The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team headed to Portimão for the 10th round of the WorldSBK Championship

Coming off a stunning double at EuroSpeedway Lausitz (Germany) with Chaz Davies, with also a podium by Marco Melandri, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team is ready to resume action at Portimão (Portugal), home of the tenth round of the 2017 WorldSBK Championship.

The Portuguese track, which is back in the calendar after a one-year absence, is among the most iconic and appreciated by the riders due to its diverse layout, which features also radical elevation changes. At Portimão, Davies took two podiums thus far (finishing third twice, in 2014 and 2015, with Ducati), while Melandri won two races there (in 2011 and 2013). With four rounds to go and 200 points up for grabs, both the Welshman and the Italian are determined to attack.

After nine rounds, Davies (276 points) and Melandri (218 points) are respectively third and fourth in the championship. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team will resume action at 09:45 local time (CET -1) on Friday for the first free-practice session.

Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7)

“It always feels good to get back to racing, especially coming from a double win in the last round. Portimão is a really nice track, we haven’t raced there recently but we’ve always done some testing there over the winter, so it’s a circuit we all know. I think its bumpy nature will suit our package. It’s always fun and challenging to ride, because it’s bumpy and the tarmac is a bit different every time we go there, sort of like what happens in motocross, so it’s tough to get every detail right. We’ve been on the podium there a couple of times in different weather conditions, but we’ll try our best to improve our stats further. I’m looking forward to get back on the Panigale R.”

Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #33)

“Portimão’s track is among the best in the calendar. It’s a technical track with many elevation changes. Our winter test done there wasn’t particularly strong, but it helped us to get on the right track, and shortly after we scored our first podium in Australia. The tarmac is not in the best shape, but also it’s not as bad as in Germany. Each round we improve our knowledge of the package and, considering the steps forward we made for Race 2 in Germany and the info we collected, we should now be able to better adapt to bumpy tracks. In the past I had some strong results at Portimão, and I think it can suit our bike well, so we approach this round with confidence.”