Autosportfoto

Redding rebuilt confidence in 2016 after trying '15 MotoGP season

Pramac Ducati rider Scott Redding says he spent 2016 rebuilding his confidence after a difficult '15 MotoGP season with Marc VDS Honda.

Redding graduated to the premier class in 2014 on a Gresini-run Honda, then switched to Marc VDS, the team he spent all four of his Moto2 season years with.

While he finished 2015 two places higher up in the championship in 13th than he did this year with Pramac, the Briton believes this year represents "a step forward".

"In the end I would say it's been a good year after where I was mentally last year," Redding said.

"Last year for me was a step backwards and I think I've got that step again forwards.

"Confidence is a bit better but I think I need to work hard for the winter for the small details to get prepared more for the new season.

"I think last year [with a] new team, new bike, new tyres, there's a lot to try to adapt everything to be right so let's hope next year we've got everything under control."

Riding a year-old Ducati, Redding shone in pre-season testing but ultimately endured a turbulent 2016 campaign.

Despite claiming his second MotoGP podium at Assen after qualifying on the front row, he wound up 15th in the standings.

Crucially, he also lost an intra-team battle to team-mate Danilo Petrucci over the second half of the campaign to ride Pramac's sole 2017-specification Ducati next year.

The 23-year-old struggled with unreliability - including losing a podium in Argentina to a mechanical failure - and tyre-usage issues, but was optimistic when reflecting on his 2016 season.

"It was a hard year but in a way it was a good year," he said.

"I think people forget the beginning of the season how much shit I had. Not finishing races.

"I was putting more pressure on, the five races I didn't finish more or less in a row, so then it's like, 'OK you can't crash, you need to get a result'.

"And then they bring this thing in with the [2017] bike and then the first race we have a tyre failure, next race I crash."

Zdroj: autosport.com