Capirossi urges Ducati to adapt bike

While Capirossi's Ducati teammate Casey Stoner has won three out of four races and established a 15 point lead in the championship, the Italian has only managed one podium finish so far this season.

He has qualified 15th at Le Mans - 1.2 seconds and 13 places behind Stoner.

"I'm not at all happy," Capirossi said. "What's really disappointing is that I'm one of the fastest guys in the first two splits, maybe even the fastest, but I'm losing a second through the slower corners in T3 and T4.

"I've got no feeling with the gas, with the throttle connection, so I'm struggling there. This is a big problem that we need to work on."

Capirossi admitted that Stoner was proving that the Ducati GP7's competitiveness, but said he would be unable to achieve similar results until changes were made.

"For sure this bike is a winning machine with great potential but at the moment I can't use it at its best," he said.

"I need to work on my riding style but I also need help from Ducati. I have every confidence in them, but we have to work on this engine.

"For tomorrow I'm sure I'll be better in race conditions. I'll give my best as always but starting from 15th will make my race very difficult."