Grapevine: Ducati chief praises Schumacher
Ducati team manager Livio Suppo praised Michael Schumacher after the German driver rode a MotoGP bike on Monday
Ferrari's Schumacher spent a day in Valentino Rossi's world when he tested the bike for the first time at the Mugello circuit.
Schumacher opened the session gently, lapping the Italian MotoGP circuit at around two minutes and 40 seconds.
Under the supervision of Suppo and former rider Randy Mamola, the seven-time champion completed a total of 42 laps with a best of 2:05.98, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
"He's having plenty of fun and he's going fast too: on the straight he immediately went over 300km/h," Suppo told the Italian newspaper.
"That was very good. Here, with a Ducati 999 road bike, Troy Bayliss did a 2:03. This was the first time for Michael on a GP bike, so you can only applaud him."
Schumacher's session was not error-free, however, the German going off track three times during the day. Only once he stalled the bike, though, and the team were forced to take it back to the pits on a truck.
Ducati are based in Bologna, near Ferrari's Maranello factory, and share the same title sponsor as the Italian Formula One team as well as the same tyre and fuel partners.
"I'd been looking forward to this for a long time," commented Schumacher. "It was worth it, super fun."
Among the small crowd following proceedings were test drivers Luca Badoer, Marc Gene and Andrea Bertolini, as well as Schumacher's father Rolf.
While Schumacher was having fun on two wheels, teammate Rubens Barrichello said farewell to Ferrari by taking his family and friends for rides in a Ferrari three-seater Formula One car.
The Brazilian was sorry to miss the opportunity to test the Ducati.
"If I didn't have this important engagement with my family, I would also have stayed there to try out the bikes, as I had been offered," he said. "Michael is 25 seconds slower than Valentino's record? I guess he doesn't want to take risks and takes care of his safety, and perhaps he's not turning the way you're supposed to.
"I'm sure my delay would have been 15 seconds because I really like riding bikes, on a track as well. Some time ago, in a challenge against my friend Alex Barros, I was only seven seconds slower. But maybe he was only fooling around."
How Ferrari’s Monaco headache became its Silverstone migraine
OPINION: Ferrari won the British Grand Prix with Carlos Sainz, but it ultimately cost Charles Leclerc a chance to make a bigger dent in Max Verstappen's title lead by leaving the Monegasque out on old tyres towards the end. Like Monaco, indecision over strategy proved to be the Scuderia's biggest issue - and if the team doesn't reflect, the headache can only intensify
The five factors behind Sainz winning a British GP he’d twice lost
Formula 1 has a newest race winner, in a grand prix the victor appeared to have lost twice, only to charge back to headline a sensational and dramatic British Grand Prix. From a massive start crash to a late sprint finish, here’s how five factors saw Carlos Sainz take his maiden grand prix win
Why there was no case to answer in Aston’s latest F1 copycat saga
The appearance of a revised Aston Martin in Spain caused controversy but PAT SYMONDS explains why the FIA investigation found the Silverstone team had no case to answer
Why it's Red Bull that really leads a three-way fight so far at Silverstone
After a slow start to Friday at Silverstone, all the Formula 1 teams had to effectively cram in a day’s worth of practice into one hour. But there was still plenty to learn and while Ferrari topped the times, a three-way battle is brewing ahead of the British Grand Prix
Why the future is bright for the British GP
It wasn’t so long ago the situation looked bleak at Silverstone with the future of the British Grand Prix under threat. But a transformation has seen it restored to one of the most important races on the Formula 1 calendar, with bigger and better to come
Could mixed fortunes for F1's leading Brits turn around at Silverstone?
For the first time in many years, none of the local racers starts among the favourites for the British Grand Prix. But George Russell, Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris could have reasons for optimism
Verstappen exclusive: Why F1’s champion isn’t fazed by Silverstone return
Max Verstappen is the world’s number one racing driver… and he’s determined to keep it that way. Speaking exclusively to GP Racing's OLEG KARPOV, the Red Bull driver explains why he’s relishing the 2022 championship battle with Charles Leclerc – and why he’s not worried about returning to Silverstone, the scene of the biggest accident of his career last year
Why Red Bull’s RB17 hypercar can help its F1 team
On Tuesday, Red Bull laid out its plans to develop and build a new hypercar - the RB17 - penned by Adrian Newey. As the project itself sates Newey as a creative outlet, it also offers Red Bull's Formula 1 team a number of new and exciting avenues to pursue