The 2009 MotoGP season may still be over two months from erupting into life in the desert of Qatar, but deep within the hills of Madonna di Campiglio in Northern Italy this week, Ducati and their employees are set to unveil their masterplan for success for the forthcoming campaign.

The factory from Bologna has been the most successful team in the 800cc era, with Casey Stoner winning sixteen out of the thirty-six races run so far, leaving him with an amazing 44% win rate in the premier class of motorcycle racing, which is something that is almost never achieved. In fact the only other rider getting close to Casey in the 800cc era has been the man many consider to be the greatest rider of all time, Valentino Rossi, who has won thirteen races and managed to wrestle the MotoGP Championship away from his young adversary in 2008 to claim his eighth world title.

Ducati will be hoping that their latest evolution of the bike, the Desmosedici GP9, will be able to provide their riders with the weapon of choice in 2009 as they embark on a campaign to retake the two championships taken from them in 2008.

The Desmosedici GP9 is something out of the ordinary, it has been described as a bike that could revolutionize the industry, but what else would you expect from the genius’ at Ducati. Since being founded by three brothers Adriano, Marcello and Bruno Ducati in 1926, the company has grown to become a dominant force in the motorcycle industry, winning 24 motorcycle titles (13 World Superbike, 8 British Superbike, 2 AMA, 1 MotoGP) and countless hearts of motorcycle enthusiasts around the world with the deep bellow of their V-Twin engines.

The GP9 main new feature is a carbon fiber frame, which no one else in the paddock is running. Initial tests of the bike appear positive, with Casey testing the GP9 at Valencia before his surgery in November last year. The bike will also of course feature the monstrous power which has given the bike a reputation around the paddock of being a beast to ride.

In 2009 Ducati has arguably the strongest rider line up that they have ever had with two MotoGP World Champions in the form of Nicky Hayden and Casey Stoner. The two riders have taken 2 out of the last three titles in the premier class and are already speaking positively about the new season.

Nicky Hayden makes the move from the Factory Repsol Honda team into the unknown and to start chapter two in his MotoGP career. But, after a couple of outings on the GP9 at the tail end of last season, he heads into the new season with increased optimism that he can recapture his previous championship winning form.

“On Sunday I tried on my Ducati leather suit for the first time in an official photo session and I felt very proud. I know what a huge opportunity I´ve been given and I´m very grateful to Ducati, Marlboro and everybody who has shown faith in me in this new chapter of my career.”

“Obviously I need to get faster in order to be truly competitive but I already love the bike. I can´t say it´s easy to ride, it gets pretty loose on corner exit sometimes but the engine is powerful and that is important, especially in a race situation. The chassis is nice and stiff so you get plenty of feedback and I like the feeling with the front, which is really stable in the fast corners.”

“We´re both competitive and we´re going to want to beat one another but we´ll also work together to make a strong team. As far as my expectations for the season are concerned, I still have a lot of faith in myself and in what I´m capable of. The first objective is to get back to the same level I was at in 2006, challenging consistently for the podium and trying to start winning races again.”

Casey will be returning from surgery to hopefully pick up where he left off in Valencia with a race victory. Casey managed to show on several occasions last season that it wasn’t just the bike or tires that made him competitive as he continued to be the only Ducati rider to shine on a regular basis.

“I´m really happy with the addition of Nicky to the team. He has always been kind to me, even when I was racing in the smaller classes, and I think we can work well together. The communication between us is great and I think we can work together on fixing certain situations and getting the most out of the GP9 so that we can both be competitive.”

Casey also had a word of warning for his fellow competitors in the championship about his approach to the upcoming campaign.

“From my side I also plan to be a little more aggressive this season and maybe be a bit more decisive in races where nobody seems to want to take the initiative.”

With all things considered it should be a fantastic year ahead for Ducati and their two riders, who with the support of Alpinestars will be working hard towards a successful campaign in 2009.