Dovi taken out again - bemused by grip, Petrucci

The disappointment on Andrea Dovizioso's face was clear for all to see after he was taken out of the Grand Prix of Argentina for the second year in succession on Sunday.

However, rather than criticising Aleix Espargaro, the man that collected him from behind on lap 15, Dovizioso appeared to be more frustrated by the riding of Danilo Petrucci, and his own Ducati's inability to deal with the lack of grip on offer.

Starting from 13th after a trying weekend for the factory Ducati squad, Dovizioso quickly navigated his way through the top ten, and was engaged in an engrossing battle for fifth at the race's half-way point.

His progress was however impeded by a lack of rear grip on the exit of the corner and under braking. That, and Petrucci's aggressive, late-braking antics, which Dovizioso felt were partly to blame for his misfortune.

"For sure the mistake was from Aleix but everything was created by Danilo," he said of the incident at turn five, when he initially moved to out-brake his fellow Italian.

As Petrucci let off the brakes, Dovizioso sat up to take avoiding action. It was then that Espargaro attempted to turn tighter, before losing the front at speed. Out wide, Dovizioso stood no chance as the Aprilia RS-GP clattered into him.

The incident between Aleix Espargaro and Dovizioso: The Aprilia rider fell and collected Dovi #ArgentinaGP #MotoGP pic.twitter.com/okyAFd2wnT-- Crash.net MotoGP (@crash_motogp) April 9, 2017

"I want to start with the race. I was happy to gain a lot of positions. I was happy about that. The reality was I didn't have the speed. I didn't have the speed I wanted because after the race we confirmed that the limit was the grip on the rear," he said.

"Every practice the limit was that. And in the race the limit was that. I couldn't brake as I wanted or as I could. The bike was able to brake harder but the limit was the slide under braking. I couldn't brake harder because of the limit on the rear. But in the braking I was quite good so I didn't lose too much.

"But on the exit I was really bad. I was struggling all the race. But with that speed anyway I was able to fight for the fifth position. So, for a weekend we did I was quite happy to finish fifth because in the championship it was important points.

"But when I was behind Danilo, and he finished completely the rear tyre, he was riding in a bad way. He stopped a lot of riders. He rode in a strange way. I think it was too much. Everybody tries to use his [own] style and this is normal, this is good. But in the way he use it, it was very bad.

"I tried to overtake him on the inside and he brake late and close the door. Like this it's very bad. You don't give the possibility to do something because you can't brake like him. He's heavier and he's able to brake harder. This is not fair. This is not over the limit but this is not fair.

"That created the crash because I almost hit him and Aleix made a mistake for that manoeuvre. For sure the mistake was from Aleix but everything was created by Danilo."

The Termas de Rio Hondo Circuit is renowned for its lack of grip, but Dovizioso has posed a more serious threat here in the past. Not only did he finish second around the 2.9-mile track in 2015. He was on course for the same result a year later, but for his then team-mate Andrea Iannone spectacularly taking him out at turn 13.

So why did the factory Ducatis struggle this year? "I think it was the tyre," he said. "I think the three tyres we had this weekend, the grip was very low. I think that created a difficult situation for us. We struggled a lot.

"We tried to understand it and we tried to work in a different way but in the end that was the limit. Unfortunately everybody, but maybe for Ducati, it's more related to the grip on the rear.

"When we are in this situation we struggle more. But, anyway, Bautista did a really great race so for sure we were able to work in a better way."

"We have to solve the problem because it's the same tyre for everybody. So no excuse about that. Two things. Learn from that. This is always very important from the team. The second thing is how to manage the race. I think I am really good. From 13th I was able to put myself in a good position."

Espargaro was apologetic for his mistake: "Just as I was starting to increase my pace and when I had gotten close to the group, I saw Dovi off the line and I moved in," he said.

"Unfortunately, I had to brake hard and I lost the front. I am really sorry for the team and for Andrea, who was unwillingly involved in my crash. It's a pity because in the second part of the race we could have done well. Now we will head to Austin to confirm our progress."

Cal Crutchlow - Career Profile by Crash_net