While the likes of Honꦫda struggle to adapt to MotoGP's new single software, Ducati has made a smooth transition from its factory ECU.

That's hardly surprising given the work Ducati put in with the former Open 🌠class software, on which the 2016 'unified' electronics are based, plus the factory's long MotoGP relat𒁃ionship with Magneti Marelli.

"In terms of sof😼tware, I think we start since the beginning of the Open class 🏅[in 2014], because the Open software is the starting point of this 'unified' software," confirmed Ducati Corse general manager Gigi Dall'Igna.

"So we start since the beginning of the Open class to work with the software and I think that we learned quite a lot during the last two seasons. And so w💫e have some small benefit compared to the others fr♊om that point of view.

"But frankly speaking, the🥂 new sof🦂tware also seems to be working quite well with the Yamaha."

Shortly after joining Ducati, Dall'Igna made the audacious move of trying to switch the official team to the new Opꦑen class, originally seen a♛s a place for independent entries.

Using the standard ECU was a prerequisite for the Open class, but - as with the new uni🍌fied software - development was invited from any manufacturer. Ducati is understo♋od to have handed many of its factory software secrets over to Dorna's Magneti Marelli ECU team to limit the disadvantage of using the shared system.

Ducati's own electronic๊s consisted of a 'Magneti Marelli ECU programmed with Ducati factory software'.

Ducati's rivals were unhappy at the Open move and a compromise kept the official team as a Factory entry (running its own bespoke software) but with﷽ many of the Open class technical concessions.

However Ducati also kept one eye on the future by ♔handing Hector Barbera an Open spec Desmosedici towards the end of 2014, then running both Avintia riders under the Open rules last season.

Although Honda and Yamaha also had bikes in the Open class, often to the riders' frustration they seemed far less interested in improving how the ECU performed with their machines. Since all entries must no🍃w use the same software, the Open class is disappearing in 2016.

Meanwhile, Dall'Inga believes Ducati will also benefit from strength in number💦s this season, with no less ওthan eight bikes on the grid, ranging from GP14.2s to last year's GP15s and the new GP (16).

"In a season🐲 where the rules changed a lot, we have the possibility to h༺ave more data above all for the unified software, for example," he said. "We can have some tests with different riders and so we can have some different feedback. I think this could be an advantage.

"For sure, we have to manage because eight riders during a race weekend is quite a lot, but I think that we have the knowledge and the peopleꦆ can handle this."

In terms of the change to Michelin tyres, Dall'Igna confirmed: "For sure the Michelin needs something different from the 🍬chassis. This is a really big change in terms of piec🐻es and so on... I'm talking about the geometry of the bike, so weight distribution."

Ducati finished the opening test of 2016, at Sepang, with four ꦇriders 🍎in the top ten - led by superstar test rider Casey Stoner.

Yamaha riders Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi led the way 🐟in terms of best lap time, electronics being of greatest gain as tyre grip reduces during a race.