Livio Suppo was with Ducati for over eleven years and followed Ducati’s MotoGP project since its origins along with Claudio Domenicalli and the great Filippo Preziosi, and for seven years he was Ducati’s point man making not so easy decisions and taking the flack when things didn’t always go well especially this season with Casey Stoner’s mysterious illness and three race pullout.

Suppo decided to move on and will be Honda this year, not as a team or project manager the role he had in Ducati, but his job will be to find new sponsors for the Japanese team.

Website moto.it has a very long and comprehensive interview (also audio, but in Italian) with Suppo and we’ve decided to translate some of the most interesting parts. The Italian manager touches a lot of bases, Ducati’s MotoGP project, to the 2003 negotiations with Valentino Rossi, the decision to send Troy Bayliss away, the other riders who’ve ridden the Desmosedici, Casey Stoner and Stoner’s 2009 season.

Continue reading: Livio Suppo talks Ducati, Bridgestone, Riders and Stoner

At the Valencia GP pre-race press conference Casey Stoner talked about Livio Suppo leaving Ducati confirming his excellent relationship with the Italian manager despite rumors and speculation that want Stoner behind Suppo’s unexpected move to Honda HRC.

“Livio’s played a big part not only in my success but in the whole success of Ducati. He’s been there a long, long time, from the beginning of the MotoGP project. He’s done a fantastic job and I think everyone in this room would agree with me, no matter how much they like or dislike him. You know I’ve had an excellent relationship with Livio. You know a lot of people tried to push us apart when I was away in Australia, and you know it’s wrong basically. Nobody understood what was happening. Livio was there for me the whole time, was there we were in contact making sure I was ok, emailing every second or third day just to make sure everything was going well and seeing if he could do anything for me. You know it’s going to be a big loss to the team. I wish him well in his future dealings. It definitely would have been nice to see out my career with Ducati with him.”

You can hear Stoner’s entire interview here.

Continue reading: MotoGP Valencia - Casey Stoner praises Livio Suppo

The rumors of Livio Suppo leaving Ducati have been officially confirmed by the Ducati website, here’s the press release:

The last race of the 2009 MotoGP season will also be the last race in Ducati MotoGP Team colours for Livio Suppo, Ducati’s MotoGP project manager. The Italian manager will leave Ducati to embark on a new professional adventure.

In Ducati since 1999, Suppo was involved in this challenging and ambitious project from the very beginning, contributing with his intuition, perseverance and enthusiasm to the world title victory of 2007 and to the many podiums and successes that have characterised the life of the Ducati Desmosedici from its debut in 2003 up until today.

“Livio has meant a great deal to Ducati and also to me personally; he has been a loyal and valuable colleague but above all a great friend,” commented Claudio Domenicali, General Director of Ducati.

Continue reading: Confirmed! Livio Suppo leaves Ducati

What’s happening in Ducati’s Corse Racing teams? First we have the rumor, that’s getting stronger by the hour, that Livio Suppo will be leaving his postion in Ducati to head for Honda HRC, we have Serafino Foti that lead Ducati’s Junior Superstock team has left and now we have Davide Tardozzi, Ducati Xerox Superbike team manager that has worked in Ducati for almost twenty years, has officially announced that he is leaving Ducati.

Speaking to GPone (the official website at the moment has no news) Tardozzi explained his reasons:

“It was certainly a painful decision because you can’t leave a company that you’ve worked splendidly with for almost twenty years without feeling any regrets.”

So why are you leaving?

“I wanted to be completely honest with the Company that put a lot of faith in me. I was loosing the necessary stimulus to do this job, so I thought it was appropriate to tell Ducati in time so they could have enough time to find a replacement before the new season.”

Continue reading: WSBK Bombshell - Davide Tardozzi leaves Ducati!

The rumor that Ducati’s MotoGP project manager Livio Suppo will be leaving the team at end of season started gaining steam after Casey Stoner’s return from his three race break and after the Sepang GP. Michael Scott from GP Week first reported the rumor, now Dean Adams from Superbikeplanet has picked up on it, with more Italian gossip saying that Suppo could be heading to Honda HRC and he’s another item on Honda’s Shuehi Nakamoto’s shopping list after picking up part of Jorge Lorenzo’s Yamaha crew.

Apparently Vittoriano Guareschi’s promotion to team manager has sent speculation in some sort of frenzy saying that Ducati are paving the way for the arrival of Valentino Rossi in 2011 and that Suppo may be standing in the way of this move.

While it’s true that Rossi has made public overtures towards Ducati, but this year hasn’t been the first time nor will it be the last, but it is also true that Filippo Preziosi has always wanted Rossi in Ducati. The Italian engineer, father of the Desmosedici, often has very nice words for Rossi and considers him one of the greatest riders, even when Stoner won the championship in 2007, Preziosi stated that it was wonderful that a small company like Ducati could beat the giant Japanese manufacturers, but above all they beat the great Valentino Rossi.

Continue reading: MotoGP - Livio Suppo to leave Ducati for Honda HRC?

With Mattia Pasini testing the Ducati Desmosedici at the Mugello, rumors started up again that Casey Stoner would not be back for his programmed return for the Estoril GP in October and that Ducati was looking for another substitute, however in a telephone interview with Spanish RTVE, Livio Suppo talking in Italian, confirmed that Stoner will be back for the Estoril GP.

According to Suppo everything has been organized and flights have been booked and Ducati is eagerly waiting the return of the Australian rider, also stating that Ducati’s doctors have spoken to Stoner’s doctors in Australia and Stoner is feeling much better than when he arrived in Australia for the summer break.

Except for the Motosprint interview and brief article on Stoner doing some fishing at Top End, the Ducati rider has remained almost totally incomunicado to one and all during this 10 week absence. Suppo has had daily contacts only with Casey’s dad/manager Colin, Nicky Hayden received a text message before the Indy GP and new Triumph BE1 World SuperSport rider Chaz Davies, a former rival of Stoner’s in the 125 British Championship and close friend, last spoke to Stoner a week after Laguna Seca.

Suppo is convinced that his rider will be back stronger than ever and when the interviewer mentioned that his rivals were looking forward to his return, Suppo jokingly added: “Once he gets out on the track, they probably won’t be so happy to have Casey back!”

Continue reading: Livio Suppo confirms that Stoner will be at Estoril

When Casey Stoner denied that the slight gastritis and mild anemia diagnosed by Dr. Ting’s staff in California, was the root of his physical problems, and then decided to go AWOL for three races, speculation about what the Aussie was really suffering from began to run rabid, with dozens of different diagnosis being bandied about by even more arm chair doctors.

Stoner continued to remain incommunicado in Australia away from curious MotoGP journalists, until his interview with MotoSprint, that fueled a whole new line speculation regarding the pressures of racing.

Ducati’s Livio Suppo, declared several times during this weekend’s Indy race, that Stoner is feeling much better and is sure that his star rider will be back for the Estoril round, adding however that certain ‘levels’in Stoner’s blood tests remain slightly low without going into detail to what these levels were referred to. Suppo also stated that Stoner has seen an endocrinologist in Sydney and he would have further test results on Tuesday. Italian TV commentators have gone as far as speculating that Stoner’s fatigue is caused by some sort of hormonal problem caused by his suprarenal glands.

Admist hundreds of different rumors of all sorts, the prize goes to Italian website motocorse.com that following some sort of article published by one Australia’s leading media companies, Fairfax Media, reported that Stoner has visited Uluru (Ayers Rock) during his absence from the MotoGP championship.

Continue reading: On Casey Stoner – Best Rumor Yet

During Italian post-race TV show Fuori Giri a couple months back, Marlboro Ducati team manager Livio Suppo showed his public appreciation for 250cc rider Mattia Pasini by promising him the opportunity to test a Ducati and it was this promise that started the speculation that rookie Niccolò Canepa would not be finishing the 2009 season and that Pasini would be taking his place in Pramac.

Suppo has kept his word and Pasini’s dream will come true because on Monday, during the official one day test session at Brno, when he’ll try his hand on Mika Kallio’s Pramac Ducati as officially announced by Paolo Campinoti.

The GP9 satellite bike will not be used since Kallio will be using the factory Ducati, Pasini thinks that this test will be important for him so he can see if he can physically handle a MotoGP bike.

Pasini is racing with a handicap that limits the mobility of his right arm, a nerve was permantely injured during a motocross accident years ago.

Continue reading: Mattia Pasini gets to test a Ducati

Last year while Marco Simoncelli was racing to win the 250cc World Championship, the Italian rider was already being courted by Ducati who wanted him to join their stable in 2009. Simoncelli reported he even refused $ 1.000.000 to ride for them stating that he wanted to try to win a second World Championship title.

On Sunday, during Italia 1 show Fuori Giri that airs right after the MotoGP race and has in-depth interviews and guests, Ducati team manager Livio Suppo, without beating around the bush asked outright Simoncelli to ride for them.

“SuperSic was great, he rode like a God. Marco wouldn’t you like to ride our bike next year? You’re always in our hearts, we have to talk …” declared an almost adoring Suppo to Simoncelli who was sitting in the studio.

Simoncelli is ready to move to MotGP next year as is Spanish rider Alvaro Bautista and both riders are receiving various offers. One of these is from Yamaha Tech 3, who seem ready to put out to pasture Colin Edwards and send James Toseland back to WSBK and sign Simoncelli and maybe Superbike sensation Ben Spies.

Other rumors say that Honda is extremely interested in Simoncelli and that is even ready to line up a seventh bike on the grid, with no distinction between factory and satellite bikes. Speculation has it that they could even set up a one rider team for the Italian just like the Scot Racing team with Takahashi.

Silly season has already begun.

Source | sportmediaset

Continue reading: Livio Suppo wants Marco Simoncelli

Retired three times SBK Champion Troy Bayliss completed his first day of testing of Desmosedici GP9 at Mugello yesterday alongside test rider Vittoriano Guareschi. It was a first time that Bayliss got back on a MotoGP bike after his sensational win at Valencia back in 2006.

Last year Ducati tried to line up Bayliss and Max Biaggi test ride the GP8 in order to to find out why their struggling riders (Melandri, Elias and Guintoli) were languishing near the back of the grid. The proposal fell through when Bayliss declined saying that his priority was winning his 3rd title and Biaggi was injured and had to beg off.

Having Bayliss test ride this year’s Ducati and the GP10, Livio Suppo is hoping that some of the feedback will help this year’s struggling riders and find out why they’re not doing at least the same times as pre-season testing and that Preziosi render the GP10 a rider friendly bike or they may not find someone willing to ride the red missile from Borgo Panigale.

Continue reading: Troy Bayliss on the Ducati Desmosedici GP9

The Ducati Marlboro MotoGP team is traveling this time to Malaysia for the next round of the championship. Livio Suppo, the MotoGP Director from the Ducati Team is hopeful to get good results, Ducati’s winter test went well and Casey and Marco both have good past records at the track.

Casey Stoner, 2nd in the championship on 245 points gives his preview: “Over the last few rounds we’ve managed to set a good pace in all of the dry practice sessions and struggled a little bit in the wet. We think we found a good wet setting in Australia so unless there’s an unexpected problem that crops up we should be okay for any conditions at Sepang. I like the track and I’ve got good memories because I’ve won there in every category - 125cc, 250cc (2004 and 2005) and MotoGP. The track is a good mix, there are some fast corners with a lot of lean angle and some tight ones that aren’t much fun. We’ll give our best to finish the season in a positive way, with some good results, although to be honest my mind is on the test at the end of the season at Valencia, when we can start to work on the new Desmosedici.”

Teammate, the Italian Marco Melandri, 16th in the championship and with 51 points said: “The last few races have been really difficult and I’m obviously disappointed because I wanted to end the season with a run of decent results. Anyway, the only way thing to do is to consider each race as an individual event and start from zero. So I’ll try to do that in Malaysia, where I had a good race last year and finished on the podium.”

source | ducati

Continue reading: MotoGP Malaysia: preview Ducati Team

Casey Stoner won with his Ducati Desmosedici Phillip Island round before Yamaha rider and new World Champion Valentino Rossi.

Casey on his victory: “This weekend has been a bit like the whole season -up and down! Thankfully it’s finished on a high and it’s a great feeling to win my home Grand Prix in front of all these wonderful fans, with my family here too. It’s been a great year for me and even though we haven’t won the title I feel proud of our achievements. If we can battle for the championship again next year that would be great but for now I’m just going to enjoy winning my home GP.”

Livio Suppo, Ducati MotoGP Project Director said about Casey and the victories: “Casey was fantastic and he truly deserved to win here at Phillip Island. Today’s victory is really very special and comes after a few difficult races for him. I am very happy that he has been successful here of all places, in front of his fans. And it is also the best way for us to celebrate our one hundredth race in MotoGP.”

The statistics: It’s the 5th victory of the season for Casey, the 2nd in a row at Phillip Island and the 15th in his name. For Ducati 100th MotoGP race since the start in the Championship in 2003. Ducati claimed 58 podiums with 23 of the victories and 22 pole positions. In 2007 Ducati claimed the Riders and the Constructors Title.

Continue reading: MotoGP Phillip Island: Ducati and Stoner win