Ducati coy on FTR link with new GP12

Ducati technical boss Filippo Preziosi has again refused to confirm whether British chassis specialists FTR are heavily involved in the conventional twin spar aluminium frame that Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden will race in 2012.

Although Ducati team boss Vittoriano Guareschi confirmed to MCN that FTR was in collaboration with Ducati back at the Motorland Aragon race last September, Preziosi remains tight-lipped on revealing the identity of technical partners.

He said: “Every single part that is used on our bike is not produced inside Ducati Corse. Ducati Corse is a company that develops, designs, tests and uses parts, but not produce them.

“This is a strategic choice we did in order to concentrate our effort on the conceptual part. Sometimes we are doing some co-design with a supplier. For example for the connecting rod, the design of the part is not completely done by Ducati, but there is a co-design in which some technology knowledge is done by the supplier.

“In the past, the tubular frame, the carbon fibre frame and now the aluminium frame is completely calculated and designed in every single detail by Ducati Corse.

“The supplier is just a partner that has the best machining and welding technology to produce the part that is completely developed by Ducati. For the aluminium frame there is not one supplier.

“There is one supplier that is very good in machining some components. There is a supplier that is very good in welding the parts and there is another supplier that is very good in the final machining of the steering axle and the pivot.

“So the welding supplier is chosen because they are the best welding partner we can achieve.”

FTR is bound by a confidentiality agreement from talking about its partnership with Ducati.