Grapevine: 'Beautiful' ride for Schumacher
Michael Schumacher described his first ride on a MotoGP bike as a "beautiful experience", after the World Champion rode the Ducati GP5 in a private session at the Italian Mugello circuit
The former World Champion completed a total of 40 laps around the Tuscan track, setting laptimes around two minutes and ten seconds. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Schumacher best lap was two minutes and ten seconds - some twenty seconds slower than the MotoGP 2005 pole time at Mugello.
"I have been happy to try something different, something that I've wanted to do for a long time: to try out a MotoGP bike," Schumacher said at the end of the day. "I was very curious, and I must say it's been really worth it; very interesting and great fun.
"At the beginning you need to get used to it a bit, but they guys at Ducati helped me a lot and [MotoGP rider] Randy Mamola explained it all for me.
"This day has been a beautiful experience and I want to thank all those who made this happen."
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