Andrea Dovizioso ended the first day of action at the Sepang circuit in third place following today’s two scheduled free practice sessions. The Ducati Team rider, who was fifth this morning after FP1, was able to improve his feeling in the afternoon session, and with a time of 1’59.206, he wrapped up the day in third place.

Danilo Petrucci, who is still feeling the effects of his crash in the Australian GP last Sunday, was classified in thirteenth position. The Italian set a time of 2’00.057 in FP2 this afternoon, improving on his best time in the morning by almost eight-tenths of a second.

Andrea Dovizioso (#04 Ducati Team) – 1’59.206 (3rd)

“Sepang is a fascinating circuit, but it’s also complicated because of the heat and the tyre drop that you always get on this track. In the afternoon we tried a different set-up that gave interesting results: it’s not easy to manage but it allowed me to be more consistent and quicker so I’m happy with today’s improvements. It’s still not enough to think about fighting for the win on Sunday, because there are some riders who are better placed than us, but I’m pleased with the work we did today and my feeling.”

Danilo Petrucci (#9 Ducati Team) – 2’00.057 (13th)

“Physically I’m still not 100% fit after the crash at Phillip Island, and in addition I wasn’t able to get the best out of the new tyres. Both this morning and this afternoon I struggled a lot and even though my pace is not bad, I still don’t feel quite right. Now we have to try and understand what didn’t work this afternoon to resolve my problems and get back to the front tomorrow.”

Tomorrow, Saturday 2nd November, will see the MotoGP riders back on track at 10.50 local time (03.50 CET) for the third free practice session, while qualifying will be held after FP4 starting from 15.05 local time (08.05 CET).