The Ducati Desmosedici GP6 took to the track today for its maiden run at the circuit that will host the opening round of the 2006 MotoGP World Championship.

Unfortunately the rain that had fallen during the night delayed the start of testing: in the morning both Ducati Marlboro Team riders were only able to carry out a rapid bike 'shakedown', but they took to the track again at around 1.30 pm and continued testing for the rest of the day.

With low temperatures and damp patches around the Spanish track, conditions were not ideal, but Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau were able to put in their first serious laps with the Italian manufacturer's new bike in the afternoon.

Loris and Sete also had the 2005 version available in the pit garage for eventual back-to-back tests but on this first day they concentrated exclusively on the new GP6.

Loris Capirossi, who set a best time of 1m42.644s in his 35 laps, was already able to give some positive impressions.

"Despite the fact that the track was not in the best condition, I got a good feeling from the new bike" declared Loris. "I immediately felt OK on it and that's positive. We did a good job today and started off in the best possible way. As the conditions were not so good, we mainly focussed on engine management to improve the bike's 'rideability' rather than suspension set-up or tyres. On this track in these conditions you can do a good job and that's what we did today. Hopefully tomorrow we'll wake up with some good weather."

It was also the first time out on the 2006 bike for Sete Gibernau, who spent the day getting used to his new team, machine and surroundings. Today was virtually a debut for Sete with Ducati, seeing as in the previous test at Valencia the weather conditions did not allow him to do any serious testing. The Spanish rider completed 52 laps, his best time being 1m42.606s.

"It was a good day today" commented Sete at the end of the session. "First impressions were good and I am more and more convinced that I made the right decision, especially because I can see that everyone, members of the team and Bridgestone personnel included, really want to do well and they have a lot of faith in me: that was what I was looking for and I'm happy to have found it. We've got a lot of work to do but the most important thing is that everyone has a great desire to work! Today I started to get familiar with the Ducati and the Bridgestone tyres as well as the team's working method. Let's hope tomorrow will bring some good weather so we can continue working like we did today."

The Ducati Marlboro Team will continue testing at Jerez tomorrow, Tuesday 29 and Wednesday 30 November.