 The iconic Italian motorcycle factory house, Ducati, has good reason to celebrate in 2008. Troy Bayliss was crowned World Superbike Championship at the latest round in France, and in the process also secured the Manufacturers title for Ducati. Meanwhile across in Australia, Casey Stoner took a convincing win in his home country to celebrate Ducati’s 100th MotoGP race. As a technical partner to Ducati, these are also victories for Shell. “Since the two companies joined forces in the World Superbike Championship in 1999 and MotoGP in 2003, the flow of results has been tangible and consistent on the race tracks of the world” said Juan Carlos Perez, General Manager of Global Sponsorships, Shell Brands International. “Shell has fully embraced the strategic relationship in which both parties put the engineering development at the front, leading to another successful milestone in the history of the partnership.”
The success story began from the very first year of the collaboration when the legendary World Superbike rider Carl Fogarty won the Riders’ World Title on the Ducati 996, protected by Shell Advance Ultra 4 racing oil. Ducati extended their competitive programme to MotoGP Championship in 2003, while Shell introduced Ducati Corse to V-Power fuel to complement its Shell Advance lubricant.
In 2008, the engine of the new Ducati MotoGP bike - the Desmosedici GP8 - has been developed in collaboration with Shell’s engineers. The engine has been modified to minimise friction and increase the power and responsiveness of the bike, with the help of a specially-designed combination of Shell V-Power race fuel and Shell Advance lubricant.
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 To help this ongoing development, in 2008 Shell technicians introduced a mobile facility called the “Shell Track Lab” to the MotoGP paddock. As a genuine technical partner, Shell works literally next door to Ducati’s garage, underlining the strategic relationship in which both parties embrace engineering development to ensure that the fuels and lubricants are optimised for the benefits of all bikers.
Today, the Shell technical partnership with Ducati has become one of the most successful in the world of motorsport, it has recorded nine World titles and over 150 wins during its first ten years, including the MotoGP World Title in 2007, becoming the first non-Japanese manufacturer to win the premier class for 30 years. At the core of this relationship lies a common passion for technology: Ducati develops its legendary road bikes, while Shell works to design high-performing fuel and lubricants for the benefit of riders worldwide.
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