Aruba.It Ducati Team Unveiled (Gallery) Rennie Scaysbrook | February 9, 2017 Aruba.It Ducati wants nothing less than the title in 2017 Melandi (33) is the new boy at Ducati but Davies (7) is hoping his number will be the lucky one in 2017. The factory Aruba.It Racing Ducati team has officially taken the wraps off their 2017 season contender, with incumbent Chaz Davies being joined by series returnee Marco Melandri on the factory Panigale R. Davies in particular will be chasing nothing less than the title for the Aruba squad in what will be his third season at the helm. The Welshman was the rider to beat in the final quarter of the 2016 season, taking six straight race victories on his way to third in the standings overall. The 2017 season will see the return of Marco Melandri to world championship competition after a near two-year absence following a disastrous MotoGP season in 2015 with Aprilia that saw the veteran dumped before the halfway point of year. Melandri is a known quantity, however, having taken 49 podiums and 19 victories in a World Superbike career that has seen him ride factory machines for BMW, Yamaha and Aprilia. The factory Ducati squad also debuted young Australian Mike Jones as their Superstock 1000 rider for 2017. Jones is a former Australian Superbike Champion and subbed for Hector Barbera in the Avintia Ducati squad in MotoGP, having finished with a best result of 15th at the Australian MotoGP. Ducati is the latest team to unveil it’s 2017 colors in the past two weeks, along with Red Bull Honda and Pata Yamaha. Jones will be back in Europe after competing in the Superstock 600 category a few years prior.
