Ezpeleta tips Lorenzo to fight for 2018 MotoGP title
Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta believes that Jorge Lorenzo will fight for the 2018 MotoGP title, saying the Spaniard will continue his steady progress on the Ducati bike.
During his maiden campaign with Ducati, Lorenzo has struggled to adapt to a new bike after nine years on the Yamaha.
The Spaniard's best results so far are two third places at Jerez and Aragon, and he is currently seventh in the standings, meaning he is on course for what will statistically be his least successful campaign in MotoGP yet.
However, Lorenzo has been consistently edging closer to the frontrunners in recent races, boosted by a new aerodynamic fairing introduced at Brno, and has spent more and more time in the lead.
After spells out front at both the Red Bull Ring at Misano, the 30-year-old held first place for 15 laps at Aragon last time out before dropping behind Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa.
Ezpeleta says that while Lorenzo still needs time to reach his maximum potential at Ducati, he expects the three-time MotoGP champion to be able to fight for the title next year.
"I believe Jorge will be in the fight for the championship next year," he told Motorsport.com.
"There is no doubt that within Ducati everyone is happy to have him. I think Lorenzo is improving, he has been leading in some races for many laps.
"It's true that he still needs to understand better the Ducati and the tyres, but Jorge is doing it step-by-step."
Translation by Irene Aneas
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