, I knew that today would be a difficult race, and in the confusion of the first laps, I lost some positions. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel completely comfortable: I still have problems with braking, and I don’t ride as I would like. Today in the race, I had a good pace, but the front guys were too far away to reach them. We bring home important points for the championship, but for the next races it will be important to make a good qualification to be able to stay with the riders at the front from the beginning”.

Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“After such a difficult start to the season, this victory has an important weight. It was a bizarre race given the interruption. Dovi has proven to be strong and that our bike is competitive. After the restart, the situation on the track changed, but we reconfirmed some aspects and changed the front tyre. I want to congratulate Dovi and the whole team for their work this weekend. I hope that we will be able to be so competitive in the next races until the end of the season.”

The Ducati Team will be back at the Red Bull Ring next weekend from 21st-23rd August for the Styria GP, the fifth round of the 2020 MotoGP season.