Chaz Davies posted a reel to his Instagram yesterday, which showed him launching the Ducati MotoE project alongside Michele Pirro on the factory Desmosedici GP test bike.
Ducat’s MotoGP bike, the Desmosedici, has long been known as the fastest bike on the Grand Prix grid, and it has been that way for almost its entire time in MotoGP, which began in 2003.
Even in recent years, when the Ducati has begun to turn better (to the point where it can even win in Jerez, as Francesco Bagnaia did almost two weeks ago), and the aerodynamic wings have grown in number and size on the side of its fairing, the Desmosedici has proven to be almost unmatched in a straight line.
Furthermore, Ducati was the first brand in MotoGP to take the holeshot devices commonly used in motocross and bring them to MotoGP. Since then, the systems have been refined, and MotoGP bikes now get off the line faster than they ever have.
That makes the video Davies posted even more alarming. Of course, electric motors are known for their instant torque delivery, but, even still, to keep up with a MotoGP bike for the first metres off the line is incredibly impressive.
Ducati will become the official MotoE manufacturer and bike supplier from 2023, taking over from fellow Italians Energica who have powered the series since its inaugural year in 2019.
Ducati has also been testing their MotoE bike thoroughly, and released a video of Alex De Angelis, an ex-MotoE rider himself, testing the bike at Vallelunga last month.
De Angelis joined Michele Pirro as a test rider for Ducati’s MotoE project, and it now appears the Italian marque has brought Chaz Davies into the testing programme as well. Davies’ Bolognese credentials are without doubt, with over 30 WorldSBK race wins for Ducati in his eight seasons in red, and now as Aruba.it Ducati’s rider coach for their riders, Alvaro Bautista and Michael Ruben Rinaldi.
