Thread: Ducati's GP10! - 2010 Moto GP contender

Ducati general manager Claudio Domenicali said the team's new 2010 MotoGP contender - unveiled in Italy today - should be more rider-friendly than recent Desmosedicis.

Although Casey Stoner has achieved great success on Ducati's notoriously aggressive bikes since joining the team in 2007, his team-mates have fared less well.

Loris Capirossi, Marco Melandri and Nicky Hayden all had difficulty adapting their riding styles to the 800cc Ducatis. While Stoner has taken 20 wins in the past three years, Capirossi's Motegi triumph in '07 is the only victory any of his team-mates in that period achieved.

Domenicali said there had been a concerted attempt "to make the bike more rideable" during the design of this year's GP10.

"This has to do with the firing order," he explained. "We have a motor that, since the switch to 800s, utilised a screamer set-up.

"This has permitted us to have maximum power, which was very important and was probably fundamental with the results that we've had in 2007, 2008 and 2009, but at a certain point, we began to wonder whether it could be worthwhile to re-test a way that we'd already followed in the past.

"The last 1000cc motors that we made in 2005 and 2006 used a big-bang firing order, and this gave us important rideability. We re-tested that way, first trying it on the dyno, then with Vittoriano Guareschi in his previous role as test rider and then with Nicky and Casey.

"We think we have a bike for 2010 with better traction, and that therefore makes it easier for us to find a good set-up."

The chassis has also been adjusted to make the handling more benign.

"In the pursuit of ease of use, we've worked to eliminate the bike's squatting, which is why the entire rear portion of the bike was redesigned," Domenicali said.

"This bike has a rear structure that carries the rider — which we call the seat support — and that also supports the swingarm. That part was redesigned to have six mounting points instead of four; this makes the bike more rigid in a way and it guarantees better rideability and improved rigidity."

Domenicali said that adjusting to MotoGP's new engine usage limits was also a major design challenge. Only six engines can be used per season from 2010.

"It's a very important difference, because we were used to using more-or-less one engine per race, so to switch from eighteen engines to six is a very important adjustment," Domenicali explained.

"To go 1,600 kilometres with an engine that goes over 19,000 rpm isn't a simple assignment. All of the main parts were redesigned — pistons, rods, crankshaft, the basics. It's an engine with which our main objective was to minimize the loss of power to increase durability."

What kind of hp numbers are we talking about? 250+? God help us...

frame and swingarm made from carbon..
250 plus would be my guess as well..but they might be more conservative because of the new rules in play..

I hope they make a replica one day.

Me likey

Originally Posted by Santorino

What kind of hp numbers are we talking about? 250+? God help us...

it's my understanding that they could make that much hp if they wanted to but it can't be transferred to the pavement efficiently enough. but they are prob going to make low 2's at the crank I would think?

Originally Posted by K12S

it's my understanding that they could make that much hp if they wanted to but it can't be transferred to the pavement efficiently enough. but they are prob going to make low 2's at the crank I would think?

wsbk bikes were making that as far as 3 years back. heck even my 1078cc zx10r makes 193 at the wheel with the goodies....I am sure this duc will make atleast 220 plus at the wheels

also the kws sbk gixxer from a few years back sold with a ama sbk engine that made 210 at the wheels...

and this is a duc motogp bike we are talking about..you know they always make the big power.

Sounds pretty wicked too.

sounds any different than last years bike?

They were still testing the GP9 when I was over there in November. The GP10 is going to have a big bang firing order like the earlier Desmosedici GP bikes and will probably sound similar.

I have to keep reminding myself that the 1 litre rule does not come into play until 2012.