Ducati GP11: Rossi’s new ride

These are the first official images of the Ducati GP11, the bike that Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden will ride in MotoGP this year. As you can see, there’s not a big departure here from the GP10, at least visually. The large wings on the fairing, first developed last year, are thought to create a vortex that aids in cooling by aggressively sucking air out of the fairing vents. It appears that the Desmosedici GP11 retains the semi-frameless, carbon monocoque design you can see in the picture below. One surprise, to us at least, is how small a presence AMG has after all the fanfare surrounding the announcement of their sponsorship.

Update: two videos, including interview with Hayden and Rossi.

Update 2: technical details from Filippo Preziosi.

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Wes Siler. January 12th, 2011 - Permalink - Comments (24)

Rossi’s new leathers

“Although everything is still far from ideal shape, I’m doing therapy, but for now I suppose [I won’t ] get 100 percent fit by May 1.” These are the first images of Valentino Rossi wearing his new red, white and yellow Ducati leathers. At the multi-day team launch, the rider was finally able to speak about his early experience with the Ducati GP11 and his hopes for the 2011 season. He’s realistic about the challenges he faces after last year’s huge highside and shoulder surgery and now with the need to develop a new bike. :continue: