From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM – PRESS INFORMATION
SEPANG (Malaysia)
22 January 2003

SEPANG TESTING CONCLUDES POSITIVELY FOR DUCATI
WITH IMPROVEMENTS FOR BOTH CAPIROSSI (2:03.9) AND BAYLISS (2:04.0)

The third and final day of testing at Malaysia’s Sepang circuit for the Ducati Marlboro Team was conditioned by the rain that had fallen overnight. As a result the final session began late morning, with high temperatures (air 30°C / track 40° C) and high humidity.

Capirossi and Bayliss immediately went out onto the track as soon as conditions allowed in order to complete the Desmosedici work schedule. Today mainly revolved around the accumulation of data and information for a bike that is still in its development phase and, for Bayliss in particular, who has never seen many of the circuits on the MotoGP calendar. This was the first appearance at Sepang for the Desmosedici, and losing half a day due to rain unfortunately means the loss of vital track time.

The tests however concluded with a positive balance sheet and evident satisfaction on the faces of the entire Ducati Marlboro Team.

“Three days of tests in an extreme climate provided us with useful information for the development of the engine and the bike” declared Ducati Corse Technical Director Filippo Preziosi. “In particular we obtained positive results regarding the engine reliability with high water temperatures. After this new experience, we can now continue with the development of the bike, trying to define the best settings for each type of circuit, but above all testing different solutions for the fundamental parts of the bike such as the frame, the swing-arm, the steering yoke and ergonomic components. We can only be satisfied with the times obtained as well as the information provided. Thanks to the professionalism demonstrated by Troy and Loris in giving feedback on the components being tested, we are making major progress in the development of this project.”

Both riders succeeded in improving their times on this final day of testing, in particular Troy Bayliss, who despite never having seen the circuit before, ended the test with a time of 2:04.0, improving his first day’s time by 2.5 seconds. Loris Capirossi was also on the pace, setting a 2:03.9 (the 2002 GP pole time was 2:04.4). The times recorded confirm the bike’s constant improvement and the positive feeling established by both riders with the Italian bike.

“I’m really happy with the tests and in particular with today’s results” declared Troy Bayliss. “I can see a constant improvement and being quicker than the first day by 2.5 seconds is confirmation of that. I’m establishing an excellent feeling with the bike, thanks also to a series of minor modifications to the set-up and riding position. There are still a lot of things to improve and I am sure than we can go even quicker. I can’t wait to go to Jerez to continue the development work. As well as the circuit, I’ve never been in such torrid heat before, you have to be really fit to race in these conditions.”

“If we consider that we have never been to the circuit before and had no reference data, the results are much better than expected” declared Loris at the end of the session. “We didn’t come here to set quick times, that would have been asking too much. Nevertheless we were able to work a lot on the set-up and try out different tyres and configurations. We still have a few traction problems with the tight curves on this track, but we are on the right path. We’re making constant progress and a couple more days testing would have given us the chance of doing a fantastic job. To sum up, the test was important and we obtained a lot of information. We are up there with the rest and we have a lot of potential to improve, I can see it’s going to be a great championship.”